BTea Room and Support for Digital Inclusion

That the Parliament welcomes the BTea Room sessions, which took place from 4 to 6 October 2023 in Glasgow, delivering group and one-to-one training sessions to help older and digitally excluded people thrive in the digital world; understands that the free sessions focused on improving digital skills, building confidence and online safety for everyday tasks and essential services, including access to online shopping, health services or to communications platforms; notes that all training was delivered in a positive and relaxed learning environment over a cuppa and refreshments; acknowledges that the BTea Room was delivered as part of BT Group’s partnership with the charity AbilityNet; highlights that the partners run a UK-wide Senior Skills Programme, which is aiming to support 5,000 older and digitally excluded people in more than 1,000 training sessions in 2023 and 2024; recognises that BT Group is onboarding 40 new volunteers, and that AbilityNet works with 150 community partners to deliver the programme; believes that the programme is helping to address the digital divide amongst the older community, in which, it understands, one in four people lack the basic skills to use the internet independently, according to the Centre for Ageing Better’s 2022 State of Ageing report; highlights BT Group’s own research, which, it understands, shows that 65% of older adults think no one is too old to learn new skills, with 49% open to learning tech skills specifically; notes that Glasgow was chosen for the sessions based on growing demand for tech support among older people; further notes that sessions will also be available in Edinburgh, and wishes all participants good luck with making the most of life in a digital world.