Community Learning and Development Device Fund 2023 (360G-SCVO-a13N2000002x6GMIAY)

The projects undertaken by IWG (International Women's Group) are aimed at empowering the diverse BEM women through education and skills development. For this proposal, in particular, IWG offers ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) classes to women from various cultural backgrounds. The primary objective of this project is to enhance the English language proficiency of these women, thereby improving their overall communication skills, employability, and integration into the community. IWG, as part of our English classes’ programs, have identified a gap in women’s digital / IT skills and the opportunity to pair English learning with digital competency. This not only will enhance and maximise women language skills but also advance their digital literacy as part of their empowerment.Thus, the proposed aims at supporting our multicultural women (including refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants) in Glasgow and the wider surrounding areas: multicultural women experiencing isolation, language barriers, digital literacy, poverty, mental health issues, isolation, survivors of abuse, etc.In brief, the project's aims at stimulating and increasing Women’s resilience via English classes while advancing their digital / IT literacy where English can be taught via computers. English classes / IT classes twice weekly with 20 women participating at a course.This will assist to facilitate their active participation via, for example, advancing language skills and digital literacy upskilling their knowledge and abilities, which in turn will enhance their integration and employability skills and participation in social, enhancing their social bonding and connections, participation and empowerment, etc., while fully promoting their independence.The fund will be utilised to purchase computers for use in English learning and digital / IT skills with evidenced maximalisation of their resilience and empowerment:• The fund will be used purchase 15 laptops to manage the English learning program via Digital / IT support.• Based on direct input from the diverse Women, we continue to see that addressing digital competency and language is a key dynamic to empowering women’s resilience. The fund will support our English learning courses: Minimum 20 diverse women will be supported weekly with over estimated 120 women benefiting yearly. The IT equipment will remain as resources for IWG where they will be fully used in support of advancing the women’ IT skills and learning.