HMCTS helping online users with a new national digital support service
Our new digital support service aims to remove the barriers that some users face when accessing our online services.
After a successful test phase, we’re offering a free national digital support service to help users who cannot get online, including those who cannot access the internet or a computer.
The service can also be used by those who are less confident or less able to access online services.
We’ve partnered with We Are Digital, a social impact company dedicated to helping people access digital services.
How to access the digital support service
If users contact our Courts and Tribunals Service Centre and need help to complete a form, our service centre staff can refer them to the digital support service.
Organisations in the We Are Digital support network - such as local community centres - can also refer users.
We offer the digital support service on many of our online services, including:
- Appeal a benefit decision
- Make a plea for a non-imprisonable offence
- Making or responding to a small money claim
- Get help paying court and tribunal fees
- Apply for probate of an estate
- Apply or respond to a divorce
Find out more about the We Are Digital support service by:
- emailing the team
- texting ‘FORM’ to 60777
- calling 03300 160051
Our reformed digital services
As part of our investment in reforming our justice system, we’ve ensured that there’s a digital journey available for lots of our services. The digital support service will make sure that our users can access these online services, and nobody is excluded.
More of our reformed services will offer the digital support service over the coming months, including:
- Employment tribunals
- Private family law
Improving the service through testing and evaluation
We want to understand how we can best support our users, and how well the national digital support service works for both the users who receive support and the organisations offering the service.
An independent research organisation is evaluating the service and helping us to understand users’ perceptions and experiences of the service. This will inform future decisions about how we deliver digital support.
Become a partner centre
We’re looking for community and advice centres in England, Scotland and Wales to register their interest to provide support for people who are digitally excluded.
We Are Digital pays centres for helping users to complete HMCTS services online. They’ll provide staff members with comprehensive training, and provide downloadable marketing materials to promote the new service in their local communities.