'12 Million' Of Us Lacking Digital Survival Skills, Claims Study

A large number of people in the UK don’t have what it takes to succeed in the digital era. This is the warning from Go.On UK, a charity set up to promote digital skills.

According to Go.On UK’s survey, more than 12 million people, and a million of small businesses do not possess the digital skills needed to succeed in today’s digital environment.

It has produced what it calls a digital exclusion heatmap, pinpointing the areas where people are most likely to miss out on the digital revolution.

It has surveyed over 4,000 people across the UK, and looked at the five basic digital skills. It coupled it with data about education, income, health and internet access.

The basic digital skills are information management, communication, payments, problem solving and creating.

According to the heatmap, over a third of the population of Wales do not have the five basic digital skills. On the other hand, London, Scotland and East Anglia come top of the league with over 80 per cent of people having those skills.

The map also shows that women are in a slight disadvantage. Approximately 80 per cent of men have the basic skills, while women sit at 74 per cent.

According to a BBC report, poverty and a lack of infrastructure are present, wherever skills are lacking. Wales has the lowest levels of internet access and places like Merthyr Tydfil are amongst the poorest in the UK.

The worst part is, people lacking digital skills could soon be replaced by automatized workers,