Happy 3rd Anniversary to Free Computer Advice and Support Service

Time flies when you are having a great time. It has been three years since we started the free computer advice and support service in partnership with AgeUK Suffolk. The service is offered at the well-equipped and friendly AgeUK Ipswich help centre in Ipswich Town Centre. The service has gone from strengthen to strengthen since launched in July 2015. It has been very popular and often gets fully booked for weeks! So this month we are celebrating our 3 years anniversary.

Following Lxpert’s founding mission, the free computer advice and support service was launched with one goal in mind – “to help people get online and use technology”. We are very proud to say that we certainly have achieved that.

Great achievements

To-date, we have held 137 sessions, helped more than 420 customers and contributed over 410 hours of volunteering time. Our customers found the service friendly and helpful and we consistently received top marks feedback. They also told us that they would use the service again and would recommend it to their friends and family.

Invaluable help provided

The enquiries we received cover many areas of computing. No two sessions were the same which made it fun and challenging. For instance, in terms of learning, we taught our customers how to use computer and tablet, use email, find information online, watch catch-up TV and plan holidays and travel journeys. In terms of advice, we provided guidance on how to get online and what equipment such as a laptop or a tablet would be most suitable. In terms of support, we helped our customer to setup their equipment as well as to fix/repair them. Most importantly, we were here to help them demystify the digital world and gain confidence in using technology.

Testimonials

Here are a few quotes from our customers:

• “Magnificently helpful. I've just learnt so much. Thank you.”
• “The expert made me feel confident, more confident in using my tablet computer. I don't feel scared of it anymore.”
• “Friendly and patient. I'm always pleased to come here.”
• “The expert gives simple and understandable answers to my questions. I got chance to write things down. Very helpful.”
  
• “Absolutely pleased with the session. The expert taught me what I wanted to know. I wouldn't be able to do things I wanted to do on my computer without the help.”
• “Great. Personal. Like a good doctor :)”

Donations

Moreover, we have helped AgeUK raised over £780 donations to-date. Although not a huge sum of money, every penny raised helps change a local life. The poster below shows how the money can help change a local life.

In the news

The service was featured on the TV, local newspapers and radio. What’s more can we ask for?

ITV News journalist Kate Prout (@KateProutITV) did a report about our work in helping older people get online and use technology at AgeUK Suffolk. The news appeared on ITV News at 6pm and 10pm on 15^th August 2017.

East Anglian Daily Times feature article "Change your life for the better by gaining the digital skills you need" published on 12 June 2017. Find out more here.

Free computer help service announcement on the Ipswich Star 2016 

Looking ahead

We are very proud of what we have achieved together and we are looking into expanding this service so that more people can benefit from it - for instance offering more help sessions, running special classes for absolute beginners and organising computer clubs. So watch this space!

Thank you

Finally, I would like to thank all our customers, our IT experts (lxperts), Lxpert team, AgeUK Suffolk team and people in the local community for all your support. We couldn’t do it without you. Thank you.

Kennedy

Founder and CEO

#FreeComputerAdvice #socialimpact #CSR #digitalinclusion #Digitalskills #dogood