Digital inclusion

Many aspects of our society and economy are now digital - job adverts and applications, goods and services, and increasingly public services, including benefits and health checks. Being digitally excluded reinforces social exclusion and poverty.

The internet can empower anyone, giving them skills and confidence to improve their lives. Using the internet can also help to reduce isolation, enhancing the capacity for independent living. It allows peoples’ voices to be heard, giving all individuals the opportunity to participate more actively in society and help influence their lives and those in their communities

People that do not use the internet are missing out on cheaper and more accessible goods and services including necessities like fuel bills and clothing. The best deals are often only available online. For those children that live in households without access to the latest digital technologies, it undermines their chance to learn and to develop the skills essential to live and work in today’s society. With public services increasingly going online, including Universal Credit from Oct 2013, it is important that people are not left behind.  

Our work on digital inclusion is rooted in social justice and equalities, and is strongly linked to the Tackling Poverty and economic priorities of the Welsh Government. We support the people most likely to be digitally excluded.  Evidence suggests that these are more likely to be older people; those who live in social housing; those who are unemployed; and disabled people. We focus on these groups so that they can improve their quality of life and life chances by enjoying the benefits the internet can offer.

In December 2010 the Welsh Government launched Delivering Digital Inclusion: A Strategic Framework for Wales which offered a shared vision of how to get increasing numbers of people to use the internet. It analysed who were excluded, described the barriers that they faced, and identified steps that could be taken to start addressing the issues.  The Framework set out Welsh Government’s commitment to providing strategic leadership to tackling digital exclusion, but recognised that only a concerted effort across the private, third and public sectors can really achieve digital inclusion.  This is a cross cutting agenda which needs to be mainstreamed across society.  

The Digital Inclusion Framework Delivery Plan was launched in March 2011 and lays out tasks to be undertaken, intended outcomes and targets for 2012 and 2015 where possible. It sets targets for reducing digital exclusion for adults in Wales, for older people, for those who are unemployed, economically inactive or are resident in social housing. The plan lists 15 key objectives and the tasks associated with achieving these targets. Six of these objectives are included in the collated Digital Wales Delivery Plan, which was published on 31 March 2011, along with key goals from the other strands of Digital Wales.

The Welsh Government’s main response to addressing digital inclusion is through the £21million ERDF funded Communities 2.0 programme, which has already helped more than 23,000 people get online. It runs from April 2009 to March 2015 in the convergence areas of Wales, north east Wales and Powys. It prioritises support to the most digitally excluded groups in society by helping them overcome barriers, building their confidence and creating opportunities for them to use new skills. It also helps support social enterprises and new micro enterprises to improve their operations and competitiveness through ICT.  

It is being delivered by a consortium of four organisations led by the Wales Co-operative Centre. Further information can be found on the Communities 2.0 website (external link).

Welsh Government’s Digital Inclusion Unit and our delivery programme, Communities 2.0, continue to align policies and to build strategic alliances with key organisations that represent and work with the most digitally excluded people.  These include Age Cymru, Disability Wales, RNIB, Shelter, Care and Repair, local authorities, libraries, Job Centre plus, NHS Direct, housing associations and Communities First clusters. Many of these are involved in strategic initiatives which have been funded by Communities 2.0.

External Links

• Digital Wales LinkedIn
• Digital Inclusion Wales Stakeholders’ Forum
• Communities 2.0 Twitter  - Join the conversation use #digitalinclusion
• Communities 2.0 Facebook