Free computer classes are a first for Maketu and they’re proving popular.

Stepping UP free computer classes began last year in Te Puke, initiated by the team at Te Puke Library in conjunction with 20/20 Trust – an organisation that promotes digital literacy in communities in partnership with local libraries.

Its success in Te Puke was instant – but for Maketu residents it was a long way to travel and those wanting to go by bus found the timetable didn’t fit with the classes.

The solution was simple – take Stepping UP to Maketu. The programme was a good fit with the Maketu Community Plan strategy to provide training opportunities for the wider community.

Groups of up to six students each have a laptop to work on and presenter Mike Gardner teaches basic computing skills. The course is into its second month and has been almost fully attended each session.

These include creating a Word document, digital photos, sending emails, uploading or downloading files and how to use social media (Facebook), an introduction to tablets and how to use Ancestry.com.

Mike is thrilled with the response and says the relaxed environment and unpressured style of learning is one of the keys to its popularity.

“This programme is all about helping people gain confidence around computers. The beauty about it is that people can come to brush up their computer skills or come and along and learn from scratch.’’

Tuakare Mahutariki joined up from the start and is learning heaps. He teaches Te Reo at Rotorua’s Toi Ohomai, and needs to brush up his computer skills to digitally communicate with this students.

The informality of the lessons, having them just down the road from his home – and having the flexibility to go at his own pace are all reasons Tuakare is enjoying the Maketu Stepping UP programme.