Scotland's Digital Inclusion Charter

We commit to understanding digital exclusion and how it impacts the people we work with.

We are a 25 years + digital exclusion charity focused primarily on education. We have supplied over 50,000 devices for this purpose, working in Africa, UK and currently Ukraine. Our vision for UK is as below The digital divide – the gap in society between those who are able to benefit from the digital age and those who cannot. This can be because of a lack of awareness, skills or devices. For most of us, digital access has become a central part of our lives. But there is a great divide… …many people lack digital access and are excluded from learning, opportunities and services. What we want is ‘one and the same’ No divide – everyone with digital access, beginning with children on the day they start school and continuing with that connectedness throughout every stage of life. One: Every child given a suitable device for their education – free. Every person, regardless of age, having digital access to ensure equality. and the Same: The same starting point – the same type of device for every child – no stigma in one child having a different quality of device from the next. The same type of device making it easier to support. Not means tested. All inclusive. Everyone provided for. No local authorities with different strategies. The same access to opportunities, learning and services throughout life. One and the same A country where children are equipped to become digitally proficient at a young age, benefiting themselves, the whole family and the next generation. In this way, the great divide will reduce…from the bottom up. And we want top down too…support for people of every age, enabling everyone to get connected and not be left behind. Facts and Figures “Digital exclusion is another facet of the deep inequalities which run through the social fabric of the UK, and is more widespread than many people are aware of. One thing is clear: the public health crisis currently gripping the UK stands to make the impacts of digital exclusion worse for the milli

We commit to delivering on digital inclusion across our organisation, based on our understanding of need.

The digital divide – the gap in society between those who are able to benefit from the digital age and those who cannot. This can be because of a lack of awareness, skills or devices. For most of us, digital access has become a central part of our lives. But there is a great divide… …many people lack digital access and are excluded from learning, opportunities and services. What we want is ‘one and the same’ No divide – everyone with digital access, beginning with children on the day they start school and continuing with that connectedness throughout every stage of life. One: Every child given a suitable device for their education – free. Every person, regardless of age, having digital access to ensure equality. and the Same: The same starting point – the same type of device for every child – no stigma in one child having a different quality of device from the next. The same type of device making it easier to support. Not means tested. All inclusive. Everyone provided for. No local authorities with different strategies. The same access to opportunities, learning and services throughout life. One and the same A country where children are equipped to become digitally proficient at a young age, benefiting themselves, the whole family and the next generation. In this way, the great divide will reduce…from the bottom up. And we want top down too…support for people of every age, enabling everyone to get connected and not be left behind. Facts and Figures “Digital exclusion is another facet of the deep inequalities which run through the social fabric of the UK, and is more widespread than many people are aware of. One thing is clear: the public health crisis currently gripping the UK stands to make the impacts of digital exclusion worse for the millions of people affected, and the poorest will be hit the hardest.” “The likelihood of having access to the internet from home increases along with income, such that only 51% of households earning between £6000-

We commit to identifying and utilising appropriate resources for digital inclusion.

We are currently asking Scottish Government and UK Government to mandate that all publicly procured devices are made available for reuse once they have been replaced. We have a fully costed detailed plan for this.

We commit to working in genuine partnership where we can, to promote and advance digital inclusion.

We are currently working to get all device focused digital exclusion charities in the UK to combine together, contribute and promote each others work on the - soon to be launched portal www.inclusivity.info

We commit to contributing towards a wider conversation, developing a sense of community and being part of something bigger - because digital inclusion is everyone's responsibility.