What is the offer?

To support people with low or no digital skills, and to help them get online at home, Argos have made 10,000 low cost tablets available – and they think your learners might be interested in getting their hands on one. In order to qualify for one of these tablets, learners will need to take part in a 90 minute tablet training session which will cost them £20. At the end of the session, learners will be able to keep the tablet that they have learnt on, and will also be eligible for one year’s free broadband from TalkTalk.

How do I book my learners onto a session?

You can either book learners onto a session by calling 0345 600 4408 between 9 and 5, Monday to Friday, or by visiting the easy online booking site (Centres can get a username and password from their Network Coordinator).

You will be given a list of participating stores near you, and the times of the workshops, and will then be able to make a booking.

You will be given a booking reference when completing the booking, so it’s worth making a note of this in case you need it later,

What is the tablet?

The tablet is an entry level tablet – a 7 inch Proscan tablet. It is not sold by any other retailers in the UK, but is sold by Walmart and Best Buy in the US. The tablet uses the Android operating system, and comes preloaded with some help videos.

What do the learning sessions cover?

The learning sessions will cover how to switch on the tablet and how to connect to the internet, as well as searching, emailing, social media and shopping. The session is only 90 minutes long, so training will not be in depth but learners will get a taste of each.

Why are Argos running learning sessions when this is what we’re doing?

Argos are keen to ensure the tablets go to people who really need them, and so they are using the training sessions as a way of qualifying that the tablets go to those most in need.

The training offered by Argos should be seen as complementary to what you offer in your centre, and a great way of getting a very low cost tablet for people who would struggle to afford to get online at home.

Argos aren’t trying to compete with what you’re offering in your centre, and know that they won’t be able to support someone to use the internet in 90 minutes.

I have been told my learners are ineligible!

If you learners answer that they have all five digital skills (sending and receiving emails, using a search engine, browsing, completing online forms, and buying and selling online), then they won’t be eligible for this offer. If your learners say they are not confident with one or more of these skills, then they will be eligible for the offer.

I have been told I need an Argos card to book on to the session?

You will not need an Argos card to book onto the session – the session is open to everyone with basic online skills whether they are an Argos customer or not.

How do learners get the free broadband from TalkTalk?

When attending the learning session, attendees will be given more information about accessing the free broadband from TalkTalk. Please note, broadband will be free for 12 months with no obligation to continue after this period, but individuals will still have to pay line rental.

All the sessions are being held in the evenings so my learners can’t attend.

Argos are doing their best to run a range of sessions during both the day and evening, but some stores aren’t able to host sessions during hours the store is open. We have fed back to Argos that day time sessions work best for many learners, so hopefully more daytime sessions will open up soon.

There aren’t any sessions near me!

Argos have selected 120 stores across the UK that meet a range of criteria; having good WiFi, staff that can deliver the training, and a training area or room to train people. We know there are gaps in geographical coverage, and some of you aren’t able to access the training as there aren’t any sessions near you. We are hoping Argos will expand the list of stores taking part in the programme over the coming months.

Why are Argos supporting this agenda?

Argos are a founder partner of Go ON UK, the UK’s national digital skills alliance, are are hoping this programme will help to reach the final 20% of the UK without basic online skills.

http://www.ukonlinecentres.com/running-your-centre/other-sites-and-tools/argos-tablet-offer-faq