Purpose / Scope of LCUK eDirectory Project
Background: The LCUK have been printing a Directory of all Lohanas in UK. The last issue was printed some 7 years ago and is out of date due to house moves, bereavements, etc. The costs of the collation of the data and the typeset/ printing plus storage, and selling/distribution is huge. We have depended heavily on adverts/ messages to provide a Directory which we can sell for a nominal and below printing cost value of around £5.
We had briefly looked at online hosting of all Directory details before, but data security risks and maintenance costs were prohibitive. Technology has moved on immensely in the last few years. Many more people have easy internet access and email addresses. We can now safely host Lohana family member contact details online, and allow ad-hoc maintenance by the individual information owner. LCUK is also registered under the Data Protection Act 1998 and has to follow all the requirements and guidelines specified to hold and protect personal member data.
Purpose/ Scope: It is proposed to establish the scope / costs/ security aspects and the overall timeline and feasibility of hosting an online LCUK eDirectory. The Project will initially provide a specification and estimated costs, and then proceed to design an online database and access system, subject to approval by the LCUK Executive and Committee members. The Data collection exercise would be kick started by requesting the member Mahajans to provide details of their existing members. This can be uploaded directly and each member requested to look up and verify/ approve their details online, or delete them if they do not wish to make available online. A facility will also be available on the new LCUK website for all Lohanas to register online and enter their personal data details, and modify later if and as they wish.
The advantages of the eDirectory is that we will always have the latest contact details for each member family (subject of course to each individual maintaining their own information). Limited small query facilities would also be available online, and any large enquiries request would be made online and actioned subject to approval by the LCUK Data Admin Team. Logs will be retained of each enquiry requested and made. There will be no further requirement to print and store/ distribute hard copies of the Directory. We can maintain an up-to-date census of registered members and also have statistics of the Lohana population across the UK. Any future projects we take on board, or any events we run in UK, can also benefit from having up to date emails available to circulate news via the LCUK eNewsletter, LCUK Bereavement service, etc. We could also request certain further details of family members to help assess the social needs for Lohana families in the UK like disabled needs, elderly care, etc.
The database would be a powerful tool to help move the Lohanas in UK into the digital age using a platform which should be safe, secure and easy to maintain and use.