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Age, gender, ethnicity, disability: the British Statistical Office reviews the multiple dimensions of digital exclusion in the UK

Published on 07 January 2020
Update on 26 September 2022
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Summary

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) periodically reports on the "digital divide" in the UK, exploring a wide range of criteria and dimensions: age, gender, region, employment or lack of employment, household size, disability and ethnicity. The ONS relies on two annual surveys (Labour Force Survey and Opinions and Lifestyle Survey) as well as the Lloyds Bank survey on the digital skills of the British population.

The proportion of non-users of the Internet has halved since 2011

According to the ONS, the number of adults who have never used the Internet or have not used it in the past three months (Internet non-users) has halved since 2011. In 2018, the UK still has 5.3 million adults (10% of the adult population) who do not use the Internet.

According to the Lloyds Bank UK Consumer Index 2018, for its part, 8% of the UK population (4.3 million people) has no basic digital skills (managing information, communicating, transactions, solving problems, creating digital content).

To these 4.3 million adults without basic digital skills, 6.4 million adults (12%) would be added who have only limited online skills (they lack at least one of the five basic digital skills). The proportion of "digitally impaired" people would thus reach 20% of the population.

Regional, gender and age disparities

London has the lowest proportion of non-users of the Internet (7.0%), while Northern Ireland continues to have the highest proportion (14.2%), followed by the North East of England (12.1%).

There are also regional disparities in basic digital skills. In 2018, Wales had the lowest proportion of people with all five basic digital skills (66%, compared to 86% in southeast England) and the highest proportion of people with no basic digital skills (19% compared to 5% southeast England).

58% of internet non-users are women: a proportion that remains broadly constant over time, even though the proportion of non-users is declining year over year. Of the adults who had no basic digital skills in 2018, 61% were women.

24% of people 65-74 and 55% of people 75 and older did not use the Internet in 2018. 76% of people with no basic digital skills were over the age of 65 in 2018.

ONS asks about the effects of aging on digital engagement for future generations. "Tomorrow's older adults will be more digitally active than previous generations, but age-related health issues could lead to a decrease in their digital engagement, especially if aging impacts cognitive abilities. Technologies may also see new advances, so the digital skills they have acquired over a lifetime may no longer be appropriate for future use. It is also possible, however , the ONS adds, that technology will make it easier for older age groups to engage in the future than it is now. This is already seen, for example, in the development of voice assistants, which remove the need for specific skills. Part of the challenge will therefore be to provide the necessary supports to help the older generation make the best use of new technologies."

23% of adults with disabilities do not use the Internet

In 2017, 56% of adult Internet non-users had a disability, well above the estimated 22% of adults with a disability in the overall UK population. Among Internet non-users aged 16-24, 60% had a disability in 2017, as many as those aged 75 and over

23% of adults with disabilities do not use the Internet, compared to 6% of people without disabilities.

Nearly 8 million people without digital skills in 2025

Although the number of people without digital skills is decreasing year by year, the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) estimates that 7.9 million people will still lack digital skills in 2025.

The CEBR has identified five families of benefits that accrue to people who have the five basic digital skills:

  • revenue: a 3-10% increase in revenue through digital skills development.
  • employability: increased chances of finding work for an unemployed person
  • purchasing power: online purchases are on average 13% cheaper than in-store purchases.
  • Sociability: basic digital skills can enable people to communicate more frequently (14%) with family, friends and the community
  • Time savings: The time saved by accessing public services and banking online is estimated to average about 30 minutes per transaction.

Références :

Sources

Age, gender, ethnicity, disability: the British Statistical Office reviews the multiple dimensions of digital exclusion in the UK

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) periodically reports on the "digital divide" in the UK, exploring a wide range of criteria and dimensions: age, gender, region, employment or lack of employment, household size, disability and ethnicity. The ONS relies on two annual surveys (Labour Force Survey and Opinions and Lifestyle Survey) as well as the Lloyds Bank survey on the digital skills of the British population.

The proportion of non-users of the Internet has halved since 2011

According to the ONS, the number of adults who have never used the Internet or have not used it in the past three months (Internet non-users) has halved since 2011. In 2018, the UK still has 5.3 million adults (10% of the adult population) who do not use the Internet.

According to the Lloyds Bank UK Consumer Index 2018, for its part, 8% of the UK population (4.3 million people) has no basic digital skills (managing information, communicating, transactions, solving problems, creating digital content).

To these 4.3 million adults without basic digital skills, 6.4 million adults (12%) would be added who have only limited online skills (they lack at least one of the five basic digital skills). The proportion of "digitally impaired" people would thus reach 20% of the population.

Regional, gender and age disparities

London has the lowest proportion of non-users of the Internet (7.0%), while Northern Ireland continues to have the highest proportion (14.2%), followed by the North East of England (12.1%).

There are also regional disparities in basic digital skills. In 2018, Wales had the lowest proportion of people with all five basic digital skills (66%, compared to 86% in southeast England) and the highest proportion of people with no basic digital skills (19% compared to 5% southeast England).

58% of internet non-users are women: a proportion that remains broadly constant over time, even though the proportion of non-users is declining year over year. Of the adults who had no basic digital skills in 2018, 61% were women.

24% of people 65-74 and 55% of people 75 and older did not use the Internet in 2018. 76% of people with no basic digital skills were over the age of 65 in 2018.

ONS asks about the effects of aging on digital engagement for future generations. "Tomorrow's older adults will be more digitally active than previous generations, but age-related health issues could lead to a decrease in their digital engagement, especially if aging impacts cognitive abilities. Technologies may also see new advances, so the digital skills they have acquired over a lifetime may no longer be appropriate for future use. It is also possible, however , the ONS adds, that technology will make it easier for older age groups to engage in the future than it is now. This is already seen, for example, in the development of voice assistants, which remove the need for specific skills. Part of the challenge will therefore be to provide the necessary supports to help the older generation make the best use of new technologies."

23% of adults with disabilities do not use the Internet

In 2017, 56% of adult Internet non-users had a disability, well above the estimated 22% of adults with a disability in the overall UK population. Among Internet non-users aged 16-24, 60% had a disability in 2017, as many as those aged 75 and over

23% of adults with disabilities do not use the Internet, compared to 6% of people without disabilities.

Nearly 8 million people without digital skills in 2025

Although the number of people without digital skills is decreasing year by year, the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) estimates that 7.9 million people will still lack digital skills in 2025.

The CEBR has identified five families of benefits that accrue to people who have the five basic digital skills:

  • revenue: a 3-10% increase in revenue through digital skills development.
  • employability: increased chances of finding work for an unemployed person
  • purchasing power: online purchases are on average 13% cheaper than in-store purchases.
  • Sociability: basic digital skills can enable people to communicate more frequently (14%) with family, friends and the community
  • Time savings: The time saved by accessing public services and banking online is estimated to average about 30 minutes per transaction.

Références :

Sources

Labo Société Numérique

Labo République Française Agence nationale de cohésion des territoires
Age, gender, ethnicity, disability: the British Statistical Office reviews the multiple dimensions of digital exclusion in the UK