Tech4Good South West at Bath Digital Festival 2025: Connecting Tech with Social Impact
Last week, Tech4Good South West hosted three action-orientated events at The Techspark Bath Digital Festival 2025. Our sessions focused on bringing together the tech and social sectors to address challenges facing our communities. From tech volunteering and AI adoption to digital inclusion, each session explored different facets of how we can collectively drive positive social change in the South West.
Tech Skills for Good Pilot: Kicking Off a Place-Based Approach to Tech Volunteering with Aviva
On 13 May, we launched our Tech Skills for Good initiative pilot – a six-month collaboration between Tech4Good South West and Aviva's Bristol Technology Team. This pilot marks the beginning of a place-based approach to skilled tech volunteering: connecting local digital professionals with local charities and community organisations to address digital challenges that matter to our communities.
Rather than building something entirely new, we're testing how we can both build on what already exists, and in turn strengthen and coordinate place-based tech volunteering.
We were joined by our four pilot charities, a brilliant group of Aviva volunteers, and a range of partners and supporters. The session opened with insights from:
David Scurr (CAST), sharing lessons from their Deloitte Digital Connect programme
Dave Donaghy (BCS The Chartered Institute of IT), highlighting the national momentum behind tech volunteering for their members
John Stienlet (Quartet ProHelp), reflecting on the value of long-term relationships in pro bono support
At the heart of the session was co-designing the pilot, first surfacing needs across participants, volunteers, and our Tech4Good South West team as brokers and facilitators for the volunteering offer. It is no surprise the key takeaways:
Ensure clear scoping of need and set realistic expectations
Ensure consistent communication and support
Focus on learning, not just delivery for both volunteers and participants
Always be considering the importance of relationships and local context
This pilot is not just for solving tech problems, but for creating a more connected, capable, and collaborative tech-for-good ecosystem in the South West. Projects are now underway, and we're excited to share more as we learn.
AI in Action at Bath Digital Festival - Making AI Work for the Third Sector: A Peer-Led Approach
On May 14th, we held our first in-person AI Peer Network initiative session in collaboration with Level.AI and 3SG B&NES Third Sector Group, bringing to life the virtual VCSE peer community we've been building since March. This session was designed to be action-oriented, and focused on making AI accessible and practical for charities and social enterprises.
The session explored how VCSE organisations are beginning to use AI in areas like fundraising, content creation, internal communications, and service design. We surfaced key questions around data privacy, consent, and the risks of bias — and discussed what good governance and low-risk experimentation might look like in practice. With tech and VCSE sector peers on hand to support live problem-solving, attendees had the chance to bring their curiosity to test tools, share real-world use cases, and build confidence in navigating AI responsibly.
This in-person gathering built on our growing virtual AI Peer Network, which meets monthly to share knowledge, explore ethical AI practices, and strengthen digital confidence across the sector. Our next online session will take place on June 23rd, sign up to join us!
Digital Divide Collective Roundtable: Bridging Bath's Digital Divide
Completing our three-day presence at the festival, the Bath Digital Divide Collective (BDDC) in collaboration with Quartet Community Foundation hosted a strategic roundtable focused on community digital skills at the Guildhall on May 15th. This invitation-only session brought together key stakeholders from across Bath and North East Somerset to address digital exclusion in local communities.
Led by Bath Bridge CIC and Tech4Good South West, the session gathered representatives from higher education institutions, local council, third sector organisations, businesses, and training providers to develop a more coordinated approach to enhancing digital skills provision in the region.
Our discussion focused on creating a vision for a digitally inclusive Bath, exploring together;
What existing strengths can we build on? Where do we see strong digital skills, community capacity, or physical infrastructure already in place across Bath and North East Somerset?
What are our current strategic priorities - and are they aligned? Where are organisations currently focusing their digital inclusion efforts, and how do these align or overlap?
What digital needs and barriers are communities experiencing right now? What are you hearing or seeing on the ground in terms of challenges, unmet needs, or emerging opportunities?
Where are the gaps we need to address together? What’s missing in terms of skills, access, resources, or support that’s preventing digital inclusion from being fully realised?
, identifying barriers that contribute to exclusion, mapping existing resources, and establishing concrete next steps. Participants explored the concept of a "Digital Playground" - an interactive, inspiring space designed to spark curiosity, encourage play, and build digital skills in community settings.
Key outcomes included commitments to:
Build stronger connections among stakeholders
Explore Digital Champions recruitment and training in our communities
Develop a shared map of local provision and needs
The BDDC's current work was recognised for its impact, having delivered 10 free workshops to 30 people in 2025, making referrals to partner services, and being named "Hub of the Month" by the Good Things Foundation out of 7,000+ UK hubs.
Looking Forward
These three events reflect Tech4Good South West's commitment to building a more connected tech-for-good ecosystem in our region. By bringing together diverse stakeholders around shared challenges, we're creating pathways for meaningful collaboration between the tech sector and mission-driven organisations.
We're grateful to all participants, partners, and the Bath Digital Festival team for making these events possible. To get involved in future activities, join our community at tech4goodsouthwest.org or connect with us on LinkedIn.
