Tea & Technology: Digital engagement project in partnership with Aviva

Anchor has been working closely with Aviva to increase digital engagement amongst older people.

Anchor's Tea & Technology project has used the £50,000 gifted from Aviva’s Community Fund to purchase tablets and train volunteers to open up the digital world to a whole new audience.

Why this project is so important

In 2018 only 44% of those aged 75 and over were recent internet users, suggesting the majority in this age group still do not have access to the online world.

A BritainThinks report entitled Life Offline: What life is like for older people who don’t use the internet, prepared for Age UK in 2015, found that while older people were not opposed to going online, some have many entrenched barriers to using the internet. These include:

• A lack of knowledge and experience of the internet
• Low to no ‘top of mind’ awareness among this audience that they are missing out by not being online
• A feeling that the internet is an ‘unsafe place’
• A strong feeling that using computers/the internet is very much outside their comfort zone
• A perception that cost and access are prohibitive

The report also suggested that research participants felt addressing these barriers successfully would involve sustained and focused face-to-face support to help build confidence and skills.

Tea & Technology has been working hard to tackle these barriers and help older people realise the benefits of getting online. In an increasingly digital world it’s vital the older generation are given the opportunity to see for themselves what the internet has to offer and decide whether they can benefit.

By providing trainers, face-to-face sessions, tablets and wi-fi connections, the project is enabling those who may have previously felt going online wasn’t for them to have a go.

Our key achievements in the past six months

• Almost 200 customers reached so far
• 100% of customers pleased with their experience
• 100% of volunteers pleased with their experience
• 50 tablets are now in circulation
• 35 trained volunteers
• Volunteers have travelled more than 1,200 miles to break through the barriers to accessing technology

Read our report to find out how Tea & Technology is making a difference.