Bringing Digital Inclusion to Life at Cornerstone URC & 5th Boys Brigade and Girls Association
A digital skills course in action at 5th Boys and Girls Brigade Association.
Georgie, our Digital Inclusion Officer visited Chloe Anwen, Community Engagement Manager at Cornerstone United Reformed Church on Tuesday 31st of March to have a chat about the digital inclusion efforts the church has put in place since receiving five laptops from our team in 2025. Cornerstone URC offers a range of community-focused activities, including the running of the 5th Boys Brigade and Girls Association (5BBGA), dedicated to teaching life-skills and challenging young people through a dynamic programme of activities and meetings.
Utilising these donated laptops, 5BBGA ran a five-week digital skills programme to help 9 young people aged 14-18 gain hands on skills and experience with digital design and marketing, using graphic design platform, Canva. This gave the young people an opportunity to become familiar with the laptop set up, including using trackpads and keyboards, and understand how to use Canva to experiment with colours, layouts and creative ideas. The course provided real-world experience, as the flyers created were used by Cornerstone URC and 5BBGA for marketing and recruitment, giving the young people a sense of ownership and pride in their work.
This experience has broadened 5BBGA’s understanding of digital exclusion, from limited familiarity with Windows‑based software impacting employment opportunities to the wider social and economic impacts of not having an appropriate device for skill development and online access. Following the success of the course, and seeing first-hand the value digital support can provide, Chloe is keen to develop further digital inclusion activities. These would support not only the young people involved in 5BBGA, but also the wider Cornerstone URC community as digital exclusion can affect people of any age, particularly as technology evolves over time. For example, digital skills are now embedded in their Badge Classes, which run for 15-17 year old young people disengaged from school, and covers topics such as AI, computer skills and media literacy through hands on experience with the donated laptops.
Following the donation of the five laptops, we were also able to provide Cornerstone URC with a small grant to support with setting up as a Databank, as part of Good Things Foundation’s National Databank Programme, providing free data SIM cards to low-income residents. Chloe mentioned this has been invaluable for some of their members, who were struggling to access essential online services, showing the value an internet-connected device can have in an increasingly online world. They also provide ongoing support with the NHS App, and other ad hoc support as needed by their members and have plans to run further digital courses using the laptops to support more members with their digital confidence.
Cornerstone is excited to explore further opportunities in the digital inclusion space over the coming months. It’s been great to see the impact they are having on their members’ digital confidence and skill development, and we can’t wait to see what they get up to next!
Questions? Get in touch with our Digital Inclusion team by e-mailing us at digitalinclusion@manchester.gov.uk.