Get Box is Jangala’s long-term, end-to-end solution to digital poverty for small group contexts, such as households struggling to pay their broadband or mobile data bills. We work with charities and organisational partners to deploy Get Boxes to individuals and households facing digital poverty.
Setting up Get Box is easy and straightforward. The paperback-sized device can be posted to a user, who can then simply plug it into mains electricity, establishing a secure Wi-Fi network instantly.
The Wi-Fi network generated by Get Box is reliable, safe and secure. Jangala’s remote management and visibility metrics make it easy for our our project partners - such as charities providing support to vulnerable people - to receive usage statistics.
Do you need to connect more than 20 people at once? Big Box is Jangala’s other device, which provides secure, high-performance Wi-Fi for up to thousands of users in demanding environments.
features
GET Box in action
Digital poverty is not only an issue in low- and middle-income countries, with stark digital divides prevalent in some of the world’s wealthiest societies. Here in the UK, only 5% of state school teachers say that all their students have home internet access (Sutton Trust, 2021), while 35% of of young people are restricted in their online activities because of limits to their family’s data allowance (Nominet Digital Youth Index, 2022). Digital poverty is not just an issue for young people either - 37% of people over the age of 75 (2 million people) are digitally excluded, according to research from AgeUK in 2021.
Get Box requires no expertise to set up - simply plug it into mains power, insert a mobile data SIM card and the Wi-Fi network will be operational in just one minute. Time of day restrictions means data can be preserved for intended users, and content blocking capabilities make Get Box safe for young and vulnerable users, allowing organisations to meet their safeguarding obligations. The system’s bandwidth optimisation capabilities means data costs can be minimised, making it an ideal solution for charitable organisations with limited budgets and financially vulnerable users. Finally, remote updates and monitoring means troubleshooting and updates can take place with minimal disturbance, and usage statistics allow administrators to gauge performance and user experience, while keeping personal information private.
If you work for an organisation or grassroots group providing support to vulnerable people and families and are looking for ways to combat digital poverty, we’d love to hear from you.
EDUCATION, TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
Many young people in the UK don’t have a reliable internet connection at home, with approximately 4% of school-aged children only able to access the internet via a mobile device (e.g. via a smartphone, tethering, or dongle) according to Ofcom research.
This can have substantial effects on their education, making research difficult and placing barriers to engagement with online tutoring and distance learning. All of this places students at a disadvantage compared to their peers, exacerbating existing social divides.
Get Box has been developed for these purposes and Jangala is already running a number of projects with schools and education charities in the UK to connect students at home. Our partnership with The Access Project has connected 120 financially vulnerable households to allow students to participate in tutorials run by the charity and similarly, Jangala provided 35 Get Boxes via our partnership with an East London secondary school to children from low-income households and their families.
VULNERABLE USERS
When the Covid-19 pandemic hit the UK, critical health and social services moved online. Many of these services have not returned to in-person delivery and remained online, leaving vulnerable people without fixed broadband unable to access services they rely upon, such as mental health services and specialist outpatient appointments.
Our partnership with the Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust provided patients of the Trust’s counselling services with Get Boxes, allowing them to access their online appointments and receive crucial care. They were also provided with devices and digital skills training if they needed it, to support their engagement in their sessions.
Get Box has also provided connectivity to a women’s emergency housing shelter in Essex, allowing women and their children staying in the 10 bedroom accommodation to access social services, employment & education opportunities, and stay in touch with loved ones. Meanwhile in Northern Ireland, Get Box is connecting refugee rights activists through the Participation & Practice of Rights.