Earlier this month, Alasdair Allan MSP attended a Scottish Parliament event hosted by Virgin Money and the UK’s leading digital inclusion charity, Good Things Foundation, to launch the expansion of The National Databank programme into all 91 Virgin Money stores, including in the Stornoway store on South Beach Street.
Virgin Money and Good Things Foundation are aiming to help millions of people facing digital exclusion throughout the nation to access the National Databank, providing free mobile data, texts and calls for people in need.
Those who require assistance can visit their nearest Virgin Money store and pick up an O2 sim card loaded with 20GB of free data – enough for around 220 hours of internet browsing per month. The free data allowance renews every month for six months. The programme is also providing free smart devices to people who are unable to afford them.
Finally, to help bridge the digital skills gap, Virgin Money and Good Things Foundation will work with Learn My Way, an online digital skills platform, to provide training to anyone looking for help to improve their knowledge of using the internet.
Alasdair Allan, MSP for Na h-Eileanan an Iar said: “We know that getting people online with the appropriate devices and the correct training has a positive impact, and so it’s good to see the Good Things Foundation are helping people access the support they need to put an end to digital exclusion – not just in our islands but across Scotland.”
To find out more about Good Things Foundation, visit: https://www.goodthingsfoundation.org/databank/.
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