Manchester’s Digital Device Scheme

Manchester City Council’s Work and Skills team and the Libraries service are working together to deliver the Manchester Digital Device Scheme and Telephone Support Service.

During lockdown, many residents across the city didn’t have any home access to the Internet, or the skills and confidence to get online. Manchester City Council’s Work and Skills team and the Libraries team quickly came together to design and deliver a digital device and skills support service that was connected to the cities COVID Response hub.

The service aimed to increase the number of residents with home access to the Internet by donating devices to priority residents. It also offered digital skills support over the phone on things such as how to turn on a device, setting up an email account, making video calls, doing online supermarket shopping and accessing health information.

During phase one of the Manchester Device Scheme, over 430 people were given laptops, tablets and WiFi – delivered by Care + Repair. We purchased devices and Wi-Fi through Vodafone, XMA and CDM, through the national DevicesDotNow scheme and through partnerships with Citizens Advice Manchester and One Manchester. 

Who was eligible?

To be eligible for a device, residents had to be 19 and over, a resident of Manchester and have no fit for purpose Internet access at home. They also had to meet one or more of the following: be disabled, have a long-term health condition, be over 65, or have low income. 

Through the skills part of the service, residents received digital support over the phone from a Digital Champion. These Champions came from the Libraries team, the Work and Skills team, Manchester Adult Education Service (MAES), Citizens Advice Manchester and YES Manchester. We also recruited volunteers from the MCRVIP and Macc.

Residents accessed the service through the Community Hub or were referred by other Council services and external partner organisations, or self-referred themselves or friends and family. Those who were completely offline could text 07860 064128.

Between May and December 2020 over 500 residents were supported over the phone, and a total of over 900 residents have been supported by this service since May 2020. 

“I was privileged to be one of the volunteers. One of the residents I supported at the time made clear her distrust of technology, but also showed willingness to want to learn something new. We met once a week virtually and by the third week, she had learnt how to create an email address, was scheduling meetings on Zoom by herself with family members, and was telling me of the research she had been doing to upskill herself further. This was someone that the first phone call we had, told me of her distrust for computers in general.”

What’s next?

What was essentially a COVID response has continued to grow and now runs as a business-as-usual service. The Libraries team continues to coordinate the telephone skills support service, with an ever-growing list of Digital Volunteers and Digital Champions .

Manchester Adult Education Service (MAES) has also created a volunteer training course to make sure all volunteers have the same basic understanding and to provide them with the opportunity to develop their skills, knowledge and approaches to become a confident digital mentor.

The City Council, GMCA, MHCC and MHCLG have all contributed to the extension of the device scheme as well as other data and access projects – including contributing to a grant funded programme that allows community organisations to purchase devices and data and offer more targeted skills support.

To date, we have donated 886 devices and 487 WiFi connections. By March 2022, we will have distributed a minimum of 1,340 phones, chromebooks and tablets and 1,250 internet packages.

The City Council has also launched the Refurbished Device Scheme Commission, which will test a more sustainable and affordable solution to getting more residents online.

To find out more about what’s been going on across the city, take a look at the Let’s Get Digital October 2021 Highlights Report.