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E-CHAMPIONS
Other pages in this section
Project
Management | Achievements | e-Champion
Support | Success
Stories
 Initially
funded by SRB6 Capacity Building monies with the key objective of
Building Capacity of Community & Voluntary Sector, the Community
e-Champions Project is a Partnership Project between the e-Neighbourhoods
Programme and the Community Development Network 
(CDN
website ) through Voices.
The Community e-Champions Project is an integral part of the e-Neighbourhoods
Programme, working in partnership with existing Community and Voluntary Workers
who play a key role in engaging local communities in the use of ICT. The
Project builds upon their effective community relationships and networks
and encourages
the Community e-Champions to act in a facilitation role encouraging other
members of their community to identify needs and requirements then use
the ICT to help
meet these requirements. This community development approach directly engages
and encourages the hardest to reach groups to develop skills and knowledge,
which enables them to access council e-service provision.
The Project develops and builds upon statutory e-Champions Initiative, where
Central Government e-Champions and Local Government e-Champions are uniquely
joined in Sunderland by a pool of Community based e-Champions.
The Project has 4 key areas of activity
- Provide Technologies
- On-going Technical Support
- Bespoke Training
- Website Development
Provide Technologies
Community e-Champions are equipped with laptops and printers with additional
access to other technologies to help them facilitate access to ICT, and
manage information, consultation and engagement. In providing these resources
the
Project is not only building the capacity of the Community e-Champions
themselves but also providing a vessel with which to engage other citizens.
On-going Technical Support
One of the critical factors for the success and continued engagement
of the existing Community e-Champions is the provision of a dedicated
Technical
Support Officer. This provision reflects the Project’s ethos of
partnership through continued support. On-site visits and telephone support
offered to ensure that
skills and knowledge are continually updated, in addition to the standard
hardware and software maintenance. Bespoke Training
Training is offered to all Community e-Champions. Courses are available
in a variety of formats ranging from structured tutor led sessions,
to student
led one-to-one workshops. The e-Champions Training Officer is also
available at a regular “Drop-in workshop” currently held
in Plains Farm and Humbledon Community Initiative. The continued provision
of the
training through
various formats builds individual capacity, in addition to providing
advantages for community organisations. In building their own capacity
Community e-Champions
are then able to engage others to promote the use of ICT and to raise
awareness within the Voluntary and Community Sector of the potential
of ICT as a Community
Development enabler. For more information on Training provision see
the
Training Section.
Website Development
The Community Development Network (CDN) Website was constructed as part of
the project to allow the Community e-Champions to record and disseminate
key documents, examples of best practice, contacts, community development
issues and Community e-Champion members only areas. The CDN Website has continued
to evolve and develop to meet the needs not only of the Community e-Champions,
but is highly regarded as a key resource for the facilitation of the development
of the wider Community Network.
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