Being digitally included is becoming more and more important, and having digital skills brings so many benefits – from finding employment, saving money, becoming less isolated, as well as improving quality of life and wellbeing.

And now it’s more important than ever, as you’ll need to have basic digital skills to apply for the new benefit, Universal Credit, online. You can find out more on our 'Universal Credit' page. Here are some tips to help you to get online and prepare if you think you’ll need to make a claim in the future.

Make the most of our digital mentors!

We have digital mentors based at a number of libraries across Hampshire to offer you support. We’ve been running the scheme for 2.5 years now, and during this time we’ve supported 284 people to improve their skills!

We can help you, or one of your family members too! Find details of the libraries where we have digital mentors offering support on our 'get online' page and give them a call to book an appointment.

Prepare for Universal Credit by completing our online course

To apply for Universal Credit, you’ll need to have basic digital skills, as you’ll need to access your Universal Credit portal through their website. You’ll need to able to use an email account and know how to use the internet.

To prepare, you can complete a Universal Credit online course on Learn My Way.

And if you need any advice or guidance about Universal Credit, including if you should claim, please get in touch with us.