Archive for the ‘Learning’ Category

We think there is quite a lot of untapped expertise around social media from people who work in the public sector but who don’t actually get to use social media in their job.

So, we want to learn from public sector staff who regularly use social networking sites, in their spare time, such as Twitter and Facebook to inform a number of projects which will shape how public sector organisations use social media.

Initially this will focus on the NHS and the council, following an approach from Darren Wright at the Health and Wellbeing Partnership.

We want to understand how we can better engage with local residents and
get messages into communities using new technologies, and are looking for experts to help us create this approach.

You do not have to use Social Media as part of your work but we would like to look at your personal experience and find out what you can teach us about becoming more digitally engaged organisations. For more information email us here

Launch 48

The aim of Launch48 is to bring together participants from different backgrounds and levels of experience in the web industry to think/plan/develop and launch one or multiple web apps in one weekend. It’s a frantic, energy fuelled, entrepreneurial event designed to engage all participants while offering the opportunity to learn and meet new people.

Launch 48 Birmingham will run between 12th and 14th of November 2010, at Birmingham Science Park Aston.

Launch48 Mini-Conference Birmingham runs from:

1 pm to 5 pm Friday the 12th of November, 2010

6 pm to 10 pm Friday the 12th of November, 2010
9 am to 9 pm Saturday the 13th of November, 2010
9 am to 9 pm Sunday the 14th of November, 2010

For more information, please click here.

Silver Surfers’ Day is the biggest, national campaign to promote use of digital technologies by older people. It is run by Digital Unite and was started in 2002, this is the ninth annual event.

On Silver Surfers’ Day Digital Unite support people and organisations all over the UK to open their doors and give local older people a taste of what the digital world has to offer them at a Silver Surfers’ Day Event.

Anyone can become an Event Holder – if you’re already working with older people, if you are passionate about supporting them to be digitally literate, then this is an event for you!

For more information and to find an event near you, please go to the Digital Unite webpage.

Officially launches on Thursday 13 May 2010!

It is a new Working Neighbourhood Fund/ Birmingham City Council project which aims to support the local small business community by making opportunities to supply the City Council, our suppliers and partner organisations more visibly.

When buying goods in future, Birmingham City Council Directorates will now be using this free web-based service to source goods and services that cannot be sourced from existing supplier contracts.

Businesses and suppliers can sign up and register for free for access to local contracts, support, networking events, seminars, and job opportunities, helping you to stay ahead, get noticed and more importantly win bigger and better contracts for your business.

Register at www.finditinbirmingham.com.

Well, it may be 5 years too late but at last Central Government has decided to catch up with the times and revise the primary school curriculum to include Internet Safety and prepare our children for the digital age.

It has long been the belief of IT educationalists that there is no point in restricting young people’s access to the wealth of information held on “t’internet”.  But, wouldn’t it be better preparing our future generations by providing them with the knowledge and understanding of not only the benefits, but the dangers of “t’internet” and enabling them to make informed decisions and judgements for themselves.  Because we all know, if you tell a young person not to do something … the likelihood is that they WILL go and do exactly what you’ve told them not to!

Birmingham Bulletin the City’s own e-mail alert service delivered a great news story today into my in-box which I have to tell you all.  Birmingham has got its very own digitally enabled news site.  You must visit www.Birminghamnewsroom.com as its a one stop shop for all the news from the City Council.  

No more do I have to go hunting for information across various websites to get the latest news.  It has rss feeds, video, twitter, flickr and links to Birmingham own Youtube channel.   It is great to see that the City is at the forefront of embracing new technologies and social media and this can only enhance Birmingham reputation as a leading digital city.

Yesterday Donna and I delivered a session on ‘marketing your organisation’ for third sector groups on behalf of B.Strong, the stronger communities partnership. You may remember that I blogged about it a while ago, desperately asking for sources of support that I could recommend to groups when they are left to their own devices. More – Marketing session at B.Strong

Gaming fun in the digital family house joined by Ian Binks, BT and Birmingham City Council Deputy Leader, Paul Tilsley

Our Digital Family are now 8 months into their digital journey and have taken their technology skiing, used it to keep up to date with the football right down to the local league level of 9 year old Kieran and shopped online for holidays. This month is dad Simon’s turn to get some one-to-one support and a digital makeover for his business.  Dave Harte here will be giving Simon, a self-employed builder, some advice on setting up a website and promoting his services through online business communities such as BT Tradespace. More – Digital Family soon to be a green family

It has been recently reported that one in three teenagers are suffering bullying by mobile phone, text messages, messenger or on the Internet.  Tuesday saw the launch of a team of online Cyber Mentors to help teenage victims of bullying and they were deluged with calls for help with hundreds of victims and friends of victims logging on to chat to one of the 700 specially trained teenagers about their problems. More – Teenagers Tackle Cyberbullies