Back in 2015, council services were quickly moving online and it was increasingly clear that people without access to the internet would be disadvantaged. Internet access at home gives a person access to information, shopping, video contact with friends and family, digital access to healthcare, entertainment, and crucially, independence.

In 2020, under lockdown, internet access from home became even more valuable. During the first lockdown we supported more people to get online at home for the first time and we met each week on Zoom.

The Internet Club was created as a social space –a drop-in group with hot drinks and biscuits where people can bring technical problems and ask for help from peers and volunteers. It’s not teaching, it’s not computing classes, no one has training or qualifications in teaching tech, we just figure things out together.

The Internet Club is cheap to run and enormously effective. We were confident it would be useful - and it turns out to also be hugely enjoyable.

A donation of £3 per person per week covers room hire, refreshments, and consumables.