WIREDGOV

Social landlords are being urged to bid for funding to design innovative schemes to help their tenants to get online and improve their IT skills in a funding round that has been launched yesterday by OCF (the organisation behind the UK online centres network) along with the Department for Work and Pensions and Department for Communities and Local Government. The Digital Deal is a cross-Government challenge to support claimants to use the internet, and to increase their confidence in managing benefit claims and searching for jobs online.

Social landlords have until June 3 to submit a match-funded bid for a share of nearly half-a-million pounds, which will support up to 10 projects.

The Digital Deal challenge fund has been designed to support the implementation of the government’s Digital by Default strategy, which will support people to use services like Universal Credit in the future.

To apply for the fund,  which is managed by Online Centres Foundation, registered social housing providers can visit the Digital Housing Hub,  where they will find further information on the Digital Deal challenge fund, as well as information on promoting digital inclusion to tenants.  Applications are open until June 3, with successful providers being informed at the end of July and programmes set to start from September.