Three hundred free places are being offered on a digital literacy course.

The government’s Digital Isle of Man agency will work with Readynez, a digital training provider, to offer the spaces on its First Steps Digital Literacy course, which is aimed at supporting the development of beginner to intermediate digital skills for Isle of Man residents.

Digital literacy refers to an individual’s ability to find, evaluate, and communicate information through typing and other media on various digital platforms.

The initial 300 spaces have been funded through the Isle of Man Government’s Economic Recovery Group - the group in charge of the £100 million Economic Recovery Fund tasked with protecting jobs, securing investment and encouraging growth as part of the island’s financial fightback from coronavirus.

The beginner’s course will cover various aspects of digital literacy including how to use search engines, how to protect devices and data, and the basics of the Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Outlook, Excel and PowerPoint).

Participants will then have the option to progress on to an intermediate level course.

challenge

Lyle Wraxall, chief executive of Digital Isle of Man, said: ’The demand for digital skills is a global challenge, and here in the Isle of Man the digital sector is growing rapidly, with digital transformation accelerating in every business sector and area of life.

’For our people to thrive in a connected economy and society, digital skills must be prioritised alongside literacy and numeracy skills, and we are very excited to be able to offer this course as a first step in our wider skills initiative and towards achieving greater digital confidence for all of our island residents.

’The courses are open to all and we encourage anyone who feels they may benefit developing their digital literacy skills to get in touch with us to find out more.’

The courses are free and will be accessed through Readynez’s Online Learning Platform.

In order to register your interest visit www.digitalisleofman.com/firststeps

Contact: [email protected], or call Sarah on 687258 or Lorna on 0330 8087529.