Sightsavers Ireland’s education site wins Website of the Year award

Sightsavers Ireland’s Put Us in the Picture website has been named Not-for-Profit Website of the Year at Ireland’s National Digital Awards.

Put Us in the Picture is an interactive online workshop that teaches schoolchildren aged seven to 13 about inclusive education and disability, helping students to learn what life is like for children with disabilities in low income countries. Learners and teachers can register on the website to complete activities, take quizzes, play games and earn badges to become a disability inclusion champion.

Activities include learning to write names in braille, taking a virtual trip to Cameroon, and using digital glasses to see how other people view the world. The games Go Fish! Goals and Buy Chocolate teach children about the Sustainable Development Goals and Ireland’s development work through Irish Aid, which also provided funding for the website.

During the COVID-19 school closures, Put Us in the Picture became a key aspect of Ireland’s schools programme, enabling children to continue learning at home. The website’s accessible design means it can be used by screen readers and those living in rural areas with slow internet speeds. Since its launch in December 2020, more than 2,200 children have registered on the site.

More information about the awards and the full list of winners can be found on the National Digital Awards website.