Over 100,000 “net champions” have been tasked with encouraging more Brits to start using the internet.
BBC News confirmed that the volunteers will work as part of the ‘Race Online 2012′ campaign; which is targeted at the nine million UK residents who have never used the internet.
Headed by the government’s “digital champion”, Martha Lane Fox, the 100,000 volunteers will work to inspire their fellow man, hopefully getting them excited and “enthused” about discovering the worldwide web.
Fox spoke to the press about what she expected of the digital champions, claiming: “I’m not asking people to sit down and go through the complications of a presentation, or train somebody in complex coding.”
“I just want to enthuse people…and I think the rest will take care of itself. For those people, it’s a very simple task – they need to engage people with the joys of being on the internet.”
The champions will approach people they see everyday - such as a fellow parent “on the school gates” or a regular at the local pub – and ask them about their internet use. They could then help introduce them to the basics; such as news websites, interesting social media content or even paying their car tax or council tax online.
By encouraging the latter, Fox could potentially realise some significant financial savings for the government.
Fox’s plans have been given the support of the prime minister, David Cameron, who said in an official statement: “Today there are nine million adults in the UK who have never used the internet – and nearly half of them are among our disadvantaged people.”
“That’s why the work Martha Lane Fox is doing as the UK’s digital champion is so important.”
