WIREDGOV

Individuals and organisations across the UK are being encouraged to Pass IT on to friends, family, employees and even complete strangers - joining a national race online.

Onliners wanting to help those offline get to grips with computers and the internet are being directed to a new website developed by UK online centres - www.helppassiton.co.uk.  It includes all the information and resources both individuals and organisations (at www.partners.helppassiton.co.uk) need to start passing their IT know-how on to other people. 

There are 10 million people in the UK who have never used the internet, and the aim of the campaign is to get one million of them to give it a try by the end of 2012, with a helping hand from those around them. 

Individuals can get involved by helping their family and friends find places like UK online centres, or introducing them to Online basics - a suite of simple online courses covering how to use a keyboard and mouse, basic email, internet searching, and online safety. 

Organisations can get involved by getting their offline staff online, getting online staff and customers to Pass IT on to friends, or getting online staff to volunteer to Pass IT on to people in their communities.  Digital Champion Martha Lane Fox and her Race Online 2012 team have already been talking to large organisations, with BT, Comet, Google, McDonald's, Microsoft, Moneysupermarket.com, Sky, Skype and TalkTalk amongst the first to make their 'digital promise' to Pass IT on.  For instance, McDonald's will be asking their 80,000 staff to Pass IT on to family and friends, while Moneysupermarket.com and Skype have promised to encourage their customers to Pass IT on, helping out with training and equipment. 

The Pass IT on concept was trialled by UK online centres last October during Get online day 2009.  As well as targeting offline consumers, Get online day also targeted the individuals around them, using 'pester power' and the influence of trusted intermediaries to help motivate the web-wary. 

Managing Director for UK online centres, Helen Milner, said:  "Connecting people to technology and the skills and confidence to use it can connect them to new and better paid jobs, to government and corporate services, conveniences and savings, a whole world of information, and most importantly to each other.  Not everyone has to use the internet, but everyone should know what's out there for them, and what it might bring to their lives.  We know there are thousands of people who see those benefits and want to get someone they love online, but being an IT tutor - especially to someone in your family - isn't as easy as it sounds!  Pass IT on aims to provide people with the tools they need to get someone started online quickly, easily and safely. 

"It is fantastic to see Pass IT on starting to become a real movement, and Martha Lane Fox's work to extend it out to large organisations means the race online is really picking up momentum.  If everyone online in the UK gets just one offline person they know to give the internet a go, we could eliminate digital exclusion altogether.  I'm looking forward to seeing even more partners take up the challenge, make their digital promises at www.raceonline2012.org, and start passing IT on with www.helppassiton.co.uk."

Ends

For further information about this press release, please contact Abi Stevens or Elizabeth Underwood on 0778 666 0689.

• For people who are already online and know someone who isn't, visit www.helppassiton.co.uk
• For businesses or other organisations wanting to Pass IT on, visit www.partners.helppassiton.co.uk
• To find out more about getting online, call 0800 77 1234 to find your nearest UK online centre, where friendly staff are waiting to help you get started
• For full details of Race Online 2012 first wave partner promises, or to find out more about becoming a Race Online 2012 partner, visit www.raceonline2012.org
• To find out more about the economic benefits of digital inclusion, read the full PWC research report on www.raceonline2012.org

Notes to editors

• Press release, 29 March 2010
• Online basics is hosted as part of the myguide service - www.myguide.gov.uk. It includes five key modules covering the basics people need to know to get going online - from keyboard and mouse skills through to email, internet searching, and how to stay safe on the internet. Online basics was developed by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, Becta and UK online centres in response to Baroness Estelle Morris' Review of ICT User Skills (published in June 2009), which recommended a single channel to help the digitally excluded get to grips with technology.
• UK online centres provide millions of people with access to technology and support in using it. They offer free or low cost access to the internet and email, deliver online courses and encourage people to progress onto further learning. For more information please visit www.ukonlinecentres.com. UK online centres are a division of Ufi, the organisation also behind learndirect. 
• Martha Lane Fox was appointed as independent Champion for Digital Inclusion in June 2009. The Prime Minister asked her to broaden her role to become the UK's Digital Champion earlier this month see http://raceonline2012.org/sites/default/files/resources/martha_lane_fox.pdf. Digital Inclusion Limited is government funded by the Department of Communities and Local Government (through the Community Development Foundation) but is an independent organisation. Martha Lane Fox co-founded lastminute.com, Europe's largest travel and leisure website, in 1998. She then went on to co-found and chair the private karaoke chain Lucky Voice. In 2007, she launched Antigone, a grant-giving foundation that supports education, health and criminal justice charities to reflect her commitment to social justice. She is non-executive director at Marks & Spencer plc, Channel 4 Television and Mydeco