Connecting Scotland is a Scottish Government initiative managed by the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations. Find out more
Help your recipients stay connected to the internet
After your recipients' free MiFi data ends, you can help keep people connected by:
- taking advantage of Vodafone's charities.connected scheme
- finding out more about low cost options for getting online
If you have any questions, you can get help by contacting our free helpline: 0800 0 590 690, between 10am - 4pm, Monday - Friday, or by emailing: help@connecting.scot.
Vodafone offer
If you are a registered charity, you can apply for free SIMs via Vodafone's ‘charities.connected’ programme. These SIMs provide 40GB of free data per month for 6 months, and also include free unlimited texts and calls.
How is the Vodafone SIM activated?
The SIM will be activated when it is put into a device. This could be a MiFi dongle, a tablet or a phone. Once the SIM is activated it will start to work. There are no other steps to complete.
After the 6 month offer ends
After 6 months, recipients can keep using their Vodafone SIM and switch to a pay-as-you-go plan for £5 per month. The £5 per month offer includes 7GB of data per month and unlimited texts and calls. Users will need to opt in to use this service.
People should use their Vodafone SIM in a mobile phone, as they'll be sent texts to let them know how much of their free data they've used. They can also use their SIM in a dongle, but they will not be sent any text updates about how much data they've used.
If 40GB of free data per month is not enough
Social broadband tariffs are available to people who can afford them and need more than 40GB data per month.
Low cost options for getting online
Broadband and mobile social tariffs are cheaper than standard broadband packages. They may be better for people than the free Vodafone SIM offer if they use more than 40GB of data per month.
People can get a broadband or mobile social tariff if they're paid Universal Credit, Pension Credit, Employment and Support Allowance, Jobseeker’s Allowance or Income Support.
Ofcom have full details about social tariffs in the UK.
Free internet connections
People may be able to use a computer and get online for free somewhere close to them. Both digital inclusion hubs and public libraries can give people free access to the internet. Find out more about digital inclusion hubs from the Online Centres Network. People can find their nearest public library on mygov.scot.