Why digital service delivery is here to stay

Dingley’s Promise

Dingley’s Promise, a charity which supports under 5s with additional needs and disabilities, has been forced to quickly shift to digital, remote support and information sharing. As a result, they’ve found that they can reach more people and increase their impact like never before, and say they’re likely to continue a number of their online activities after lockdown.

"The demystification of digital working that the crisis has brought about will very likely mean that digital working, remote working and online activities become a part of our core community permanently as staff, beneficiaries and decision-makers are now more comfortable with what benefits this can offer,"

 

- Catherine McLeod, CEO

Read the full case study over on Zoe Amar’s blog.

The Scouts

The Scouts have long been synonymous with ’the great outdoors’. But when this became off-limits during lockdown, they were compelled to reexamine how they could keep their core values alive through digital.

It’s been a massive shift, but the charity has been able to repurpose resources from hundreds of scouting activities already at their disposal to keep its young service users learning and engaged remotely. Chief Digital Officer Lara Burns says she has been "genuinely blown away and truly inspired by the rapid digital transformation that is happening around us – and how it’s genuinely making things better."

Read the full case study.

Soundabout

Many charities have discovered demand for their services online that they never knew existed in the offline world. Soundabout, a charity which helps people with severe learning disabilities using music, is one of them.

Before the pandemic, the charity was seeing groups of eight people, plus their careers, in face-to-face sessions. However, its newly introduced live broadcasted Facebook sessions reach a community of over twelve thousand people. For this small charity, such a massive expansion in its reach means a permanent and profound change.

Read the full case study.

Auditory Verbal UK

Auditory Verbal UK’s shift to digital service delivery was driven by the need to carry on consistently delivering auditory and verbal therapy sessions for the deaf children it serves, ensuring that the lockdown wouldn’t have the knock-on effect of delaying their progress.

By moving quickly to digital, not only were they able to do this, but they increased their reach significantly beyond their geographical limitation. Based in London, the charity is now able to serve many people beyond the capital who might not afford the time and cost of travelling to access its services.

"I believe many organisations will not go back to the way things were but will continue to use remote and digital services to help them," says Auditory Verbal UK’s Jane Warriner.

Read the full case study.

Scunthorpe and District Mind

These are stressful times, and mental health charity Scunthorpe and District Mind have discovered that using remote video support for people in crisis lets them meet the increased demand for its services during lockdown. Not only can they reach many new service users suffering as a result of dramatic changes to their lives, but they can also now support people in remote rural areas like never before.

By evidencing that they can continue to deliver services safely and effectively through digital, the charity has been able to secure the vital funding they need to run now and in the future.

Read the full case study.