Many people over 55 are struggling with technology, be the device a mobile phone, tablet, or laptop. If you feel in that category, you are not alone as the latest figures show that 35% of adults between 50 and 70 and 70% of the over 70s do not use the internet. With so many everyday tasks increasingly only accessible online it is easy to see that this ‘exclusion’ can often add to the feelings of isolation and loneliness.
Age UK nationally have made it their mission to support as many over 55s as possible to overcome their fear of the internet and enjoy the benefits of being online which may include sending and receiving emails, filling in online forms, sharing photos and videos, watching favourite films and TV programmes, and doing online shopping and banking. Their service is offered for free, they are even able to loan any necessary hardware for free during the support period. Age UK have 12 local volunteer tutors (usually people who work/have worked with technology) currently supporting individuals with face-to-face sessions in their Malvern and Worcester offices and doing home visits where mobility is an issue.
Experience has shown that most clients do not want to learn the ins and outs of a particular program such as WORD or EXCEL but are much more likely to want to solve problems like connecting with the internet, setting up their device to suit their needs or finding out how to utilise the benefits from this or that online application. Often clients have been given unwanted devices (with the briefest of handovers) by well-meaning children or grandchildren and they are a bit flummoxed – at the outset we ask them to bring their device along with a list of their questions and our tutors will do their best to sort out the issues one by one!