Community Development Action (CDA) Herts has been awarded a £1,500 digital inclusion grant from CityFibre to continue its work supporting elderly people in rural communities.

In the last three years, CDA Herts has supported 480 new digital learners via 354 two-hour, digital drop-in sessions held in village halls across rural Hertfordshire, providing 5,152 hours of individual digital support. Around 30 volunteers each year have committed 7,264 hours of their time in total, to ensure the project’s success.

Residents of many villages including Little Hadham, Datchworth, Benington, Tewin, Ickleford & Aston have benefitted from the free weekly support, which includes help getting online to shop, pay bills, order prescriptions, set up email accounts and manage photos to name but a few of the regular activities.

Community Development Action (CDA) Herts received the full amount requested from the CityFibre Community Fund Small Grants programme.

Hertfordshire Futures supported the bid by promoting the funding initiative and by advocating for CDA Herts’ digital inclusion work within rural communities.

Gareth Dace, Head of Programmes at Policy, said: “Hertfordshire’s growth is very much rooted in digital advances, and we want to make sure that all our residents have, under our ‘Towards Digital Growth’ programme, access to best-in-class connectivity and essential digital skills.

“The success of CDA’s grant application shows that this can be achieved through great partnership working between strategic organisations and grassroots community groups.”