The University of South Wales (USW) and Newport City Homes (NCH) have been helping the housing association’s customers stay safe online during a series of specialist events.

USW’s Newport Campus hosted Cyber Community Clinic drop-in advice sessions on May 9, 10 and 11, as well as workshops explaining the dangers of online scams and ensuring passwords are safe and secure.

USW has been named Cyber University of the Year for the past three years, and Newport Campus is home to the National Cyber Security Academy (NCSA), where students work closely with a number of external companies to ensure they are cyber secure.

During the Clinics, USW students shared this expertise, with University staff also passing on tips on online security.

Sharan Johnstone, who is head of the NCSA, said the Clinics were designed to give NCH customers the chance to build their online confidence.

“With so many day-to-day things now managed online, it’s vital that everyone who uses the internet and apps understand what the pitfalls are, and how to avoid having their identity or data compromised,” she said.

“At USW, we have students and staff who work with some major organisations on ensuring they are cyber secure, and were more than happy to pass on this expertise to individuals who may benefit from the knowledge.

“This is the first part of a partnership we have with NCH, with whom we have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) which will see us working with them strategically on student placements, community-based activities, and other projects.

“It will also help us and NCH support the Welsh Government’s Digital Strategy for Wales, which is aiming to improve digital inclusion and skills, and through that reduce inequality, and Newport City Council’s Digital Strategy, which includes it having Digital Inclusion Charter Accreditation.”

Nathan Davies, Community Development Manager, “NCH is committed on developing a stronger understanding of activities, partnerships and opportunities that will have the greatest impact on our communities. We truly believe by working with our customers and partners such as USW and Newport Transport, we are meeting the need to support our customers become digitally included and more importantly, helping them to stay safe online.

Rachael Davies, Neighbourhood Manager for NCH, said: “This is an exciting opportunity to work with our communities and the University of South Wales. I’m looking forward to future ventures in partnership and expanding on the work we can do together. I’d like to give a big thank you to Newport Transport for their support in helping us get customers to the event with bus tokens.”

USW is also planning to run Community Cyber Safety clinics for all residents in the Newport area on Wednesday afternoons from October.