One in five people in the UK are unable to access or use essential digital government services without help, according to research commissioned by Cognizant and undertaken by the Digital Poverty Alliance.
The nationally-representative survey of 2,000 adults warns that millions risk being shut out of essential public services as the UK accelerates its shift to digital-only systems. The report researches citizens accessing platforms related to Universal and Pension Credit, ID, Driving Licenses, eVisas and school admissions.
It found that nearly 60% of UK based adults have struggled to log in, and that whilst a quarter of people face difficulties using the systems, this rises to 40% of younger adults – busting the myth that it is older people who struggle most with online services; young people are in fact the least digitally-confident
That is the most eye-catching finding, but one recognized by Elizabeth Anderson, CEO, Digital Poverty Alliance (DPA):
At the DPA we deal with digitally-excluded families and children on a daily basis and we were surprised at how stark this finding was. We think it stems from some key areas. Firstly, the types of services young people use are designed to be simple such as shopping apps or social media apps with a business model to keep you in the app as long as possible, whereas government digital services are designed to be very secure and for this reason they do not want you permanently logged in to a service, they want to keep your data secure.
The other area to look at is the fact that young people do not learn digital skills as part of the national curriculum and then have to use these systems that are very different to those they are used to using. Older people may have lower expectations about digital services, whereas younger people have higher expectations.”
Anderson points out that we tend to focus on the technology when talking about government services, when in fact access has more to do with digital confidence. When it comes UK adults struggling to log-in, is that all about the technology, or the supporting system teaching people to use the capability? She continues:
For example, while 60% of UK adults struggled to log-in, 18% will only use the service if they have people with them while they are using the service be that family, friends or community workers of a trusted charity. The last two sources of support are particularly important because people are often revealing very private areas of their lives when accessing these services.
Design issue?
Does the problem lie with system design? Yatin Mahandru , UK&I Head of Public Sector and Health at Cognizant, does not think so, arguing:
User research is done at the outset of the project and a continuous feedback loop is run as the system is designed. It is when it gets into the field that the problems begin. For example, older people are told that they need to do it on the app, and they often do not know what this means. It is a challenge of designing the field support services, not of designing the interface.
The challenge is one of designing the field support services. Anderson explains:
It is about understanding the level of digitalisation in the country. It is difficult for a solutions provider to offer support services, if the budget holder does not see it as a requirement. It is not about getting a few hundred thousand people able to access services, it is about building nation-wide digital confidence.
To provide the help that people need we should be considering support and coaching centres to provide the necessary knowledge, to build digital skills and confidence. We could create a national network of community centres, higher education outreach teams and food banks, say, to do this.
Mahundra adds:
The NHS app work set out with the perspective that nobody should be left behind. The challenge is when we focus on the technology because then this support element will always be excluded. A wider project envelope is required because there is no support system around to show people how to get access. The support system element does not get articulated. Because of this research report, civil servants are now thinking about how to fund a co-ordinated approach to training.”
To do list
What are the next steps that Cognizant and the DPA want to see? Anderson is optimistic about the future, but says:
Now we have evidence to put together initiatives that don’t assume people can use these apps. We need a system that is co-ordinated to support people accessing the services, and then also to gain both digital skills and confidence that benefits the country. To do this we need to create a business case around financial and social ROI.
I am a strong believer in alliances pulling together public sector, private sector and third sector. This can be done. The UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) has already drawn up a digital inclusion action plan and so I am optimistic there will be both incremental and strategic change.
She concludes:
There is a belief that the digitally-excluded are hard to reach to factor into testing and design and this becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, but they are not a difficult demographic to find.
My take
The tech sector has been promoting the benefits of online self-service apps for decades, but the difference is that as consumers, if the experience is bad, we can take our custom elsewhere. When you urgently need benefit payments, a driving licence, or to pay your taxes, you have no choice, you must use the government service. As Mahundra points out:
Government is such a varied service organization that a different kind of thinking needs to apply.
Indeed, it does – for these services, we cannot afford field support to be an after-thought. What is more with a joined up digital service support initiative we could potentially be giving citizens the skills that may provide a helping hand to new employment opportunities as well.
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