Making a differenceRichard Fox richard.2.fox@bt.comHanna Hammad hanna.hammad@bt.com

BT in the community We want to contribute to a more inclusive society, where

everyone has the opportunity to thrive and prosper. We believe that such inclusion is essential to social stability and long-term economic growth.

ApprenticeshipsBT has a total of 997 apprentices companywide- but expects this to be around 1,200 by September 2008.

Around 25 apprentices in the South West started three-year training schemes with BT Openreach in 2007

With Apprentices BT is:•planning for the future, •bringing new blood into the organisation, •finding the right mix of skills with the right people,•investing effort in developing employee skills,•gaining sustainable capabilities and skills.

ICT at the heart of the community

• BT invested over £1.8m in community activities across the South West last year

• During 2006/7 80 employees in the South West received awards via the BT Community Champions scheme to the value of £18,015

• Over 201 employees are registered as BT Volunteers in the region and a further 64 are school governors

• The South West region were awarded with 110 internet ready PCs via BT Community Connections with a value of £129,000

• Digital inclusion partners such as Connecting Dorset and Newlyn Everybodyonline programmes

Free laptops and training for Dorset Villages

‘Connecting Dorset’ aims to connect 120 of Dorset’s 200 village halls and all Dorset Parish and Town Councils to broadband, provide a ‘package’ of hardware, software and training, and encourage halls and local councils to work jointly and separately to develop the advantages of internet access for the benefit of their communities.

BT and Age Concern

• Approximately 9.7 million people over the age of 60 are digitally excluded in the UK

• 3 year partnership worth £240,000 across the UK aims to help older people get online and learn about new technologies

• Age Concern organisations throughout the UK can access grant

funding of up to £2,400 a year to fund projects which provide support for older people and maximise the use of information and communications technology (ICT)

• The Wheeltop Project is a three-year collaborative project run by Scope, in partnership with BT.  It has the aim of improving access to communication and other technologies for young disabled people for both social use and curriculum access.

• Scope is receiving £265,000 from BT over three years

Thank you for your time