About AOL

Winners from 2003, 2004 and 2005

Impact of the awards

2005 winners

• 55+ Positive Lifestyle, Devon - to provide IT training and extend online learning opportunities for older residents in the local community (www.positivelifestyle.eclipse.co.uk)
• African and Caribbean Voices Association, Stratford, London – to launch a webcam diary to record African and Caribbean senior citizens’ experiences of technology
  (www.acva.org.uk)
• Alzheimer’s Society, West Kent – to develop an online forum for Alzheimer’s sufferers to share advice and experiences (www.alzheimers.org.uk)
• Artimedia, Huddersfield– to develop a portal for Asian women where they can exchange information on issues of importance to them (www.artimedia.co.uk)
• Association of Black and Ethnic Minority Business Advisors, North London – to launch an E-wise: Get Smart, Get Connected Web site to educate marginalised sections of society on the possibilities of e-business
• Bowbridge Primary and Nursery School, Nottinghamshire – to provide wireless Internet access through the school’s high-specification server for local families who would otherwise be excluded from the Web (www.bowbridgeprimary.com)
• Bright Project, Bristol - to improve the standard of benefits and legal advice given by black and minority ethnic organisations via a free laptop loan scheme (www.avonandbristollawcentre.org.uk/Bright.html)
• Carers Link, East Dunbartonshire, Scotland – to provide interactive online support and information to carers who are isolated through geography and caring responsibilities (www.carerslink.org.uk)
• The Coalition Youth and Community Programmes, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne – to develop an online resource for its youth mentoring scheme that will provide remote access to essential support and learning materials (www.thecoalition.org.uk)
• Creative Kids, North London – to develop an Internet donation and exchange service for families in need of clothes, toys and other equipment (www.creativekids.org.uk)
• Crystal Clear Creators, Loughborough – to develop an interactive forum and online launch pad for new writing talent (www.crystalclearcreators.org)
• Design Options for a Versatile Environment, Portsmouth – to launch a webcam initiative providing live, remote demonstrations of home equipment for people with disabilities
• Drake Music Project, Edinburgh – to launch an online workshop where people can experience the project’s assistive music technologies that enable people with disabilities to make music (www.drakemusicscotland.org)
• Ecodyfi, Powys, Mid Wales – to launch an online organic gardening course enabling the community to grow their own organic fruit and vegetables and support the sustainable regeneration of the Dyfi Valley (www.ecodyfi.org.uk)
• Girls Friendly Society England and Wales, East London - to evolve its ‘Keep in Touch’ campaign developing a mentoring support network for its Web site
• Grief Encounter, North London – to develop an online interactive workbook, encouraging and helping children and adults to talk about and deal with bereavement (www.griefencounter.com)
• Heeland Rangers FC, Milton Keynes – to provide online training, from first aid to refereeing, for coaches, players and parents of the UK’s fastest growing all-female football club
• Jigsaw4u, Mitcham - to develop an audio feature on its Web site where children can listen to one another talking about their experiences of bereavement (www.jigsaw4u.org.uk)
• Kent Farmline, East Malling – to develop microsites that will enable agricultural workers and other members of the rural community to access information on support and advice services from their mobile phones or PDAs (www.kentfarmline.org.uk)
• Lesbian and Gay Foundation, Manchester – to evolve its helpline to incorporate e-mail and instant messenger services, allowing people to access counsellors easily and anonymously (www.lgf.org.uk)
• Masquerade, Powys, Mid Wales – to develop a radio documentary about the experiences of people with a learning disability
• National Association for Gifted Children, Milton Keynes – to develop a themed online discussion board enabling families to discuss their personal experiences and solutions to issues arising from having gifted children, such as bullying (www.nagcbritain.org.uk)
• North Wales Bird Trust, Llandudno – to launch a webcam initiative capturing footage of the rare Ashy-Faced Barn Owl and linking children in Wales and the Dominican Republic (www.northwalesbirdtrust.com)
• Sanibel Counselling Centre, East London – to provide online counselling for people with mental health problems
• Savile Town Community Association, West Yorkshire – to launch an online loan scheme of sensory equipment for disabled children
• Sign, Buckinghamshire – to launch an interactive Web-based opinion poll and discussion forum for deaf people with mental health issues (www.signcharity.org.uk)
• Somerset Youth Volunteering Network – to provide online access to its youth-4-youth programme where young mentors support vulnerable peers in taking an active role within the local community (www.somersetyouth.org.uk)
• South Central Community Transport, based in Liverpool – to launch a Web site and develop online training opportunities for the local community
• Stroud.com, Gloucestershire – to provide free Internet taster courses for disadvantaged local people, helping to get the community online and bridge the digital divide

^* One group requested to remain anonymous.

2004 winners

• Access Space, Sheffield – to run Web design and digital photography workshops for young people in the city
• ASPIRE (the Association for Spinal Injury Research, Rehabilitation and Reintegration), Stanmore, Middlesex – to fund a trainer who will run IT adaptive assessments of people with spinal cord injuries so that they can use the Internet despite limited mobility and hand movement
• Bamboo Academy, Nottingham – to expand its Chinese Arts Web site and offer online learning to make the arts more accessible (www.bambooacademy.co.uk)
• Birmingham Repertory Theatre – to create a special area on its Web site for a new writing and drama project aimed at inner city youngsters in Birmingham and Chicago
  (www.birmingham-rep.co.uk)
• Bolton Lads and Girls Club – to provide an Internet and Relationships Co-Ordinator for young people and their families in Bolton (www.boltonladsandgirlsclub.co.uk)
• Bridge Mentoring Plus Scheme, Bridgend – to set up an online mentoring scheme for disadvantaged young people in the area, focusing on developing safe Internet skills
• Brunswick Square Central Lawn Association, Gloucester – to set up a “Neighbourhood Watch” bulletin board on its Web site and develop an online newsletter as part of an ongoing initiative to reduce crime in the area
• International charity the Catholic Institute for International Relations – to create individually branded Web sites for its overseas development partners in Africa, Latin America and the Middle East
• Cirencester Opportunity Group, Gloucestershire – to install a webcam in a bird nesting box, so that pre-school children and other members of the local community can engage with local wildlife (www.opportunity-group.co.uk)
• Cobhair Bharraigh on the Isle of Barra, Scotland – to help people in its care communicate with family and friends, many of whom live some distance away
• The Disabled Parents Network, North London – to improve its Web site and strengthen its support for disabled parents by running online discussion forums (www.disabledparentsnetwork.org.uk)
• Emergency Medical Care, Fauldhouse, West Lothian – to make the most of Fauldhouse being broadband-enabled by expanding the first aid advice and courses it offers via its Web site
• Erskine Hospital, Bishopton, Renfrewshire – in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the D-Day landings, to record the memories of World War II veterans in the hospital’s care for inclusion in an audio section on its Web site (www.erskine.org.uk)
• Fahamu, Oxford – to deliver key news digests about social justice issues in Africa via SMS text technology (www.fahamu.org)
• Fairbridge, Glasgow – to support a mobile learning project for disadvantaged young people in the city of Glasgow
• Fair Shares, Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire – to set up the first Internet café in the town and offer Internet access in exchange for 'time' as well as money, as part of its 'time bank' volunteering initiative
• Family Matters, Gravesend, Kent – to offer a confidential email counselling service for victims of childhood sexual abuse in London and Kent, which will run alongside its telephone helpline
• The Forest Recycling Project, Waltham Forest, East London – to extend its innovative 'Give or Take' exchange programme on to the Web
• Living Streets, South London – to create a 'virtual street' on the Living Streets Web site, as part of its ongoing campaign for streets that are safe, clean and fit for pedestrians (www.livingstreets.org.uk)
• The London Irish Women’s Centre, Stoke Newington – to fund IT equipment so that an outreach worker can have access to online advice and information whilst working on site in Holloway Prison for women
• The Notting Hill Housing Trust, West London – to create a 24-hour community youth radio station, which will initially be broadcast online and will enable the young people involved to develop their Web skills (www.nottinghillhousing.org.uk)
• Oasis North London – to purchase IT equipment and software for the group’s homework club for children affected by HIV (www.onl.org.uk)
• National charity OCD-UK – to run online therapy sessions on its new Web site for sufferers of Obsessive Compulsive Disorders (www.ocduk.org)
• The Reading Single Homeless Project – to contribute towards providing a greater sense of security and community at a number of its sites across the town
• St John’s Pre-School, Toxteth, Liverpool – to take children on a 'magic carpet' ride around the world and back in time using a large rug, a new computer, a broadband Internet connection and a large screen
• Saint Catherine’s Hospice, Scarborough – to set up a mobile Internet unit to enable in-patients and day hospice patients to stay in touch with friends and family via email and webcams
• Sign (the National Society for Mental Health and Deafness), Beaconsfield – to provide communication skills training to approximately six members of its day centre for deaf people in need of emotional support in South West London (www.signcharity.org.uk)
• Solid Rock Café, Camelford, Cornwall – to set up a broadband Internet suite for local teenagers and encourage online communication with similar youth groups overseas
• National charity Stonewall – to set up an Internet-related project (www.stonewall.org.uk)
• Woldgate Travellers Association, Bridlington – to set up an Internet cafe for the traveller community in the area.

2003 winners

• Age Concern Leominster & District (North Herefordshire) – to set up online 'Reminiscence Sessions' for older people in the region
• Age Concern Stafford & District – to purchase laptop computers (www.ageconcernstafford.org.uk)
• Artlink ExChange, an arts charity based in Hull – to update its Web site in its 21st anniversary year, involving the local community in the creation of the Web site
• The Berkshire County Blind Society, based in Reading – to set up an Internet cafe for blind and visually impaired people across the region (www.blind.fsnet.co.uk)
• BeyondAbuse.org, based in Glasgow – to facilitate a Web site for survivors of rape and sexual abuse in Scotland
• The British Institute for Brain Injured Children (BIBIC), based in Bridgwater, Somerset – to set up an innovative project linking families and therapists online (www.bibic.org.uk)
• The Bladder Pain Syndrome Association, based in Belvedere, Kent – to update the chat room facility on its Web site and host regular live chats with medical professionals for bladder pain sufferers (www.b-p-s-a.org.uk)
• Bowbridge Primary & Nursery School, based in Newark, Nottinghamshire – to help local families get online (www.bowbridgeprimary.com)
• The Discus Duke of Edinburgh's Award Project, based in Beswick, east Manchester – to develop a Web site about the issues behind discrimination against young people and an online support system for other vulnerable young people in Manchester
• The Gloucestershire Young Carers Project, based in Gloucester – to purchase IT equipment and software to further develop its Web site, providing news, information and support for young carers in Gloucestershire (www.glosyoungcarers.org.uk)
• The Guy Fox History Project, a heritage education organisation in Southwark, London – to fund a Web site production training course for one member of staff and develop a London history Web site with and for children in south London (www.guyfox.org.uk)
• Headon-cum-Upton Village Hall in Retford, Nottinghamshire – to create a local intranet that will be used to share information, give access to training materials, and generally help residents to communicate with one another
• Lineham Farm Children's Centre in Eccup, north Leeds, which provides free holidays to disadvantaged and disabled children – to fund equipment and resources to develop the charity's IT capabilities, including the centre's popular new Web site
• Manchester Family Service Unit in Miles Platting, Manchester – to provide a worker to consult and work alongside local children to develop and maintain their own Web site, linked to the organisation's national Web site
• Medical Engineering Resource Unit (MERU), based in Carshalton, Surrey, which uses engineering skills to assist and enhance the lives of disabled children – to set up an online forum for MERU's Disabled Young People's Consultation Group, enabling the young people to exchange ideas and open up a nationwide discussion
• Mothers of Sexually Abused Children (MOSAC), based in Greenwich – to fund its day-to-day work and set up an email support service for mothers (www.mosac.org.uk)
• Muslim Youth Helpline, based in Wembley, Middlesex – to set up an online forum providing support and encouragement for young Muslims (www.myh.org.uk)
• Norfolk Young People's Development Group, based in Norwich – to set up a Web-based gateway for young disabled people to communicate and socialise
• North Tyneside Disability Forum, based in North Shields – to develop a Web version of its successful Bellow magazine for disabled 16- to 25-year-olds in the region
• Oily Cart, an arts organisation in Wandsworth, London – to develop an interactive and accessible Web site that builds on the live art experience and enables children to anticipate the group's visits to nurseries, schools and theatres (www.oilycart.org.uk)
• Platform One, a not-for-profit community arts group in Newport, Isle of Wight – to help the Island Women's Refuge set up a Web site for victims of domestic violence on the Isle of Wight
• Project Ability, an arts organisation in Glasgow – to create a Web site where young homeless people can exhibit their work and give the public an insight into the many complex issues behind homelessness (www.project-ability.co.uk)
• Rame Conservation Trust in South East Cornwall – to enable a group of local young people to furnish a building, buy IT equipment to run Web-based projects, and print a leaflet about what they do
• Refugees First in Plymouth – to fund a live community arts event and multimedia online project
• Roe Valley Women's Network in Northern Ireland, which is part funded by the EU through the building sustainable prosperity programme and Department of Social Development measure – to set up a Web site and email service.
• Sahara Asian Project, based in Greenwich, south east London – to develop an interactive Web site where Asian carers in the borough of Greenwich can access up-to-date information and share their experiences with others
• The South West Area Project, a youth organisation in south west Cwmbran – to establish an interactive Web radio station for young people at its summer playscheme
• Waterloo Residents Association in the Midlands – to purchase specialist IT equipment for members of its Disability Forum and other residents forums
• Women's Health, a national women's charity based in Shoreditch, east London – to develop health information booklets that can be accessed online (www.womenshealthlondon.org.uk)
• Working With Words, a charity in Woolwich, east London – to purchase specialist IT equipment for people with learning disabilities