The Berkshire Digital Infrastructure Group (DIG), comprising all six Berkshire local authorities, are working with market providers and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s Barrier Busting Task Force to minimise barriers to Digital Infrastructure investments, reducing rollout costs and delays and leading to further investment into the county.
Last year, they ran their first Digital Survey, which was designed to help identify where there may be gaps in the digital infrastructure by asking how residents and businesses across Berkshire access and use the internet.
The responses from the survey are being used to inform a Digital Strategy, and you can view the analysis of the results online.
Improving access to broadband, public access WiFi and mobile services is a key element of the Berkshire DIG work, and they are working with mobile operators and platform providers to provide better access in all Berkshire regions.
The Survey.
The survey will be launching this Friday 13th January and the closing date will be 19th February.
The survey can be accessed online by clicking here (opens in a new tab),
and an offline printable variant is available by clicking here (opens .pdf file) so that we can capture the thoughts of those that don’t go online,
Any hard copy surveys can be send directly to Berkshire DIG Digital Inclusion Survey, Ground Floor (ICT Area), Council Offices, Market Street, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 5LD.
Please call 01635 503894 to request a paper copy if needed.
Or if you would prefer, you can collate any hard copy surveys and send them to Isabelle Robson, Performance & Contracts Manager at the Council.
For any queries about the survey, please email: ContactUS@BerkshireDIG.Org.UK
Why we want your views.
As more and more services move online we need to understand why some residents aren’t accessing them this way, whether that’s because it’s a struggle to afford internet access, data or a device, such as a laptop or phone, they aren’t confident or they don’t feel safe online.
We also want to understand what people can do online, whether that’s ordering food and gifts, online learning and job searching, or contacting friends and family or a healthcare professional.
Sharing your views and experiences with us, or helping someone who may not usually go online to do so, will help us understand where and how we need to focus resources to improve services and provide solutions.
We’d also like to know if your habits have changed since the pandemic e.g. has the amount of time you spend on the internet or streaming TV shows increased, or you have become more confident using online services such as banking or booking travel or holidays?
What people can, and can’t, do online is important to us and we want to hear about it.