The project was devised by Ken Stoner, who was himself severely disabled by Motor Neurone Disease. Ken Stoner joined the Board of the British Computer Society Disability Group (BCS-DG) in 1992. Sadly Ken passed away in 2006 and you can read his obituary by clicking "here". The project was launched in 1994 following a two year development programme. ITCH Network aims to address the current shortfall in the availability of technical assistance for disabled people using computers.
Following a re-organisation in 2005, the Network is now a programme of the BCS, funded primarily through the Charities Fund Management Committee of the BCS, with additional major support in 2006/7 and again in 2007/8 from the Marchday Trust.
The BCS-DG is a special interest group of the British Computer Society that focuses on how computer technology can help disabled people and has been working within the voluntary disability sector for over 20 years.