Digital Nation 2024: Sources and Explainer
Good Things Foundation is the UK’s leading digital inclusion charity, working in partnership across the UK to Fix the Digital Divide for Good. Each year, we collate statistics from national datasets, public polling, and authoritative analysis to convey key facts about digital exclusion and inclusion in the UK. The full set of sources is provided below.
Please use and share this free resource, crediting Good Things Foundation and linking to our webpage so others can also access the full list of sources. Recommended citation:
Digital Nation 2024, Good Things Foundation.
Sources at: www.goodthingsfoundation.org/digital-nation-2024-sources-and-explainer/
References
Age UK (2023), You can’t bank on it any more
Cebr (2022), The economic impact of digital inclusion in the UK
Centre for Social Justice (2023), Left Out: How to tackle Digital Exclusion and reduce the Poverty Premium
Forbes (2023), IT skills gap report
Good Things Foundation (2023), Digital skills pathway for shared prosperity
Good Things Foundation (2024), Minimum Digital Living Standard
IMF (2024), AI will transform the global economy
Lloyds Banking Group (2022), UK Consumer Digital Index Report 2022
Lloyds Banking Group (2023), UK consumer Digital Index Report 2023
NHS Digital (2023), NHS App reaches record users on 5th Anniversary
Nominet (2023), Digital Youth Index
Ofcom (2023), Pricing trends for communication services
Ofcom (2023b), Affordability Tracker
Public First (2024), Public First (2024), Poll for Good Things Foundation. Online survey conducted 16th – 22nd January 2024; sample size 2,007 UK adults, weighted by interlocking age & gender, region and social grade to Nationally Representative Proportions
Virgin Media O2 (2023), One in five brits feel they are being left behind due to lack of digital skills
Vodafone (2023), Realities of the Digital Divide
Our Changing Digital World
| Statistic | Reference |
| 33% of those offline say its difficult to interact with NHS services | Lloyds Consumer digital index, 2022 |
| 39% of UK adult population not registered on NHS App | Calculation based on NHS England, December 2023, and UK population estimates (15 and over) https://www.england.nhs.uk/2023/12/nhs-app-reaches-record-users-on-fifth-anniversary/ |
| 50% higher food costs without internet access | Left out, Centre for social justice. August, 2023
https://www.centreforsocialjustice.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/CSJ-Left-Out.pdf |
| 4m+ older people are not managing their money online | You can’t bank on it anymore, Age Uk, May 2023 |
| Banking takes 1.5 hours longer without an internet connection | OnePoll for Vodafone, June 2023 |
| 92% of UK businesses say there is a digital skills gap | IT skills Gap report, Forbes, September, 2023 https://www.forbes.com/uk/advisor/business/software/digital-skills-gap/ |
| 40% of jobs will be affected by AI, worldwide | Analysis by IMF, January 2024 |
| 33%unaware of local access point for device access or internet connection | Public First polling for Good Things Foundation, January 2024
Public First (2024), Poll for Good Things Foundation. Online survey conducted 16th – 22nd January 2024; sample size 2,007 UK adults, weighted by interlocking age & gender, region and social grade to Nationally Representative Proportions |
| 8% of eligible households signed up for social Tariff | Pricing trends for communications services, Ofcom, Dec 23 https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0024/273138/pricingtrendsreport2023.pdf |
What the public think
| Statistic | Reference |
| 92% think most ESSENTIAL SERVICES require internet access | Good Things Foundation Polling, January 2024
Public First (2024), Poll for Good Things Foundation. Online survey conducted 16th – 22nd January 2024; sample size 2,007 UK adults, weighted by interlocking age & gender, region and social grade to Nationally Representative Proportions |
| 76% want GOVT INVESTMENT in digital skills training | Good Things Foundation Polling, January 2024
Public First (2024), Poll for Good Things Foundation. Online survey conducted 16th – 22nd January 2024; sample size 2,007 UK adults, weighted by interlocking age & gender, region and social grade to Nationally Representative Proportions |
| 64% believe that there is NOT ENOUGH SUPPORT for people who cannot get online | Good Things Foundation Polling, January 2024
Public First (2024), Poll for Good Things Foundation. Online survey conducted 16th – 22nd January 2024; sample size 2,007 UK adults, weighted by interlocking age & gender, region and social grade to Nationally Representative Proportions |
| 21% feel left behind by technology | Virgin Media O2 polling data, October 23
https://www.mirror.co.uk/tech/digital-skills-illiteracy-struggles-challenges-31207696 |
The scale of the digital divide
| Statistic | Reference |
| 2.4m households can’t afford their mobile phone contract | Affordability tracker, Ofcom, Jan 2024
https://www.ofcom.org.uk/research-and-data/multi-sector-research/affordability-tracker |
| 8.5m lack the basic digital skills | Lloyds Consumer digital index, 2023 |
| 7.5m working age adults lack basic digital skills for work | Lloyds Consumer digital index, 2023 |
| 1.5m people don’t have a smartphone, tablet or laptop | Lloyds Consumer digital index, 2023 |
| 0.6m young people lack home internet or a suitable device | Digital youth index, Nominet 2023
https://digitalyouthindex.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Digital-Youth-Index-2023-report.pdf |
| 3.7m families below Minimum Digital Living Standard | Good Things Foundation, The Minimum Digital Living Standard, 2024 |
Who is left behind
| Statistic | Reference |
| 24% of those not working | Lloyds Consumer digital index, 2023 |
| 48% with no formal qualifications | Lloyds Consumer digital index, 2023 |
| 37% of over 65s lack basic digital skills | Lloyds Consumer digital index, 2023 |
| 25% with disability or health condition | Lloyds Consumer digital index, 2023 |
The benefits of being digital included
| Statistic | Reference |
| 5000 community access points ‘The National Digital Inclusion Network’ | Good things foundation, KPI reporting, March 24 |
| £13.7bn benefit to the economy | Economic impact of investing in digital skills, CEBR 2022 |
| I’m more employable 68% saw work or skills related benefit |
Digital Skills Pathway evaluation, Good Things Foundation, 2022
https://www.goodthingsfoundation.org/insights/the-digital-skills-pathway-for-shared-prosperity/ |
| I’m happier
76% say the internet helps them connect with friends and family |
Good Things Foundation, Impact surveys Dec 23
|
| I’m healthier
68% can use online tools to help them manage their health |
Good Things Foundation, Impact surveys Dec 23
Good Things Foundation send a short survey to all people that have been supported by our network who have given us permission to contact them and for who we have appropriate contact details. Responses are not incentivised and therefore the data we collect is from a self selecting, non representative sample. Response numbers = 346 Dec 2023 |
| I’m better off
People with high digital engagement save £900 more a year |
Lloyds Consumer digital index, 2023 |
| 46k devices collected to date | Good things foundation, KPI reporting, March 24 |
| CO2e saved equivalent to 328k trees | Good things foundation, KPI reporting, March 24 |
Accessibility description
Digital Nation 2024 is a picture with statistics about digital inequalities in the UK. The picture shows a river between two banks to convey the digital divide. The right bank (green) captures benefits of being online and fully digitally included. The left bank captures the scale of digital exclusion, why being digitally included is important, who is most likely to be affected and what the public think. Use of shading (from red to amber) reminds that digital exclusion is not binary; it is not a simple matter of online or offline, but a spectrum. Some people have no access, no skills, no support; others may be online but are ‘limited’ users of the internet. For example, someone who has a basic smartphone but cannot afford sufficient connectivity, or only has the skills to do basic messaging or social media. Six signposts on the left bank – devices, connectivity, capability, confidence and trust – are key aspects of support people need to cross the divide. Three bridges cross the river – capturing the three digital inclusion services delivered by Good Things Foundation with strategic and community partners: National Databank, National Device Bank and the National Digital Inclusion Network. The data used is from a variety of sources including Lloyds consumer Digital Index, Ofcom and Good Things Foundation.
More information
To find out more about Good Things Foundation’s offer and how it can help you – or how you can help us – please contact: partnerships@goodthingsfoundation.org
To find out more about Good Things Foundation’s work to build the evidence base on digital inclusion – please contact: research@goodthingsfoundation.org
You may also find these resources helpful:
Digital Exclusion Risk Index – toolkit developed by Greater Manchester Combined Authority with data relevant to England, Scotland, and Wales
Minimum Digital Living Standards project – led by University of Liverpool with partners to develop a holistic, household-level benchmark for the good, services, and capabilities needed for a family to feel digitally included in the UK