by Andrew Collins | 10th Jan 2024

This blog is a case study from our DigiCymru service, which offers free, short, 1-to-1 support to third-sector organisations in Wales. Connect is just one organisation that has contacted the service to ask for advice and help to find solutions to their problem.

You don’t need an app to send push notifications!

What is Connect?

Connect is run by Adoption Cymru and funded by the National Adoption Service. It is the national service for adopted children and young people.

They hold monthly meetings which aim to improve the self-confidence of the children and young people they work with. They help build self-esteem, reduce the sense of isolation that some adopted children experience, and develop life skills.

This is achieved by offering a range of activities such as art, drama, circus skills, healthy eating/cooking, music etc.

What problem did Connect face?

Ahead of the DigiCymru session, Connect gave their digital challenge:

“We want to explore whether we should develop an app for use by young people.”

In the kickoff meeting with Andrew Collins, ProMo Cymru’s Senior Digital Manager, Ann and Fran from Adoption Cymru explained that they find engaging with their young people challenging. Due to the sensitive nature of the adoption process, they do not keep any young people’s data and only have basic contact details for their parents.

Connect has a project website that advertises meet-up groups where adopted young people can meet in a safe space and participate in various fun activities. However, Ann and Fran have difficulties directly sharing that information with their young people.

They felt that a new app, which young people and their parents could download, would allow them to send push notifications without needing personal information.

They were concerned this would be a significant amount of work to create. They’d have to update both the website and the app, creating more work and expense in the long term.

Finding a digital solution

App development can take a lot of time and be pricey. We looked at tools that allow you to send push notifications easily, like an app, without developing something new.

AppyPie allows you to easily convert your existing website into an app. Downloadable from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.

AppyPie also:

– Enables staff to send push notifications to their service users
– Is a no-code solution with a low barrier to entry
– Takes content from your website, so there is no need to update both the website and app
– Costs just £10p/m, so it’s a very affordable solution and much cheaper than developing a new app from scratch

If you’re interested in getting a free one-to-one DigiCymru session for your third-sector organisation, get yourself booked in with one of our digital experts to help find a digital solution for you.

This case study is funded through Third Sector Digital Support, a National Lottery Community Fund project to support the Welsh Third Sector with digital. To find out more about how this project can support your organisation, click the link or contact andrew@promo.cymru