Applications are now open for Digital Lifeline funding. This is an emergency response project to get devices, data and digital skills support to people with learning disabilities within tight timescales.
An easy-read overview of the Digital Lifeline project is available here.
Digital Lifeline is funded by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and delivered by Good Things Foundation, in partnership with AbilityNet.
The project is also supported by trusted expert organisations such as Learning Disability England, the Voluntary Organisations Disability Group (VODG) and Digital Unite.
Applications are welcome from organisations operating in England that support people with learning disabilities, including self-advocacy groups, community-based organisations and those that provide support to people where they live.
As an emergency response project, applicants should be prepared and able to begin immediate delivery of the Digital Lifeline programme.
Eligible organisations will be able to answer ‘yes’ to all of the below questions:
- Do you know at least 10 people with a learning disability who are digitally excluded?
- Do you already support people with learning disabilities in your community? Or, do you have links with self-advocacy groups or day services in your community?
- Can you distribute a device safely to people with learning disabilities, and support them to learn how to use it?
- Can you collect information about each person you support - at the start and at the end? And put this information onto the Good Things CaptureIT secure database?
- Are you ready to get started straight away?
As well as the devices and data, delivery partners will get a grant of £100 for every person they support; the minimum is 10 people + a grant of £1,000. More than 10 devices/£1,000 may be available to a single delivery partner, depending on demand.
For larger organisations who work with a large number of people (100+) we’re offering an up-front grant payment of £3,000 to cover coordination costs, including engagement with beneficiaries, as well as the receipt, delivery and setup of the devices on a large scale. There’s more information about this in the Digital Lifeline Coordinator Grant Information Sheet.
The deadline for applications is 12pm on Monday 15 March.
Full details can be found here: Funding open for devices and data for people with learning disabilities | Good Things Foundation