News

Over the past year Mhor Collective have been working with Angus and East Ayrshire ADPs, delivering 14 sessions and training 60 Digital Champions. As part of our mission to support the wider sector, DLS training partners Mhor Collective are providing a series of free online training sessions in November. These digital harm reduction sessions are perfect for frontline practitioners curious about the role of digital in providing harm reduction support. The interactive sessi

DLS is pleased to announce Figure 8 Consultancy Services Ltd was successful in a recent competitive procurement exercise to identify an evaluation partner for Phase 3 of Digital Lifelines Scotland. Over the past five years, the programme has evolved its delivery model although maintaining the ambition to impact people, services and the sector. It is timely to now assess whether the programme is impacting on sustainable change at the sector and system level. The focus on syste

How should Scotland sustainably fund digital inclusion? Short-term projects, fragmented provision and insecure funding have failed to create sustainable capacity. At the same time, public services continue to redesign around digital channels without consistently accounting for the cost of supporting people who cannot use the result. SCVO’s new report looks at what the evidence tells us about what works, who should pay and how we can build lasting support into digital transf

A new suite of NIHR-funded resources, Digital Inclusion Resources: Practical Pathways to Action and Impact, has been published following a collaborative study led by Public Health Wales, working with the University of Oxford, Cwmpas, Newydd Housing Association, Displaced People in Action and Simon Community Scotland. Bringing together research evidence and insights from practitioners and communities, the resources offer practical guidance on understanding digital exclusion, t

We are delighted to confirm the next DLS Conference has opened for registration. Held once again at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh on Wednesday 10 March 2027. We’ll be confirming speakers and presenters over the coming weeks and months. The event will showcase how place-based partnerships are embedding digital within local systems to improve access and accessibility, reduce inequalities and support better outcomes for people. Through shared learning and evidence of impact

In August the Digital Lifelines team were delighted to co-host workshops with two of our new Alcohol and Drug Partnership (ADP) partners. Both Aberdeenshire and Moray welcomed us on separate days to explore their areas of interest as outlined in their applications. The sessions were led by our DHI design team colleagues and sought to understand the current provision and how digital could support new ways of working in the future. There was a vibrancy to the conversations, and

As part of our regular check-ins, we recently caught up with the two ADPs funded through the 2025/26 programme. These discussions aren't just about tracking progress, they help us understand how digital inclusion is becoming embedded in local pathways, what barriers are emerging, and what support is needed to keep momentum going. There's an interesting shift happening in the local pathways. Not because the need has changed, but because the pathways themselves are maturing. Th

As Alcohol and Drug Partnerships and their partners across Scotland embark on a new period of Digital Lifelines funding, there is an opportunity to think not only about what we can deliver now, but what we want to leave behind. Digital Lifelines has demonstrated the difference that access to a device, connectivity and the right support can make for people affected by harm from drug use. But traditional approaches to digital inclusion can be heavily dependent on funding to pur

Some members of the DLS Delivery Group were able to visit the newly funded ADPs for the first time in July. Moray, Aberdeenshire and Dundee were all very welcoming and the teams left enthused and excited to start working together. All three ADPs gave the DLS team a warm welcome and demonstrated a strong commitment to placing supported individuals at the centre of their services. Moray has Elgin as a centre; the majority of the population live there and north to the coast. Tha

Friends of DLS (SCVO, Mohr Collective and Tara French Consulting) have published a new paper calling for change in how digital inclusion is commissioned in health and social care. Based on their experience and insights delivering the National Digital Inclusion Programme “This exploratory work sought to understand how commissioning processes could better embed digital inclusion as a core element of service design and delivery, and to generate recommendations for more sustainab

Last month the Good Things Foundation published a startling one-page collation of key data and statistics that highlight digital exclusion across the UK. There is a vast array of resources available on the Good Things website over and above the context and download link for the image. We recommend spending some time there if your interest is piqued. DLS evaluations have highlighted the value of digital inclusion to people’s wellbeing, connections and service access. Good Thin

Reflections on the 3rd DLS Conference and Opening of Funding Opportunities Two weeks have passed since we welcomed nearly 150 people to Murrayfield for the third Digital Lifelines Conference. What a day it was, all the planning and hard work paid off, phew! Well done to all the team who worked on the event. Many present on the day expressed how insightful, interesting and informative the speakers and sessions were. There was a tangible vibrancy in the room, and the conversati

We are proud to announce that Digital Lifelines Scotland has been awarded the Digital Inclusion Award at the Holyrood Connect Awards 2025. This recognition highlights the project's significant impact on improving digital access and reducing drug-related harm across Scotland. Digital Lifelines Scotland Team Working in collaboration with the Digital Health and Care Innovation Centre (DHI), Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO), and the Simon Community Scotland, th

On 13 March 2025, the Scottish Parliament hosted a special reception to highlight the achievements of the Digital Lifelines Scotland programme. This event brought together key partners, including the Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre (DHI), the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO), and Simon Community Scotland. Sponsored by Clare Haughey MSP and supported by various third-sector organisations, the reception celebrated the real-life impact of digital techn