On Friday July 14th, Wera Hobhouse, MP for Bath, attended the Bath Digital Festival to discuss bridging the digital divide to ensure that all local residents have equal access to digital technology.

The final event of the Bath Digital Festival week in the Digital Divide series featured a discussion with Wera Hobhouse, MP for Bath, and Julia Adamson, BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT Managing Director for Education and Public Benefit and with a mission to give every young person the digital skills they need to succeed in life and work. Fiona Dawson, Director at Mayden, Bath Bridge CIC, and Treasurer of the BCS Digital Divide Specialist Group, completed the panel. The digital divide events have been convened and brought together by Tech for Good South West, during the Bath Digital Festival. 

Annie Legge, of Tech for Good South-West and Dot Project, commented:

“Being cut off from digital isn’t just an inconvenience – it compounds and exacerbates poverty. As a community we have come together through a series of digital divide events to instigate action in Bath. In a matter of days we’ve begun mapping the challenge and prototyped services to bring connection to all. I passionately believe there is much more we can do as a community, when we find time and space to convene together, share perspectives, skills and hopefulness. Together we can bridge the digital divide.”

Julia Adamson, BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT MD for Education and Public Benefit said:

“Our mission is to give every young person the digital skills they need to succeed in life and work. Digital inclusion is essential and all young people must have the skills to thrive in a digital world.

 Every child has the right to a high-quality computing education. This knowledge will give children the ability to participate fully in a more digital society – to benefit from the digital landscape and emerging fields such as AI, data analytics and cyber security.”

 Commenting after the event, Wera Hobhouse, MP for Bath said: 

“The digital divide in all its forms is a harsh everyday reality that many people are simply not aware of. It cuts across age, gender, geography and income, leaving many in our local communities shut out and cut off from learning, working, doing everyday tasks and connecting with others.

“The Bath Digital Festival has achieved a lot by raising awareness of the issue and highlighting the work underway to find solutions. Here in Bath, we can make a real difference. We have the skills and the willingness to make sure that we don’t leave anybody behind in the digital age.”