NDA Annual Conference 2015 – Planning and leadership for
inclusive mainstream public services to people with disabilities
DTSI
Creating user-led
inclusive digital services
Leela Damodaran
Professor of Digital Inclusion and Participation
12th October 2015
DTSI
Defining Digital Inclusion
A digitally inclusive society is one in which all members are able to
access, use and understand digital technologies.
This requires policies and practices that ensure the following
preconditions for digital inclusion:
 Connectivity – infrastructure and individual access to
appropriate hardware, software, services
 Capability – education, ability/disability, digital literacy and skills
 Content – availability of accessible, meaningful, relevant
material
Digital Inclusion – Why is it important?
It offers significant benefits to All - including people with disabilities
 Sustains and enhances independence and autonomy:
• Online access at any time
• Enables working from home
 Promotes social and economic inclusion:
• Communication with friends, families, work colleagues
• Purchase of goods and services, paying of bills
 Fundamental to full participation in society:
• Vote online, express their opinion, hear debate, participate in
social media & forums
Digital Inclusion – The Beneficiaries
 Individuals – enables people with disabilities to be more
independent and have more of a presence
 Service providers – more person-centred, user-led
services which better meet user requirements
 Designers, developers of online services and retailers –
more accessible, inclusive services increase their
customer base and return on investment
 Government (local and national) – increased citizen
participation and cost savings from collaboration
 Society and the wider economy – wide ranging
advantages of digitally engaged communities promoting
self-help and partnerships
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The vision: ‘Declaration of Principles’, WSIS
"We, the representatives of the peoples of the world
…declare our common desire and commitment to build
a people-centred, inclusive and development-oriented
Information Society, where everyone can create,
access, utilize and share information and knowledge,
enabling individuals, community and peoples to
achieve their full potential in promoting their
sustainable development and improving their quality of
life ….”
Source: ‘Declaration of Principles’, World Summit on the
Information Society, Geneva, 10-12 December 2003
DTSI
Digital Inclusion – the Goals
Global access to ICT enhancing health and
wellbeing
Enabling the transformation of individual lives
Prolonging independence and autonomy
Enabling connectedness
Benefiting society and the economy from
individual transformations
DTSI
Enabling successful digital inclusion of people
with disabilities: an example of good practice
Leicestershire CareOnLine service (LCOL) www.leicscareonline.org.uk
 Provides internet training, technical support and advice
 Assesses user requirements
 Engages users in selecting and planning provision
 Provides and installs appropriate assistive technology
LCOL Objectives
(i) Reduce isolation, (ii) Improve well-being, (iii) Increase
independence for vulnerable adults across Leicestershire,
through :
• Access to the internet;
• Access to health and social care information and resources;
• Two way communications with organisations, friends and
family;
• Opportunities to access information, shopping,
communication, entertainment, management of household
tasks etc.
LCOL model
Access to technology, specialist equipment,
training and on-going support
Training
- provided on a one-to-one basis in users’
home
- based on needs and ability
- tailored to the requirements of the
individual user.
-
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Skills
Access
Website
Support
LCOL model
The LCOL website
 Designed to be easy to access for people
with visual or physical impairments (large
buttons, optimum resolution etc)
Skills
Access
Ongoing support (technical, training or
troubleshooting)
- Home visits
- Telephone support
Website
Support
Usage of LCOL
Service user statistics
 The two largest groups of people accessing LCOL services are
older disabled people (34%) and disabled people (34%)
 Many of those who use LCOL services experience
multiple/complex health conditions
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Impact of LCOL on digital inclusion
Impact of LCOL services on users (sample of 60 participants)
 100% of users reported that being able to communicate with friends
and family had a positive impact on their lives
 44% of users were able to become more involved with the
community
 23% of users were able to find new voluntary work or keep involved
with existing voluntary work
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 Users used the computer for the following:
- listening/reading news (83%)
- searching online for health information (77%)
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online shopping (67%)
-
preparing documents/ spreadsheets/ presentations (53%)
Case study : Kay’s Journey
Profile
• 54, wheelchair user
• chronic pain
• personal carer
•
•
•
•
•
Depressed, out of touch
Lost dignity and self respect
Missing out on entitlements
Felt failed by the system
“cycle of disability and isolation for 10 years”
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Barriers
• No computer / internet experience
• Formal training did not meet learning
needs
• Lack of confidence – years of social
exclusion
• Fear of breaking the computer /
getting stuck
• Who to ask for help?
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Benefits
• “My brain is waking up”
• Helping others
• Managing her life again - accessing benefits and services,
online shopping, information
• Communicating - “being part of something”
• Better off financially and emotionally
• “ The difference that changed everything was information
.. it's been a fair old journey but its changed my whole
life. I feel valued and I feel confident compared to what I
was ...its improved my life so much.”
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LCOL enabling Access
• Home assessment – explain benefits
• Equipment solutions for range of needs
• Help set up computers and the Internet
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LCOL Contribution to
Modern Social Care
•
New life skills
•
Confidence to take on Personal Budget
•
Tools to manage staff and finances
•
Communication tools
•
Support network
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Critical success factors for digital
participation
1 design of hardware
and software
2 access to help and
support
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Critical success factors for LOCL
One-to-one user-centred training and support
(tailored to the individual demands and needs of
highly diverse users)
Provision of on-going technical and social support –
crucially important for those lacking ICT problemsolving skills and confidence, and often characterised
by changing circumstances (e.g. additional health
conditions developing, decline in cognitive and other
capacities, loss of informal support networks etc.)
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Digital Inclusion – Essential Steps
 Gain ‘buy-in’ of all stakeholders
 Normalise inclusive design
 Increase expectations of products i.e., new products should be
inclusive by default
 Ensure community ICT support provision is comprehensive and
ubiquitous
 Recognise the importance of staying online over getting online
 Communicate, coordinate and collaborate efforts on initiatives
 Utilise local resources
 Harness the political will to achieve this vision
 Recognise and celebrate what we can all achieve given the
right access to ICTs
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Fundamentals for digital participation
Engagement:
 face to face, free advice/service, give confidence,
Reassurance:
 eliminate unnecessary fear and threat ie NO pressure or exams, individually
tailored and personal
Motivation:
 find the relevant ‘spark’ that grabs their interest,
(motivation gives confidence and energy)
Changes required:





funding at local level
recognition of the proven value of services like LCOL,
access to equipment (tablets have made the most difference)
free low level broadband for needy,
on-going help and support to keep up with changing technology and solve
problems
Source: LCOL team at Leicestershire County Council
DTSI
Thank you for listening
Any questions?
DTSI
Acknowledgements
Sus-IT (“Sustaining IT use by older people to promote
autonomy and independence”). A New Dynamics of Ageing
(NDA) project, funded by the five UK Research Councils AHRC, BBSRC, EPSRC, ESRC and MRC
(Grant No. RES-353-25-0008).
KT-EQUAL (“Knowledge Transfer for Extending Quality Life”)
funded by the EPSRC (Grant No. EP/G030898/2).
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