Donate-a-phone schemes and tech workshops in line for £9.5m Government backing

Donate-a-phone schemes and computer workshops will receive Government backing worth £9.5 million, as part of a plan to help older people and low-income households access an “essential for modern life”.

The funding will go towards charity and council schemes in an effort to tackle digital exclusion.

According to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the money will help connect the 1.6 million people who live entirely offline with the online world.

“It is unacceptable that in 2025, millions of people across the UK simply can’t access the vast opportunities that technology and the online world offers,” telecoms minister Sir Chris Bryant said, adding that “digital inclusion is an essential for modern life and work, not just something that’s nice to have”.

Sir Chris also said: “Making technology widely accessible could be the thing that means a sick patient can speak to a GP remotely, or that helps a young person successfully apply for a job.

“Through this funding we’re moving further to empower local leaders and groups nationwide, who are already working tirelessly to get their communities connected and change countless lives for the better.”

The Government launched its Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund as part of the Digital Inclusion Action Plan, which also includes an ambition to pilot a device donation scheme, so re-purposed Whitehall laptops will go to people who need them.

Older and disabled people, low-income households and jobseekers are among the groups more likely to be digitally excluded, according to the plan.