My time at school co-incided with computers entering the classroom. The difference then was that it was literally one classroom. “Computers” were distinct – understanding basic coding was encouraged and was generally thought to be a “good thing”. However that was the limit. No one imagined how transformative IT would prove. The recent cyber-attacks on computer systems are of course concerning – but they also illustrate how much we rely on these systems for the delivery of commercial and public services. At a different level 32million in the UK regularly play computer games – an industry with many local roots that generates £4.3bn every year.
Hack Horsham has a vision of working with people of all ages to help to turn Horsham into a digital hub, their volunteers run workshops to engage children in coding including by working with technology start-ups. Last Sunday I joined them when, as part of the Horsham Festival and Horsham Rotary Club’s ‘Funday Sunday’, they organised a Code Club event for 9-11 year olds in Horsham. Code Club is a national organisation designed ‘to give every child the skills, confidence and opportunity to change their world’. 48 young coders took part. For those for whom computer coding is a mystery it was pointed out that at a similar event a 7 year old designed and constructed a working cash machine….
It was the perfect way to inspire young people. Among participants were the Met Office who employ the 11th biggest computer in the world using up to 23 trillion calculations every second to forecast weather patterns globally.
The message from the day was simple. There may be hundreds of millions of adults for whom computers are an integral part of their lives but far too few understand the technology that makes them work – or can make them work even better. The UK has the highest proportion of people in work than ever before but there are thousands of hugely important jobs that are unfilled because we don’t have enough people with the right skills. Whether the young people were are inspired by this or whether they were simply having fun – or both – its great its happening!
Caption: Joining the Hack Horsham Code Club at The Capitol this week