Ross Oliver—written evidence (DCL0019)

 

House of Lords Communications and Digital Select Committee inquiry ‘Digital exclusion and the cost of living’

 

Background

  1. I am Ross Oliver, a young person who has been researching digital exclusion and its impacts. The research for this written evidence has been done through consultation with, though not on behalf of, a representative of Age UK Lancashire who provided invaluable insight into digital inclusion and the work of their charity.

 

  1. Age UK Lancashire is an independent charity affiliated with the national Age UK organisation which focuses on working with and supporting older people in Lancashire county. It launched in 2020 its Digital Inclusion Service to reduce the digital exclusion of those over 50 which, as shall be discussed later, has attracted wide interest in Lancashire.

 

Executive Summary

  1. The transition to online services through the closing of locations with in-person accessibility and the emphasis on online communications at the expense of phones has resulted in digital exclusion limiting remote access to services.

 

  1. Digital exclusion is a phenomenon which significantly effects older people who, due to being more likely to live alone and possess some form of mobility impairment, need methods of remotely accessing services.

 

  1. While a lack of access to the internet and devices is a major cause of digital exclusion, more fundamentally older people not possessing the skills, confidence or inclination to develop digital literacy or who suffer from some form of impairment are likely to struggle to become digitally included without significant assistance.

 

  1. It is important to consider that some of those who are digitally excluded may be unwilling or unable to easily be digitally included.

 

  1. Digital exclusion has a potentially serious impact on access to health, financial and government services as well as a potentially disenfranchising effect.

 

  1. Civil society groups, such as charities like Age UK Lancashire, are working extensively to promote digital inclusion and cooperate extensively with each other and state groups to achieve this goal. However, such groups are inherently limited by a lack of resources which restricts their ability to expand these projects both in terms of breadth and depth.
  2. There is a role for the government in providing resources or services to promote digital inclusion.

 

 

Questions Answered

  1. This written evidence shall focus on answering questions 1 and 5 of the Call for Evidence.

 

  1. Focus for question one shall be on the social impacts of digital exclusion, particularly how the shift to digital services is excluding older people from financial, health and government services.

 

  1. Focus for question five shall be on some of the work that Age UK Lancashire has undertaken in promoting digital inclusion and how this demonstrates the extensive work between civil society groups to support digital inclusion.

 

 

Main causes of digital exclusion

  1. One of the most prominent causes of digital exclusion is old age. A lack of access to the internet or devices with which to connect to the internet are typically treated as baselines for determining digital exclusion. For instance, households with one adult over 65 are those most likely to be without internet access (ONS, 2020). More fundamental to digital exclusion, however, is a lack of IT skills and an ensuing lack of motivation to become digitally included (Centre for Ageing Better, 2021, p.6).

 

  1. Older people often do not feel the need to become digitally included or lack the confidence in their abilities to do so as well as struggle with the fear of the real risk of online scams. This is exacerbated by the perceived cost of being digitally included, heightened during a cost-of-living crisis, creating the impression that the benefit of digital inclusion does not outweigh the costs.

 

  1. This lack of confidence and inclination to become digitally included may be rectified through improving knowledge of support initiatives to improve digital inclusion. It should be recognised, however, that there may be those who find it fundamentally more difficult to become digitally included. This may include those with learning difficulties, physical or mental impairments, or simply those highly reluctant to developing these new skills.

 

  1. Thus, any efforts to promote digital inclusion must be done in the knowledge that there are some who will have additional difficulty or who may never become included. This means an aspect of work on digital inclusion should be to provide necessary alternatives for those who require them, such as encouraging organisations and businesses to maintain some form of phone or mail correspondence capabilities to ensure a baseline inclusion for those who need a way of remotely accessing a service.

 

Additional vulnerability of older people

  1. While there are other groups which struggle with digital exclusion, older people are significantly more vulnerable to the effects of exclusion for two main reasons:

 

 

 

Social Impacts

Transition to online services

  1. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a dramatic shift in how the population of the United Kingdom accesses goods and services. While it is still possible to access most through in-person means, the way in which people remotely access services has almost exclusively transitioned to an online format.

 

  1. Two notable examples of whole sectors reorientating towards online access are the financial and healthcare sectors.

 

  1. In the case of the financial sector, banks have been closing their branches in significant numbers for a while now. Using Barclays as an example, between 2017 and 2019 it closed 331 branches while between 2020 and 2022 it closed 482 and a further 40 are currently scheduled to be or have been closed in 2023 (Barclays, 2023). This indicates that the COVID pandemic accelerated this process but that it had already began in significant terms beforehand and thus one which is almost certain to persist.

 

  1. This shift poses a risk for those digitally excluded as the move to online banking and the closing of bank branches risks preventing many from accessing financial services such as acquiring new credit or debit cards, opening accounts, etc.

 

  1. As for the healthcare sector, GP surgeries have similarly been closing in significant numbers. A Pulse investigation found that, as of 2022, 474 GP surgeries had closed permanently in the past nine years (Kaffash & Carter, 2022). While health consultations can often still be held over the phone, emphasis is placed on the accessing NHS services online. For instance, repeat prescriptions must be ordered either online, utilising the NHS app, or by visiting a GP in person (NHS, 2020).
  2. Additionally, concerns prevail as to the access people have to government services as they move online. Applications for blue badges being exclusively online restricts the access those digitally excluded have to these services. This is concerning for those with mobility issues, who are more likely to be digitally excluded, as these are the people most in need of blue badges.

 

  1. The issue of access to government services becomes even more significant during the current period of transition in the way elections are undertaken in the UK. With the requirement for ID at polling stations coming into effect in 2023, there is a need to keep people informed of this change, what form of ID is accepted and for those without adequate ID to be able to acquire them. However, when the predominant source of information and acquisition of new ID is online, there is a risk that those who are digitally excluded may become disenfranchised. This is serious as the process of digital inclusion may take time for many people and which may not be completed in time for any election which they might want to participate in.

 

  1. While there are alternatives to in person voting, such as proxy voting or postal voting, these suffer from similar issues as blue badges and voter ID. Those who are digitally excluded are more likely to live alone and may have no one they trust sufficiently to conduct a proxy vote. Arranging for a postal vote requires the completion of an online form which is thus less accessible for those who are digitally excluded.

 

  1. Thus, accommodations must be made for those who are digitally excluded to ensure that they can exercise their democratic right.

 

Specific impact of the decline of phone-based access

  1. Even if there are options for people to access goods and services via phone, the ability for those who are digitally excluded to have access to the phone numbers required may be limited. This can impact even those digitally included, as companies may make it more difficult to find their phone numbers to avoid accountability to consumers or to direct people to online methods of communication. This may be manageable for digitally experienced individuals, but those who lack such experience may find themselves incapable of communicating with these companies.

 

  1. Such issues with phone communications have caused difficulties for charities such as local Age UKs in delivering their services. Older people unable to communicate with companies or organisations due to being digitally excluded and unable to access their phone numbers may turn to charities which they can access for assistance. This has heightened the burden on third sector organisations, which due to their non-profit orientations often lack the resources necessary to handle significant phone traffic. The pandemic drove this rise in phone traffic and continues to place strain on Age UK Lancashire to this day.

 

 

Civil society effectiveness in promoting digital inclusion

  1. Age UK Lancashire, through its Digital Inclusion Service, acts as an effective example of how civil society has been working to reduce digital exclusion through extensive cooperation with each other and state.

 

  1. The Digital Inclusion Service began as a donation from the software company Softcat of 50 tablets. These were loaned to older people to help them keep in touch with their families during the pandemic. This caught the attention of local medical practices who saw the benefit of such initiatives for keeping in touch with their patients and to help them order repeat prescriptions.

 

  1. As a result of the success of these initiatives, Age UK Lancashire was able to acquire several grants from various organisations to help expand this scheme, such as:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1. This extensive cooperation between civil society and state groups demonstrates there is significant interest for the expansion of schemes to support digital inclusion.

 

  1. Of note is the potential for these schemes to support the work of medical organisations which is becoming of increasing interest for Age UK Lancashire through its efforts to support recovery from elective surgery. It is believed that greater digital inclusion will allow those undertaking elective surgery to better prepare for it and support them on discharge. This would help reduce the amount of time in hospital and encourage self-care to support recovery rates and reduce readmissions.

 

 

Enhancing efforts of civil society in digital inclusion

  1. While these Age UK Lancashire services are an example of successful work by civil society, it is described by the Chief Executive of the charity, Teri Stephenson, as being just the “tip of the iceberg” and that with the resources available to civil society groups such work can only go so far. The expansion of digital inclusion services and, in particular, essential one-on-one support would require further resources.

 

  1. The specific example of the distribution of tablets to older people could be appropriate as a wider scheme to promote digital inclusion. Loaning devices to those digitally excluded could help demonstrate the value of being digitally included. While those unable to afford it after the loan runs out may still struggle to become included, those who can may decide to do so of their own volition. Alternatively, directly gifting these devices would allow those struggling with the cost of living crisis to not have to worry about the potential cost of digital inclusion at all.

 

Balance between government and civil society in promoting digital inclusion

  1. Despite the efforts of civil society in promoting digital inclusion, there is a significant phenomenon of ‘lapsed users’, with over half a million people over 65 who attempted to become to some extent digitally included but gave up (Age UK, 2021, p.10). This indicates that there is a need for more consistent and comprehensive support to encourage people to remain digitally included.

 

  1. Furthermore, the current efforts by local charities to support digital inclusion can only reach so many people. The tablet loans provided by Age UK Lancashire, while it did expand, began with only 50 tablets which would have been wholly insufficient cover the needs of all those digitally excluded in Lancashire. Furthermore, an expanded tablet loan initiative to provide sufficient support to a whole county would require an administrative capacity which can be difficult to achieve for civil society groups.

 

  1. Relying on civil society groups such as charities to promote digital inclusion also risks creating a system of support which is subject to flux as the activities of these organisations are usually reliant on grants and donations. If they encounter periods of low donations any digital inclusion support would contract. Thus, support from civil society groups may be seen as too inconsistent to promote digital inclusion in the long term.

 

  1. Thus, there is a role for the government in providing support for digital inclusion. It can provide resources to civil society groups in order to allow them to expand their initiatives. The government is also well suited to providing services both in-depth, in order to prevent people from being lapsed users, and in-breadth, in order to support as many people as possible in becoming digitally included.

 

Recommendations

  1. Alongside efforts to support digital inclusion it is worth considering encouraging organisations to make accommodations for those people who may struggle to become digitally included through providing alternative means of remotely accessing services other than just being online, especially phone which is the method of communication most familiar to many older people.

 

  1. There is a role for government in supporting digital inclusion initially through providing resources to civil society groups to expand their own initiatives. Beyond that, the government may be required to develop its own initiatives to support digital inclusion both in depth and breadth as the administrative capabilities of civil society groups can only extend so far.

 

 

References

Age UK (2021) Briefing Paper: Digital inclusion and older people – how have things changed in a Covid-19 world? [online] Available at: https://www.ageuk.org.uk/globalassets/age-uk/documents/reports-and-publications/reports-and-briefings/active-communities/digital-inclusion-in-the-pandemic-final-march-2021.pdf (Accessed 03.03.23)

 

Barclays (2023) UK branch closures. [online] Available at: https://home.barclays/sustainability/esg-resource-hub/reporting-and-disclosures/uk-branch-closures/#ab (Accessed 01.03.23)

 

Centre for Ageing Better (2021) COVID-19 and the digital divide: Supporting digital inclusion and skills during the pandemic and beyond. [online] Available at: https://ageing-better.org.uk/sites/default/files/2021-07/COVID-19-and-the-digital-divide.pdf (Accessed 28.02.23)

 

Kaffash, J. and Carter, R. (2022) Revealed: The GP practices that have closed for good and why they have closed. [online] Available at: https://www.pulsetoday.co.uk/news/lost-practices/revealed-the-gp-practices-that-have-closed-for-good-and-why-they-have-closed/ (Accessed 01.03.23)

 

Kirk-Wade, E. (2022) UK disability statistics: Prevalence and life experiences. House of Commons Library. [online] Available at: https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-9602/CBP-9602.pdf (Accessed 28.02.23)

 

National Health Service (NHS) (2020) How to order a repeat prescription. [online] Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/online-services/how-to-order-a-repeat-prescription/ (Accessed 27.02.23)


National Health Service (NHS) (2022) Loneliness in older people. [online] Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/feelings-symptoms-behaviours/feelings-and-symptoms/loneliness-in-older-people/#:~:text=According%20to%20Age%20UK%2C%20more,friend%2C%20neighbour%20or%20family%20member. (Accessed 02.03.2022)

 

Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2020) Internet access – households and individuals, Great Britain: 2020. [online] Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/householdcharacteristics/homeinternetandsocialmediausage/bulletins/internetaccesshouseholdsandindividuals/2020 (Accessed 27.02.23)

Office for National Statistics (ONS) (2020) People living alone aged 65 years old and over, by specific age group and sex, UK, 1996 to 2019. [online] Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/families/adhocs/11446peoplelivingaloneaged65yearsoldandoverbyspecificagegroupandsexuk1996to2019 (Accessed 02.03.2023)

 

Office for National Statistics (2022) Voices of our ageing population: Living longer lives. [online] Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/ageing/articles/voicesofourageingpopulation/livinglongerlives#:~:text=Across%20England%20and%20Wales%2C%202021,aged%2065%20years%20and%20over. (Accessed 27.02.23)

 

 

5 March 2023

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