Case Study: MAD Swansea

Written By Ben Swindell

Awarded Organisation: Swansea MAD

Grant Programme: AI for All

Focus: Digital Inclusion, AI Literacy & Community Empowerment

Overview

Swansea MAD is a grassroots, anti-poverty and anti-racist youth and community charity working at the heart of Swansea—one of the most deprived urban areas in Wales. Since 2020, the organisation has created inclusive, welcoming spaces where marginalised communities can access support, build skills, and take part in shaping fairer systems.

Through funding from The Different Foundation’s AI for All programme, Swansea MAD is delivering Code the Future: AI Edition, a beginner-friendly AI education and empowerment project designed for young people and marginalised communities.

The Challenge

Many people in Swansea face overlapping barriers including poverty, digital exclusion, limited access to education, and systemic discrimination. As artificial intelligence increasingly shapes employment, public services, and civic life, these communities risk being further excluded from opportunities—and from influencing the technologies that affect their lives.

Digital inequality in Swansea is particularly acute in neighbourhoods identified by the Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation as among the most deprived in Wales, where access to devices, skills training, and digital confidence remains limited.

The Approach

Code the Future: AI Edition is designed to be accessible, inclusive, and practical, requiring no prior technical experience. With support from the grant, Swansea MAD is:

  • Delivering in-person AI workshops that introduce core AI concepts and hands-on skills in a supportive learning environment

  • Providing software, hardware upgrades, and learning materials to enable experimentation and practical application

  • Offering one-to-one support and refreshments to remove barriers to participation

  • Supporting learners with follow-up mentoring, strengthening confidence and progression pathways

  • The programme builds on Swansea MAD’s established strengths in digital education, creative technology, and community-led learning, ensuring participants feel safe, supported, and empowered throughout.

Who It Supports

The project prioritises disadvantaged and underrepresented groups, including:

  • Young people

  • Refugees and people seeking asylum

  • LGBTQ+ people

  • Black and non-Black people of colour

  • Disabled people

  • People experiencing homelessness

  • Care leavers and older people

Many participants experience multiple, intersecting forms of disadvantage. Swansea MAD’s trauma-informed, inclusive approach ensures that learning is accessible and relevant to real-life challenges.

Impact

Through Code the Future: AI Edition, Swansea MAD aims to reach at least 100 participants, increasing AI literacy, digital confidence, and employability prospects. Beyond technical skills, participants gain:

  • Greater confidence engaging with digital systems

  • Awareness of how AI impacts society and public decision-making

  • Pathways into further education, employment, and civic participation

Why It Matters

This project demonstrates how inclusive AI education can challenge inequality and create opportunity in places most often left out of technological innovation. By combining funding with mentorship, the AI for All programme enables Swansea MAD to strengthen its capacity while ensuring that communities in Swansea are not just users of technology, but informed participants in shaping its future.

Ben Swindell
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