WIREDGOV

Across the UK, digital access now shapes who learns, who works, who connects, and who thrives. Yet for millions, that access remains out of reach. The result is not just exclusion, but the quiet entrenchment of inequality – deepening as more of life shifts online.

On Tuesday 3 June, the Digital Poverty Alliance will bring together policymakers, frontline leaders, community voices, and those with lived experience at the Square Tower in Portsmouth to mark the next phase of the National Delivery and Advocacy Plan. The event will focus on the progress made, the challenges ahead, and the coordinated action now needed to end digital poverty for good.

The programme includes two panel discussions, each designed to bring lived experience into direct dialogue with policy and practice.

The first will bring together individuals from across generations who have experienced digital exclusion firsthand. They will reflect on the barriers they have faced, the support that made a difference, and their hopes for a more inclusive digital future. Their stories are not anecdotes – they are evidence. And they offer a challenge to all of us: to design systems that reflect reality, not assumption.

The second panel will explore digital skills as a lifelong necessity. As with literacy before them, digital skills now determine whether people can participate fully in society. Yet support remains fragmented, inconsistent, and often inaccessible to those who need it most. Drawing on voices from education, employment, and community delivery, this session will ask what it would take to embed digital capability as a universal resource – from early years to later life.

“This is not just another event, it’s a deciding moment,” said Elizabeth Anderson, CEO of the Digital Poverty Alliance. “This is a chance to be part of a growing movement that believes digital exclusion is solvable. We cannot afford to wait. If you care about fairness, opportunity, and access – join us in Portsmouth. Together, we can deliver the change people have been waiting for.”

This work is not abstract. It is about whether a parent can book a GP appointment online. Whether a young carer can access schoolwork. Whether an older person can stay connected to family and services. These are everyday challenges with far-reaching consequences.

The National Delivery and Advocacy Plan provides a clear, coordinated framework to address them. Structured around six national missions – from affordable connectivity and inclusive design to lifelong digital skills and stronger local capacity – it sets out how we move from good intentions to real outcomes, grounded in the lived experience of those most affected.

Since the original Plan was launched in 2023, momentum has grown. In February 2025, the Government introduced the Digital Inclusion Action Plan – the first national strategy to address digital exclusion in over a decade. As part of this, the Digital Poverty Alliance is leading delivery of a flagship device donation scheme, redistributing unused government laptops to households in need. This builds on national programmes like Tech4Youth and Tech4YoungCarers, which continue to reach families too often left behind.

At the same time, partnerships across sectors have deepened, reinforcing a shared recognition that piecemeal responses are no longer enough. Ending digital poverty requires structure, scale, and sustained collaboration.

The updated Plan will be published online at 11am on 3 June. To support aligned messaging and amplify collective impact, a Communications Toolkit is available to download – offering adaptable content, key messages, and practical resources for organisations, partners, and supporters. Whether you are briefing internal teams, updating your channels, or sharing on social platforms, the Toolkit is designed to help you speak with confidence, clarity, and a shared sense of purpose.

We encourage you to be part of this next chapter – by joining us in Portsmouth, engaging with the Plan, and working with us to ensure digital inclusion becomes a shared national standard, not a postcode lottery.

Secure your free ticket here.