Enabling a Digitally United Kingdom - Umic

20 HOW INDIVIDUALS BENEFIT
Work-based learning
The workplace is often the first place where people become aware of and use the internet. Both formal and
informal work-based learning provide a tremendous opportunity for people to develop knowledge and skills
to use the internet. There are a growing number of union- and employer-managed e-learning centres in the
workplace, and more than 200,000 SMEs took learndirect e-learning courses last year.
The workplace serves as a key catalyst to enable migration to home use. To encourage such migration,
the government-supported Home Computing Initiative provides a tax advantage to employers who loan
computers to their employees.
Dixons Computers@home
With leading ITC industries and high-street stores participating, the Home Computing Initiative has
achieved some considerable success. For example, the Dixons Computers@home scheme has so far
launched 40 schemes available to 400,000 employees from a wide range of companies, and currently
has approximately 30,000 participants.
Benefits of the Home Computing Initiative
For business
For employees
• Improved competitiveness • Affordable PCs for the home
• Reducing staff turnover • Easy payments
• e-Learning vehicle • No credit charges
• Improved morale • Personal and family education
• Easy to administer • Internet access
• Cost-neutral or cost savings • Engagement in the knowledge economy
One of the benefits of the initiative is that it enables home-based learning. Working in partnership with
learndirect, participants are able to gain instant access to hundreds of online courses in computers, office
skills and self-development, designed so users can learn at a time, place and pace to suit individual needs.
The service also provides impartial information and advice on over 600,000 courses from providers
throughout the UK.
Formal learning
With technology so commonplace in today’s society, people who have not yet acquired basic ICT skills will
be excluded from the knowledge economy, and much that it has to offer. Formal, structured learning
opportunities provide an opportunity for learners of all ages to acquire relevant life skills.
From a demand-led perspective, existing private- and public-sector providers of educational services have
an opportunity to innovate and develop services that enable citizens flexibly to develop skills needed
to excel in the knowledge economy.
Government investment in broadband connectivity in schools, public libraries, and further education and higher
education settings across the United Kingdom has released the potential for increased levels of interactive and
immersive learning. The possibility to create new kinds of learning experiences has emerged as a result of this
investment in broadband connectivity; and many of these opportunities have been taken up by UK educational
publishers, who are global leaders in developing digital content to support learning.