Planning the project			Printer Friendly
Sections within this page
	Delivery plan
	What people want
	Local Marketing
	Partnership building
	Funding streams
	Useful Documents

Planning the Project

Although usually underestimated and rarely factored in, it is clear that a large amount of time and effort needs to be spent on actually 'planning for' the implementation and delivery of the project. Setting up and running a community ICT project is a significant undertaking in itself and some pre-implementation groundwork helps to set the project on the right course at the outset. However, this step is often overlooked in the rush to set up and run the community ICT project - especially where it is more 'technology' led than 'people focused'.

Add in a prevailing context of a very tight timescale for project delivery and the project is already running the risk of hitting problem areas before it is even up and running - especially if there is a lack of revenue funding in support of the large capital grant that pays for the technology infrastructure.

Delivery plan

A useful way to avoid losing focus is to prepare a detailed project delivery plan, which sets out the key tasks to be completed and highlights the practicalities. The use of project planning software such as Microsoft Project helps to establish the project's critical path and where the sequential 'dependencies' lie. Whilst not immediately obvious to the new or inexperienced project manager, these dependencies have a tendency to significantly impact upon the running of the project. The list below is a summary of the kind of issues faced each of the WuC projects at various points:

Delivery Plan - Task Analysis

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What People Want

Often dismissed as a rather nebulous concept in the rush to offer free ICT equipment to people on low incomes (who will apparently jump at the opportunity), it is rarely asked "What do local people reallythink/want" before the technology rolls and the WuC project picks up pace and starts networking and 'building partnerships'. This probably reflects the scenario of the WuC project having to 'evidence the need' by undertaking community consultations and backing it up with a string of deprivation indice statistics. But it still leaves the question unanswered, especially if individuals in the community simply think or say "what's in it for me?".

The 'self improvement' agenda typically offers the notion that it will improve opportunities to employment or upskill people in ICTs. Funders, especially central government departments like the Department for Education and Skills, like that. But for people in the community, it might simply mean a cheap or a free computer with subsidised access to the internet (and associated benefits like access to free mp3s via peer to peer file sharing software).

In trying to assess why there was a lower than expected level of take up of free computers and set top boxes across all the WuC projects (except Liverpool), various factors were taken into consideration, such as charging for the equipment (in Manchester) or bad publicity (Brampton). However, there is no definitive explanation beyond the thought that there was negativity about the project as a result of poor marketing, or some local activists who seemed happy to run the scheme down or an underlying cynicism in the belief that there is 'nothing for nothing' - or even that a government sponsored scheme was using the ICT equipment to spy on people (benefit fraud, tax evasion, illegal surfing activity).

The bottom line is that WuC type projects should not lose sight of the needs and aspiration of end users and be prepared to meet those needs where it can legitimately do so, since the project is only what it means to the end users and the difference it makes to them.

Local Marketing

Prior to designing posters, leaflets and information booklets to market its activities and services locally, the project must be clear on its 'offer' of equipment and support services to the community right at the outset. Otherwise the impression is given that it is in a state of flux or lacking direction by making ad-hoc decisions on the hoof. If a decision has still to be taken (for example on 'charging policy' for support services') it should be stated that it is still under consideration before any public commitment is made.

The use of 'free' in any context is particularly vulnerable to a range of interpretations. For example, in Kensington, Liverpool the recycled pc and new printer were provided 'free of charge' but a number of recipients thought (or felt) that it should extend to consumables too - paper, ink cartridges. It is a similar proposition on potential or actual charges for the ISP and technical support.

While there is a behind the scenes realisation that the new project requires a bit of time to become assimilated into local plans, the community itself is rather less patient. Fuelled by reports (or rumours) of a free computer or set top box and eager to get information, community activists will seek out 'inside' sources to tap - invariably members of the steering group and/or project staff. Left unchecked and without a proper marketing and publicity strategy in place, the project becomes subject to the vagaries of the community 'rumour mill' with a run of clarifications issued on a regular basis.

This tends to damage the reputation of the project with local residents and underlines the importance of employing community ICT networkers or 'e-champions' in a community development role to deal with misinformation or misunderstandings and to be able to counter this with posters and leaflets clearly setting out the project's 'offer'.

It is therefore all the more important to get the marketing and publicity right - especially against a backdrop of some cynicism about the aims and merits of the WuC scheme.
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Partnership Building

Particularly in regeneration areas, it is initially encouraging that the WuC project is seen as a welcome addition to a wide range of other regeneration initiatives locally. However, the biggest obstacle faced is that other people's time is at a premium. There may be initial strong support, but this is not backed by a longer term commitment - especially if there is a lot of regeneration activity or a plethora of government initiatives leaving local government officers or active volunteers less time to make a positive contribution after a promising start.

Lack of time spent on building partnerships can lead to the project being regarded as 'parachuted in' to the area and project staff then spend a disproportionate amount of time explaining the project's vision and what it is setting out to achieve. This was a common theme for the WuC project managers and reflected the fact that all seven projects were 'pilots'.

There is a lot of informal networking required in the early stages by WuC project managers (characteristically a quite 'driven' personality) and their small group of 'insiders' - ICT champions, volunteers and/or project staff. It takes time for other agencies and organisations to see what the WuC pilot is about and trying to achieve, but once established or (even better) accepted as having a role to play, the WuC pilot can become part of the strategic picture - for example the local ICT strategy; the lifelong learning plan; the community grid for learning; the regional broadband consortium.
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Funding Streams

At DfES level, there was a broad assumption that the different pots of revenue funding locally would flow in support of the major capital grant, but rather surprisingly, this was not the case. This had a number of impacts for the DfES, the 'accountable body' and the WuC projects.

Quite clearly, some of the WuC pilots were held back in their development by the lack of an available revenue stream. Some seedcorn money was needed to get the project underway without delay to meet the tight timescales (see 'planning the project') while a fundraising strategy as part of a business plan later helped identify how the capital (and revenue) could be treated as 'match funding'.

This reinforced the view somewhat that government departments need to adopt a more directive approach on harmonising funding sources if they are to achieve 'joined up government' delivery on ICT initiatives and projects. This is echoed in the recent moves towards 'single pot' funding approach in regeneration areas.

Revenue funding streams tended to fall in line with the local authority's policy and various regeneration partnerships' strategies, so requests for revenue funding in support of the WuC programme became additional in financial years 2001/02 and 2002/03.

In these early stages, the WuC projects were left out on a limb locally because funding had already been committed for the financial year (and beyond). The 'accountable body' was then immediately tasked with finding revenue and project staff began the familiar pattern of trying to secure short-term revenue funding to support its start-up and early activities - usually from underspend on SRB, New Deal for Communities, the local council or a number of grant making trusts.

This led the 'accountable body' in a couple of the WuC areas to ruminate on just how much time and extra effort a WuC project takes - especially when placed under immediate pressure to secure the longer term future of the project. In these circumstances, the WuC project disproportionately impacted upon the work of the 'accountable body'.

In launching its own Digital Communities initiative in April 2002, the Scottish Executive, on the advice of its consultants, ensured that it provided revenue in support of the capital grant. This helped avoid some of the problems faced by the WuC projects that ended up capital rich and revenue poor at the time when some seedcorn revenue funding was most needed to set up the project and run it.
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Useful Documents

Planning
Some questions for an ICT audit (Word, zipped 5kb) shows the range of questions to ask when checking the current capacity and services in the area.

Delivery Plan
A sample delivery plan (PDF, zipped 52kb) shows an actual list of key tasks and milestones. An ambitious work plan (Excel, zipped 9kb) shows the main tasks based upon meeting budget and contract timescales that in the event proved unworkable due to the lead in times for contracting and setting up staff and other structures.

An outline project plan (Word, zipped 10kb) shows the considerable complexity of the project in the case where the technology itself was a major component.

What people want
Vision workshop (PDF, zipped 114kb) details the outcomes from a meeting of many of the stakeholders within a project area, which served to launch the project and set it in the context of local needs.

Local marketing
Eastserve marketing (Powerpoint, zipped 26kb) is a PowerPoint file that describes in detail the marketing issues. Two leaflets (Word, zipped 71kb), two posters (Word/PDF, zipped 114kb) and a two background fact sheets (Word, zipped 79kb) give an idea of the types of publicity that can be used. Public reactions (Word, zipped 3kb) are quoted in two comments for a local newspaper.

Partnership Building
Chart descriptions (PDF, zipped 107kb) attempts to show and describe the relationship between all the stakeholders within a project where the initiative was a ‘new’ player in the area. Eastserve structure (PDF, zipped 38kb) shows the set up within a more formal NDC based structure. Objectives roles and responsibilities (Word, zipped 8kb) sets out one set of relationships and functions.

Funding Streams
A sample budget (PDF, zipped 61kb) shows the relationship between capital and revenue. In the event the actual budget shows only two year's figures as a bid for revenue funding, held over to a new year because of delays in establishing the project, was rejected.
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