Community benefits of e - technology

Peter MarchantHead of LibrariesKnowsley Library Service

Profile of Knowsley

• Population 154,000

• East of Liverpool in Merseyside

• Objective One Status

• Index of Deprivation

Knowsley is typified by :-

• A large child population

• High number of households where no-one is working

• Low car ownership

• High levels of benefit dependency

• An educationally disadvantaged adult population

• High numbers of pupils with special education needs

• Poor attendance in secondary schools

Key Factors

• Lack of qualifications main barrier

• Training in computing increasing chances of employment

• Lack of mobility

• Employers need ICT related skills

• Dependent on public-access facilities

• Community Information Programme

Learning Resource Centres

• ICT hardware / software / information super-highway

• Free access / 120 computers in 7 libraries

• Over 95,000 users in the past year

• Key feature - staff support

• Drop in ICT facilities for all sectors of the community

• Open access training facilities

• Drop in facilities for the Small Medium Enterprise sector

Lifelong Learning using ICT

• Informal and formal educational opportunities

• Drive to re-skill the local workforce

• ECDL qualification in IT

• Library staff acting as moderators / assessors

• 85 people trained who obtained ICT qualifications

• Learndirect

Regeneration through employment

• Excellent job search facilities

• Empathy, trust and respect

• Supporting unemployed people to use ICT in order to secure

employment

• 50 Residents gaining employment

• Growth in revenue budget

Supporting Small-Medium Enterprise (SME) facilities

• Skilling the community to compete

• ICT hardware, software and training facilities

• Company Information

• Business related software

• Business link and their expert advice

• Over 100 businesses supported in Halewood

Study Support

• Involving young people and the whole family in a holistic

view of learning

• Multimedia networked PCs

• Free Internet access

• Staff guidance and support

• Free printing and photocopying facilities

• Virtual information service

• Excellence in Cities Initiative

• Serving over 40,000 visits by pupils in the past year

New Deal Scheme

• Supporting the Government’s New Deal initiative

• Participants offered work placements after 6 months

• Encouraging the community’s use of ICT

• 8 people obtained ICT related jobs in the past year

• 5 people obtained permanent jobs in the library service

Creche facilities

• Supporting women with young children

• Working with Early Years and Childcare Partnership

• Mobile creche offered on a weekly basis

• Taster sessions

• Progression to accredited courses

• Over 50 people benefited so far

Braille transcription service

• Access to information for visually impaired people

• Free publicly available transcription service

• Community contacts / links with other services

• Serving individuals / other Council departments

• Over 70 documents created in the last year

Disaffected pupils project

• Students excluded from mainstream education

• behavioural problems

• bullying

• pregnancy

• Encouraging use of ICT facilities

• Completed Open Learning for Children packages

• Regular library members

• Returned to full-time education

• Over 30 young people gaining personal and social

development in the past year

• Cost to Education Authority of excluded pupils

Future Developments

• Family Learning Centre

- quiet study areas

- play areas

- facilities to watch films and listen to music

- activity based areas

• Virtual Library

Peter MarchantHead of Libraries

peter.marchant.dlcs@knowsley.gov.uk

www.knowsley.gov.uk

http://history.knowsley.gov.uk

Contact Details