‘See IT in Action 2012 is a market place event designed to showcase the latest innovations in ICT. It will demonstrate how local government is working to improve the delivery of public services and meet the government’s pledge to make all services ‘digital by default’. See IT in Action 2012 will focus on how local authorities can utilise technology to empower citizens, improve frontline services and transform the lives of the most vulnerable citizens in society and the ‘digitally excluded’.’

Make it Happen are sharing a stall in the market place with TPAS (Tenant Participation Advisory Service). We’ll be showcasing the exciting e-learning courses, activities, resources and e-learning games that we have designed for TPAS over the past two years.

Why not come along and visit us? We are at stall number 20.

It’s all free!

With all the free social networking, blogging and web site design software that is around now, it is vital that tenant groups and panels are in a strong and visible position with web-based information. To help groups achieve this, Make it Happen (MIH) is running a 3 day residential training course called ‘Tenants on the Web’ (TOW) at the National Communities Resource Centre at Trafford Hall from 26th-28th March 2012. The course costs only £15 for social housing tenants in England.

Using this free software, MIH will guide you through the process of developing and designing your own web presence, and you will leave Trafford Hall with a ‘live’ working web presence that you have designed yourself. You will learn skills that you can pass on to others in your group or community, to bring them up to speed in the new web-based world. MIH have been running this course for the past 5 years with some really exciting results! Groups have set up web presence/s using free platforms such as; WordPress, Blogger, Facebook and Twitter. 

£500 grant opportunity

Delegates from groups who complete the course can apply for a grant of up to £500. The grant must be used to give your group the chance to disseminate the learning to a wider local audience, or to begin to develop projects related to the course you attended.

Gain a proper qualification!

The TOW course is accredited by the Open College Network, so you get a proper qualification if you complete the course. It’s a great opportunity!

For more information contact:

Dane at Make it Happen. Or, to book a place, contact Claire Lawton at Trafford Hall on 01244 300246 or email her at: MC.Lawton ‘at’ traffordhall.com (insert @ instead of ‘at’).

We are now in the final stages of developing a new e-learning course for the Tenants Participation Advisory Service (TPAS) called ‘Involving Everyone’. The course launches on 14th Feb 2011. Part of the course involves looking at the new Equality Act and how this effects Voluntary and Community Sector organisations. Check out the links below for information about the Act and the video from the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

There’s a wide range of information on the Equality and Human Rights Commission website including videos. pdf downloads and an Equality Act Starter Kit. You can download the starter kit in sections and use it to see what your organisation might need to consider for the future in relation to the Act. There are also some excellent publications produced by the Government Equalities Office that you can download for free. Click on the ones under the heading ‘Voluntary and Community Organisations’. ACAS also have some excellent publications and information.

It’s great to see Leeds Federated HA, who take pride in being a ‘people’ organisation, highlighting the important role that e-learning @mbassadors can play:

Leeds Federated is proud to announce that Sue Howlett an involved tenant has taken on the role of E-Learning Ambassador for TPAS to promote Easy-Learning online.

Sue is part of a team of trained E-Learning Ambassadors who will continue to work with TPAS to explore new technologies and develop innovative new courses, content and ideas for the E-Learning programme.

Congratulations to Sue, her hard work and commitment has led her to take on opportunities at the cutting edge of tenant involvement.

Read the full article here: Putting Tenants at the Heart of TPAS E-Learning Programme

A new dawn in tenant empowerment!

And we wanted to find out:

How can TPAS eNetwork help empower tenants and residents?

We asked members how they might want to use TPAS eNetwork and what features they’d like to see. Here are some of the ideas that came up:

Some uses for TPAS eNetwork

• Good for tackling social isolation
• Good for connecting with young people
• Use it to address both providers and tenants
• Use photo & video evidence to ‘name & shame’ providers
• Put paperwork online instead – but think about security
• Slogan: ‘inclusive not exclusive’
• Useful for community cohesion
• Address disability access issues
• Buddy system
• Silver surfers
• Intergenerational – young and older users offering mutual help – e.g. adopt a granny/grandad
• Self-moderating groups will develop with tenant involvement in the TPAS eNetwork
• Make sample policies available for others to use/adapt to avoid ‘reinventing the wheel’

Features wish list

• Jargon buster
• Links to BBC security site/info, e.g. Staying Safe, and CEOP
• Web page (form) to assess users’ skill levels (computer/internet literacy)
• Functionality for iPhones & mobiles
• Make it clear: What’s private? What’s public?
• Site user policy – code of conduct
• Facebook plugin? – a possible future development?
• Creative commons – using copyright-free/open media – e.g. photos on Flickr
• What about Twitter feeds – tweeting?
• Linkedin network?
• Link to FixMyStreet.com – highlight this online service
• Link to TPAS Flickr group (plugin feeds from… install widget?)
• Link to TPAS YouTube channel (plugin feeds from… install widget?)
• Linking to many other relevant sites & organisations is very important
• Web conferencing – a future development
• Highlight useful web conferencing services/tools:
  • Skype
  • dimdim
  • Flash Meeting (online video conferencing), part of LearningSpace from the Open University
  • Moodle & TPAS e-learning

Other issues

• Training for newbies – face 2 face & online – e.g. BBC raw: Introducing the internet and BBC Webwise Guides
• How to involve those without computers?
• Moderating online conversations – how will this work?
• Open to non-members?
• Promote security of TPAS eNetwork site (i.e. compared to other big social networks which would be more attractive to hackers and scams)

Thanks to the TPAS e-learning @mbassadors, who are the key member bloggers at TPAS eNetwork, for helping to facilitate the workshop and their great contributions to the lively discussions.

Make it Happen is pleased to be working in partnership with Volunteering England and JLJ Associates to develop multi-media e-learning resources and activities for the The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association. The new e-learning course is designed for new staff and people who manage volunteers at Guide Dogs, and will be launched in mid Sept 2010.