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Liz lives in New Lodge, an active community for over 55s at the heart of New Earswick in York. She had been writing a book telling the story of a family between the years 1953 and 1971. The story is told from the unique perspective of the family cat whose life spanned those years. However, she was struggling to complete the book because she was no longer able to use the older version of Microsoft Office after having to update to the newest version.
As Liz explained, “After using the same version of Microsoft Office and windows for several years, Microsoft had changed and updated it. The latest updates to the formatting tools and how to save and locate documents in Word were particularly confusing and frustrating. Not being able to find my files and how to access the saved files meant I could not keep track on the different documents I was using for my book.”
Liz initially attended a digital café held at the New Earswick Folk Hall, hosted by Connor Lambert, our Digital Inclusion and Accessibility Officer. The digital café is a space where residents could get help with different queries and problems, such as accessing online shopping, sending emails and how to use a digital device.
During this first chat Liz discussed the issues she was having and arranged some in person home visits to provide 1 to 1 support.
Over several visits working with Connor, Liz was able to build her confidence and feel empowered to continue writing. Soon she was able to use her laptop confidently and able to finish the latest book she has written for her family.
Liz explained that “The support provided by Connor has been essential, I’m not quite sure what I would have done otherwise. I might have been able to eventually find things out but through the support I was able to get it made things so much easier.”
The home visits and connection that was built, meant we were also able to support Liz to access the NHS app and the app used by her GP to manage her health records and test results.
Liz wanted to be able to access them both on her phone and laptop as the screen is larger and easier to read on the laptop.
Now Liz is able to log in to her accounts with confidence.
Through the support we were able to provide, Liz has been able to keep writing and staying engaged. By providing support to build her confidence, Liz feels empowered to use her digital devices and remains digitally included and able to access online services.
Although Liz has said this is the last book she is writing, there is no doubt that something else will be coming around the corner very soon!
Image: Liz holding her completed book