Charity sees rise in digital exclusion

A south east charity says they are seeing a rise in the number of people – of all ages – being overwhelmed by digital processes related to their finances.

Advisors at Citizens Advice Colchester say there is a growing trend in the amount of people classed as being digitally excluded and are putting plans in place to identify those most in need.

Anecdotal evidence from the team also suggests the issue is adversely affecting those with mental health conditions and younger people, as well as the traditional view of older people.

The situation mirrors the national picture, with a 2024 government report on digital exclusion showing that ‘for the first time, the proportion of people offline has increased’. Some 15% of the UK population classed as ‘offline’ were under 50 years old, around 4.7 million people were unable to connect to WiFi and 10% of those offline did not have access to any kind of device.

It also found that while more people were classed as highly digitally literate, there were also around 13 million people – 25% of the population – with ‘very low digital capability’.

The team at Citizens Advice Colchester are supporting people like David*, a man in his 80s who presented with energy issues. With little knowledge of technology, he had no email address or access to the internet. David was supported to resolve his issue via the Energy Ombudsman.

Kerry Hackett, Energy Advisor, said: “Without our help with a face-to-face appointment and our landline contact with him, he would not have been able to resolve his issue. The Ombudsman found in the client’s favour and awarded a significant goodwill payment, asked for a letter of apology from his supplier and rectified the issue the client had.”

Younger clients are also finding it hard to deal with their energy providers, like Claire*, a single woman in her early 20s who was struggling to reach her provider by phone. Despite having access to the internet, Claire was overcome with the procedure of how to put forward a complaint and needed face-to-face advice. The team are currently supporting her to complete all the evidence needed to proceed with her complaint.

Kerry added: “Younger clients tend to approach us and although they may have an email address and access to internet they can suffer from mental health issues which causes them to be overwhelmed by online processes.

“We are working to understand what digital exclusion means in our local areas and how as an organisation we can best help clients who are struggling as the need for support grows.”

The government report concluded with a series of recommendations to help tackle issues identified. The recommendations include:

• Cutting VAT on social tariffs and work with businesses to scale up internet voucher activities
• Investing in digital skills so they feature more prominently in schools, apprenticeships and adult learning courses.
• Improving access to community-based digital inclusion hubs in places like libraries.
• Engaging with businesses to equip employees with the digital basics.
• Increasing the use of machine learning tools in public services

*names changed to protect identities

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