They have the technical know-how to explain complex information in a simple way.
Richmond EAL is a small charity dedicated to supporting hard-to-reach adults, including parents of local schoolchildren, who face daily challenges due to their limited English language skills.
Meet Ruth
Ruth Durant is the CEO of Richmond EAL Friendship Group. They provide informal English classes and access to local services in several venues across Richmond borough.
Founded in 2001, the group became a registered charity in 2008 and has since assisted over 1,000 learners from diverse backgrounds, speaking over 66 different languages.
The parents were socially isolated, and they wanted to make friends learning English.
The digital challenge
When Ruth first contacted Superhighways, Richmond EAL’s website had been hacked and taken off-line by the hosting service.
We could no longer use our website, which really made things difficult for us.
What seemed like a straightforward fix, which would involve cleaning the website files and updating the WordPress software before restoring it to the hosting service, quickly became a much bigger challenge.
The website had been hosted informally for several years and relied on outdated software, and so when Richmond EAL’s main contact left the hosting company, it became increasingly difficult to obtain backups.
Due to this, the charity also faced challenges accessing the necessary login credentials. This ultimately made restoring the site impossible.
How Superhighways helped
Unable to retrieve backups from the hosting service, our Tech Development Adviser, Paul, turned to the Wayback Machine, an internet archive that stores snapshots of websites. Using this, he reconstructed the key elements of Richmond EAL’s website on Voice Online Communities.
After rebuilding the site, Paul provided training to their office manager, who would then be able to manage and update the site independently moving forward.
We’ve been lucky that we had pro bono help from Superhighways.
The results
The main lesson I learned was that if you can’t solve a problem, find an expert and rely on their expertise, rather than making endless mistakes.
Rather than restoring the much older content, Richmond EAL was advised to focus on making the new site up-to-date and relevant for today’s users.
Now, with a functional, manageable and user-friendly platform, the charity is better equipped to continue its mission of helping individuals learn English and build new friendships along the way.
Superhighways provided an invaluable launchpad to put our charity on a better footing.
Visit Richmond EAL Friendship Group to find out more about their services.
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About Digital Foundations
Digital Foundations is a training and advice programme led by small charity digital, data and technology experts Superhighways, backed by specialist organisations Voice Online Communities, Refugee Council and HEAR Equality and Human Rights Network.
Digital Foundations is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund.