Most over-65s struggle with going online to some degree says Age UK – as it urges Government to protect offline services

Only one in six over-65s are confident going online and the rest struggle to varying degrees to access vital banking, NHS and council services, according to Age UK.

Some 1.6million older people in England are ‘digitally included’, the charity estimates in a new report, but 1.4million never use the internet at all. 

The majority, 7.9million, are somewhere in the middle.

It says the country is muddling through with ‘dribs and drabs’ of short-term funding and the goodwill of community groups and volunteers to help older generations who need support.

Age UK wants the Government to mount a major and sustained digital inclusion initiative, as well as protecting offline access to essential services such as face-to-face banking.

The charity says the conventional wisdom that older people are either online or offline is simplistic, and it has identified four groups that sit somewhere on a spectrum between routine use and never using the internet.

‘Ministers must realise that we will never reach a position in which everyone is online,’ says Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK.

‘Even those of us who are proficient internet users for most of our lives may reach a point when this is no longer the case, usually because of physical or mental ill-health, sometimes because of cost.

‘There always needs to be a good non-digital alternative for accessing essential services. Legislation and national standards should be put in place to guarantee this.’

Abrahams says there are many good reasons for older people to be online, but also some big risks such as online scams, the understandable fear of which is a major factor in some people’s decisions to stay away from the internet.

She adds that many older people feel ‘bullied’ to go online and looked down on if they haven’t got the same skills as someone 50 years younger who grew up with digital tech, whereas they grew up with pen and paper.

‘This is profoundly unfair and can have terrible consequences. For example, we routinely hear from older people who have given up trying to get help from their GP, jeopardising their health.’

In a new report called Digital Done Right, Age UK says older people are being held back in areas of daily life including managing their money, engaging with the NHS, parking and paying for transport, and accessing council services.

It recommends the Government legislates to guarantee continued offline access to all essential services, and to protect access to face-to-face banking.

And it wants the Government to set out minimum standards for the design of apps and digital services such as banking, the NHS, and customer service support so that older people find them simpler to use. 

The charity is also concerned about the future transition of television from digital terrestrial and Freeview services to the internet, because TV is a vital source of companionship and information for many older people.

Age UK says broadcasters should not be allowed to transition until issues of affordability, accessibility and useability have been addressed, and changes should be accompanied by a support programme.

A Government spokesman says: ‘We value the important work of Age UK and we share their ambition for getting our older population the support they need to get online.

‘Through our £11.9m Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund we worked with organisations working with digitally excluded groups – including Age UK who was awarded over £365,000 – to test and learn what works best to help get people connected. 

‘The learnings from this will now inform stronger future digital inclusion support.

‘While digital services can make life easier to manage from home, we recognise that some people will prefer non-digital options, that’s why we are committed to ensuring essential public services offer well-supported offline routes, such as telephone, paper and face-to-face support.’

How do older people use the internet?

Age UK found that one in five older men are ‘digitally included’, compared with one in 10 older women.

Meanwhile, people without disabilities, and with better health and more comfortable finances are more likely to be confident internet users.

It says over-65s tend to fall into roughly four groups, which are explained below along with the everyday experiences of older people.

Online daily or almost every day

1.6million or 15 per cent of over-65s are fully digitally included

Over-65s who are adept with the internet go online frequently using a smartphone and at least one other device, with laptops and tablets being most common.

They use the internet at home and on the move, most commonly for 10 or more activities.

In the last three months they have sent emails, sourced information about Government services, and managed their finances and healthcare online (banking and interactions with the NHS are typically viewed as the most challenging to do digitally).

Many have also shopped, planned routes and read news, along with a variety of other activities online. They are rarely or never helped to go online by family or friends.

‘Ask My GP app makes life a lot easier’

Trevor is a chartered engineer who served in the Royal Air Force for 28 years. He does a lot online including using the NHS app, online banking, WhatsApp to keep in touch with friends and family and Excel to track household expenditure.

He also uses the Ask My GP app and routinely places shopping orders online.

‘Certain functions online make life a lot easier. For example, the Ask My GP app. I use it to order repeat prescriptions online and when necessary to request an appointment. Another is the ability to place orders online.

‘The Government should make sure that internet functions they sponsor for use of the general public are simple and all similar.’

Online at home but not usually on the move

5.2million or 47 per cent are in this group

People in this group go online but are more likely to use only one device or only one location and to do fewer activities online.

They are most likely to use a smartphone, but laptops and tablets are also common, and they tend to go online at home rather than on the move.

They do email and bank tasks and shopping online but are less likely to manage their healthcare online or a wide array of other activities. About a third are helped to go online sometimes.

‘I will avoid a car park if I have to download an app’

Andrew is 82 and lives in Hertfordshire. He does a lot of things online, including banking, accessing the NHS app, shopping and attending webinars.

He mostly accesses the internet at home and avoids using car parks that require him to download an app.

‘I’ve tried to keep up to speed with how things work. My stepdaughter is in IT and she got me into it, having my own personal computer, and it all went from there.

‘If I came to a car park which required me to download a parking app, I would look elsewhere.’

Use the internet about once a week

2.7million or 25 per cent are in this group

While they use the internet at least once a week, almost half of this group only do so on one device, usually a smartphone.

Only a quarter of this group go online on the move, while almost all use the internet at home. Only a minority do 10-plus activities online and the most common online activities are email, shopping and video or voice calls.

Banking and managing healthcare online are less common. Most are helped to go online some or all of the time.

‘My nephew helps me with everything online’

Cynthia is 90 and is completely offline herself. She relies on her nephew to help her with things that have no offline alternative, including online banking.

‘My nephew helps me to do banking online. [He] helps me with everything online. Shopping, buying things online, anything to do with the computer or telephone he has to help me with. To have family to help me is really nice.

‘To book doctor’s appointments, it’s face-to-face. Sometimes, I make phone calls and then I have to go into the hospital. At the reception, they help me out sometimes because they’re always saying “oh, you don’t have anyone that helps you to be online”.

‘In the surgery they are very good and help me to fill out forms to have an appointment with the doctor.’

Never go online

1.4million or 13 per cent are digitally excluded

Older people who never go online offer a variety of reasons. They say their IT skills are not good enough, they don’t trust the internet with regard to fraud and sharing their data, or they have no reason to use it.

‘You feel very left out and isolated’

Elizabeth is 64 and is a clinically trained professional with a BSc in Clinical Sciences. 

She has spent years supporting patients, volunteering across multiple services, and contributing to healthcare and research.

‘I am taking a break from some of my volunteering roles, because it’s hard to keep up with the technology.

‘I am finding that everything’s digital. Going to a shop – it’s digital. I was going for my physiotherapy and the [online] appointment wouldn’t show up on the phone in the hospital.

‘You feel very left out and isolated. You feel inept because of some people saying “Oh, don’t you know that by now? Oh, that’s easy”.’