Positive Digital Communities

About the project

The University of Bradford are taking part in an Office for Students funded project, titled 'Positive Digital Practices'. The strand that we are facilitating is titled, 'Positive Digital Communities'. We have changed the name from community to ‘circle’ as we feel it is more inclusive.

The aim of the project is to create new resources, known as toolkits, to provide guidance to groups of people who might be communicating with other people from the University in digital circles. These groups might be hosted on platforms such as WhatsApp, Teams, Instagram etc.

The project is made up of three strands:

Our Student Peers Circle- Supporting students or staff to create or engage in peer circles that are related to programmes of study.
Our Programme Circle - Supporting staff to create and embed peer circles in the context of a programme of study.
Our Student Interest Circle - Supporting students to create or engage with positive digital circles within student-led activity groups, such as societies.

The project's end date is July 2023.

Why is the project important?

This project will be valuable for showcasing good examples of where this is already working well, for learning more about the benefits of such groups, and any challenges that may occur, and how digital circles support students’ wellbeing generally. This research-informed guidance aims to aid you in providing an inclusive and supportive experience for students’ whilst at the university.

How will it help you?

It will provide resources and key questions to aid discussions around how to set up, maintain, evaluate, and encourage engagement with digital circles. The key areas this includes are:

Netiquette guidance (what practices/behaviours are appropriate in a digital circle)
Scoping questions for setting up a digital circle
What platforms could be used
Reflecting on the benefits and challenges of digital circles
Intersectionality considerations for different types of students
Evaluating users’ experiences of digital circles
A guidance document encompassing all the above

The resources are accessible for all, and some are editable so they can be downloaded and used as you wish.