Each year the Marble Arch BID celebrates Silver Sunday, the national day championing older people. For 2022, we teamed up with volunteers from local company Cirrus Logic, who kindly shared their skills to provide one to one IT support for older people in Marble Arch.

As the pandemic forced our social activities online, some older people didn’t have the technical skills to make the most of what many of us take for granted – video calls to friends and family, sharing photos and using social networking sites. Supporting older people to broaden their IT skills and reduce the generational gap in digital skills is a key focus for our Community Programme.

On 4 October 2022, volunteers from Cirrus Logic visited Penfold Community Hub to share their IT skills for Silver Sunday. Penfold Community Hub is a service delivered within a local care home. The care home provides residential accommodation for 54 people, many of whom have dementia, physical disabilities or additional care needs. The Hub runs a programme of activities for local older residents, some living with dementia in the community.

Cirrus Logic colleagues offered hour-long tech support appointments, and the queries were diverse – from how to delete photos to setting up new phones and retrieving lost login details. There was also a lot of chatting taking place and many cups of tea served, as this activity doubled as an opportunity to offer companionship following a difficult and isolating few years. Colleagues kindly donated cakes, biscuits and doughnuts, which will be enjoyed by Penfold residents and staff for days to come!

If you’d like to get share your IT skills for Silver Sunday or learn more about how to get your Marble Arch team involved in volunteering in the local area, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact our Community Programme to discuss how you can take part.