Free digital training in the North East

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Looking to brush up your IT skills, or wanting to upskill IT skills in your workforce?

New College Durham is keen to support the workforce of Co Durham to develop digital skills. We are able to offer free digital training to you if you are employed and live in County Durham.

Undertake a short course delivered on-line or using a workbook, with support from professionally trained tutors.

Information events will run weekly online on a Thursday (at 4pm) until the end of November 2021.

There are a range of free courses available

• Essential Digital Skills Qualifications at Entry & Level 1 (EDSQ)

  BCS have used the National Standards for Essential Digital Skills (developed by the Department for Education) to create the qualifications.

  The qualifications are aimed at two levels:

  • Entry Level - qualifications designed for adults with no or little prior experience of using digital devices or the internet.
  • Level 1 - qualifications designed for adults with some experience of using digital devices and the internet but lacking secure basic digital skills.

   These BCS qualifications cover all five skills areas set out in the national standards:

  1. Using devices and handling information.
  2. Creating and editing.
  3. Communicating.
  4. Transactions.
  5. Being safe and responsible online

• BCS ECDL Single Units at Levels 1, 2 and 3

  See table below for list of units for each level and their Credit Value:

  Unit	Level 1	Level 2	Level 3
  Database Software	3*	4	6*
  Improving Productivity using IT	3	4	5*
  IT Security for Users	1
  IT User Fundamentals	3
  Presentation Software	3	4	6*
  Project Management Software		4
  Spreadsheet Software	3	4	6
  Using Collaborative Technologies	3*
  Using Internet and Email	5
  Word Processing Software	3	4	6*

   

• ECDL qualifications

  ECDL Essentials (Level 1):

  • IT User Fundamentals
  • Using Email and the Internet
  • IT Security for Users

  ECDL Flexi:

  • Level 1, select a combination of units from the table above that add up to at least 9 credits
  • Level 2, select a combination of units from the table above that add up to at least 10 credits

  ECDL Extra (Level 2):

  • Word Processing Software
  • Spreadsheet Software
  • Presentation Software
  • Improving Productivity Using IT