It's been a difficult year, but also the year that I can honestly say I am most proud of. Our teams have worked together to not only come back from the Coronavirus pandemic that suspended all of our face-to-face activities, but now working to support residents during a very hard winter. 

 

I cannot believe we are entering 2023, and coming up to our 7th birthday... where has all the time gone! I've looked back at particular key months from 2023 that have made the Keeping Digital Foundation as strong as it is today. 

 

January was all about finding our voice as North Yorkshire's leading digital inclusion charitable organisation, and also working to improve our ways of working as we prepared to relaunch our face-to-face services after a difficult two years caused by the Coronavirus pandemic that had affected us in so many ways, from volunteering to operations. 

 

January was also the month we decided we were going to go big this year, working to more than double the amount of our services and to work closely with our communities to improve our services and to really contribute to getting North Yorkshire online. 

 

February saw the first of our digital making activities return for in-person services. York Pi Jam’s last activity ran weeks before the first lockdown in March 2020, with York Pi Jam volunteers since providing free activities via the organisation’s website. 2 years later, York Pi Jam brought back face-to-face digital making activities to the city of York. 

 

It was also the first service to return to Acomb Explore Library, a main hub for many Keeping Digital Foundation services. 

 

The service remained free of charge for everyone, despite rising costs from inflation and the recent pandemic. 

 

In April, we joined 100% Digital York, a brand new partnership including the Keeping Digital Foundation, which plans to build a network that supports the residents of York to get online. 

 

We announced that we were starting to look for a team of volunteers to help us provide support to local residents and other local charities, as we come together to help everyone gain skills to access vital online support and services. 

 

We launched a city-wide advertising campaign, which saw the message advertised on various local news websites, and also broadcasted through some of the city’s radio stations. 

 

It highlighted our commitment to our local community with even more volunteering opportunities available allowing residents to get vital skills and to give back to their community. 

 

In 2020, we announced that we would be bringing back York CoderDojo to the city of York, after previous organisers decided to end the activities. 

 

York CoderDojo is a friendly place to meet and develop coding and tech skills or to learn something new. We run free informal sessions where young people from 7-17 and families can come along and work on projects, develop new skills, participate in challenges, whatever they want. Volunteers are there to provide guidance, encouragement & support in a relaxed environment. 

 

It’s all part of our continued mission to provide more digital making activities, allowing all young people across North Yorkshire to have the same opportunities when it comes to digital literacy. 

 

The first York CoderDojo happened on Monday 13th June, with the service becoming our most popular digital making activity in the region. 

 

After months of hard work and perfecting, our brand new website finally went live across the organisation! 

 

It brought together our many different services, making it even easier to find all of the information and support you need. It also was seen as a new investment in our communities, and paves the way for new updates to help residents locate their nearest support services and to also be able to sign up to our digital making activities via Keeping Digital accounts. 

 

After forming in 2016 and growing to become Keeping Digital Foundation, providing digital making and digital inclusion services across North Yorkshire, Keeping Digital officially registered as a CIC in September 2022. Becoming a CIC meant we could provide reassurance for our funders and also members of the public, so they can know that their donations only fund the amazing work our volunteers do! 

 

September was also the month we revealed our new Digital Cafe network. Working in partnership with 100% Digital York, we started to roll out a network of Digital Cafes, where York residents can get dedicated support in getting online. People can come along, have a warm drink and get answers to their questions about all things digital and ask for advice about getting the most out of their digital devices. Volunteers are on hand to help people get online, and support could be anything from setting up a smart phone to signing up to the NHS app or York Council website. No bookings are required, and people can stick around for a few minutes, or a couple of hours. 

 

The first Digital Cafe launched at Tang Hall Explore Library. 

 

We celebrated Get Online Week by running digital making activities across the region, with the hopes to expand services to target more local residents. 

 

Proudly working in partnership with North Yorkshire County Council, we provided more of our digital making activities to young people across the region, with two new locations in Northallerton and Harrogate. 

 

The second Digital Cafe was revealed at Sanderson House, a new space for York residents to get dedicated support in getting online, from accessing Council services or setting up a mobile phone! Bring along any devices, any questions and our volunteers are here for a cuppa and a chat. 

It's been an incredible year for the Keeping Digital Foundation, and we are excited to reveal more Digital Cafes in 2023, and to continue the amazing work of our digital making activities for young people across the region. 

 

Nearly 1 in 5 adults lack the most basic digital skills needed for everyday life, with over 1 in 20 households having no internet access, neither fixed line nor mobile. Having the option to get connected is vital, with much support from councils and businesses moving online in recent years. 

 

Our digital making activities ensures every young person has an equal chance in developing creativity and problem solving skills, with equal access to STEM education regardless of school catchment area. 

 

Our new Digital Cafes are an extremely vital service across the City of York, tackling digital exclusion and supporting residents to get online and to build confidence with technology to help them avoid scams and to get the support they need when they need it most. 

 

We would not be able to do our incredible work if it wasn't for the amazing support of our volunteers - thank you all so much! 

 

Everyone at the Keeping Digital Foundation would like to wish you a Happy New Year. and we hope to see you at some of our services very soon.