Month: February 2012

The Social Media Surgery is the latest winner of the Prime Minister’s Big Society Award.

We are delighted that Podnosh, our website developers, and a firm supporter of the Friends of Brandwood End Cemetery have won a Big Society Award.

The first Social Media Surgery was organised by Birmingham entrepreneur Nick Booth in 2008. Having set up his own successful social media company, Podnosh, Nick wanted to help charities and other voluntary groups to make the most of social media to support their work.  For many local groups social media is a much cheaper and more effective way of reaching target groups than traditional communications.  With support from the Birmingham Bloggers group, he held the first ‘social media surgery’ in Birmingham in October 2008.  These are very informal events bringing together people with web expertise and the desire to share it with people who need help to get their community group online. No lectures, no curriculum, just a relaxed space where people can learn together.

The surgeries were incredibly popular and led Nick to create the Social Media Surgery Plus website to help people all over the country to coordinate their own events.  Surgeries are now held in 60 locations around the UK with nearly 400 volunteer “surgeons” giving their time to help nearly 1,700 local groups and active citizens take advantage of the internet to support their cause.

Nick Booth contact details. nick.booth@podnosh.com

To read the full story, and see our very own mention on Number 10’s website, read on here…