MULTI MILLION £ PUBLIC / PRIVATE SECTOR INITIATIVE TO CREATE NETWORK OF 82 ‘DIGILABS’ FOR YOUNG PEOPLE ACROSS WALES

CREDU, a multi-million pound project created by Canllaw Online and Fujitsu Services to provide a network of 82 Digilabs situated across the length and breadth of Wales, was launched by Andrew Davies, Minister for Economic Development and Transport, on Friday 10th September at the Canllaw Online office in Caerphilly.

Launching this landmark project, Andrew Davies said; “CREDU, and the Digilab network, will provide young people will the opportunity to learn essential ICT skills, which are vital to the continued transformation of Wales into a high-value, knowledge based economy.”

“This exciting and innovative project is also the 2000th recipient from the successful European Structural Funding programme. The £9m Objective 1 grant for this project brings the total amount of European Grants awarded to £1bn.”

“Together with public and private sector match funding, over £2.3bn has now been invested in Wales over the past 4 years through the Structural Funds Programme alone. This staggering level of investment has created and safeguarded over 72,000 jobs in Wales, improving prosperity, increasing opportunity and transforming communities once considered economic blackspots.”

“This is truly a landmark day for Wales, for the young people of Wales and for the future of Wales.”

Strategic Information Services for Young People

CREDU, the Digital Youth Wales project, is a national initiative to create a digital information service by and for young people across Wales. The aim of CREDU (which means “to believe” in Welsh) is to bring the computer equipment, a portal of choice and skill learning opportunities to young people, to enhance the programmes and locations in which they are already working. The intention is to make the CREDU benefits available to all young people in an environment in which they are already comfortable and therefore do not feel disadvantaged or daunted.

The Digilabs will house of-the-minute technology such as high speed internet/broadband linked computers, digital cameras, video cameras, colour printers and scanners, video conferencing equipment and mobile pentabs and laptops – with the potential for special needs adaptation and complemented by the latest software. Young people and their supporters will be upskilled in the use of the new technologies to their full potential, and will be able to contribute digital content into an all-Wales portal of choice for young people.

Youth Work Capacity

The programme will improve and enhance a range of youth services, including modernising the way that young people obtain, create and share information of relevance to them.

“The project is not about changing what youth service centres are doing but enhancing it. As young people and staff acquire skill sets, they will be able to shape their own future. Local centres will be able produce their own local information on a variety of new media platforms, improving and extending their appeal to young people.” Elise Stewart, Director, Canllaw Online.

CREDU will help create easily accessible information production services for young people that, from the young person's point of view, offer a range of opportunities for access and development of new information sources. Digilab staff will be able to offer young people hands-on, enjoyable interaction with the latest range of Information Technology to explore how they can enhance their own skills, create ideas for self employment, interact with support agencies and their peer group and community at large.

As part of this strategy, a number of CREDU Digilabs are being developed across Wales. They will be points of access through services for young people where young people will be engaged and be helped to identify, access, explore and utilise the information services they need and to develop the innovative and entrepreneurial skill sets that open up new earning patterns. They will offer direct access to the facilities of the Digilabs through a national network of participating agencies.

Three pilot Digilabs were established in 2003: representing the North, the Wrexham Digilab is in a Local Authority youth centre. Llandovery, in the West, in a rural Welsh speaking area, has a centre within the local YMCA. Canllaw Online, in Caerphilly in the South, houses a Digilab at its own premises. Fujitsu Services funded the hardware, software and training for the three pilot Digilabs and will provide ongoing IT services to all Digilabs.

“We are opening up this opportunity to all service providers for young people in Wales. The support that is built into the programme will address any apprehension youth service organisations may have about their existing lack of knowledge, skills, resources or time.”
Elise Stewart, Director, Canllaw Online.

Andrea Jackson, manager at Wrexham Young People’s Centre commented: "We have a young men's group which could not decide what to do; it is now creating a web page for the centre. The Right 2 Respect young women’s group is preparing a motif for a sports bag. Barnado’s Compass young parents, who have never had anything to do with the computers, have generated a number of ideas. The potential is so clear that Wrexham Council has just granted funding for another youth worker.”

Skills in ICT for Young People

Through the CREDU Digilabs, young people will have the opportunity to learn ICT skills vital in today’s digital world. Young people will be encouraged to develop content for the CREDU portal on topics which are of importance to them and in ways which best express their thoughts, emotions and creative capacity – be it in the form of a digital story, a rap, a video diary, a written article, an animation, a piece of music etc.

CREDU is based on the belief that, if individuals are better informed, they can make better life choices. Digilabs will provide wide access to quality up-to-date information so that young people can assess their options and the consequences of any decisions they may make.

“CREDU creates an inclusive programme utilising the latest technologies to support young people in Wales, achieving new levels of participation, leadership, skills, enterprise, innovation and sustainable employment.” Elise Stewart, Director, Canllaw Online

Contribution Towards Economy

Young people across Wales will be able to access and create information through digital media, the project portal and the Internet. CREDU uses a network of Digital production facilities (Digilabs) to deliver an engagement strategy that will allow young people to begin to see what opportunities the digital revolution has for them. It will lead to a series of opportunities for enhancing their skills, employment and further training and the chance to begin creating options for self-employment.

The young people of Wales will be part of the first such national programme of skills and content production in the world. The leadership skills they develop will ensure better services for young people in Wales as well as ensuring that the economy of Wales is competitive in the Information Age.

The partnership supporting this initiative includes large private sector ICT companies who will bring a new level of focus on entrepreneurship, leadership, capacity building and business development.

The learning model is based on hands-on practical production of content of interest to young people and the technology platforms available in the Digilabs will allow for interactive multi-site training, skills and knowledge sharing and support for business planning and development. Young people will be able to get the help and skills they need to reach their potential and make an effective transition to work and adult life. Its key objective is to encourage more young people to participate in the CREDU programme to allow them to create benefit for themselves, the organisations that serve them and for their communities. The training and project opportunities will add a ladder of opportunity so that an increasing number have the qualifications they need for further education and the world of work. There will be a special emphasis on those young people who feel excluded and find it difficult to use the usual sources of support.

CREDU is a £17m project, including a £9m grant from the Welsh European Funding Office (WEFO). CREDU will be rolled out over two and a half years initially and will, at first, be aimed at Objective 1 areas, which include 15 out of 22 Welsh unitary authorities. However, it is hoped that in the future the programme will cover all of Wales.

CREDU: believe in your digital future.

For further information on the CREDU project and how to become involved, contact Canllaw Online on 029 2088 78 68

Check out the CREDU Portal at www.credu.co.uk