Minimum Digital Living Standard sets the digital bar
They’ve recently established a Minimum Digital Living Standard (MDLS) for households with children:
“A minimum digital standard of living includes, but is more than, having accessible internet, adequate equipment, and the skills, knowledge and support people need. It is about being able to communicate, connect and engage with opportunities safely and with confidence”.
According to their conclusions, any household with children that falls below the MDLS criteria is short of what they need to take part and feel included in a digital world.
A benchmark built by the public, for the public
The MDLS used the same method as the Minimum Income Standard (MIS) – collaborating with members of society, so the benchmark could then develop out of a public consensus.
It was a comprehensive research process, getting the insights of 17 groups over a nine month period. The groups covered a range of household types and age ranges, including working age adults with or without children, pensioners, and young people.
Helping households get above water
There were three key themes that kept coming out of the research that had a big say in shaping the final definition. One being how much digital technology dominates our daily lives. The young people in the study were quick to point out how prevalent it is in their school life, and in how they interact with their friends socially.
The second was how digital technologies are an unavoidable part of everyday life now. The non-digital alternatives are very quickly disappearing, with the pandemic putting the pedal to the metal on that digital evolution.
Which leads naturally on to the third and final theme – the pace of change. People explained how the digital acceleration made them feel like they were ‘drowning’. It then brought to the surface all the risks of being excluded, the cost of having to catch up, and the barriers and challenges people came up against trying to update their skills and knowledge.
Empowering them now and in the future
Households shouldn’t feel like they’re sinking in a digital world – they should feel empowered by the extra possibilities. And the MDLS will help them get to that place. The standard identifies the three key pillars to a healthy digital household:
1. Goods and services
So the products that allow people to get daily tasks done – laptops, smartphones, phone data, TV subscriptions and more.
2. Practical and functional skills.
So being able to use digital devices, programmes and the internet. Completing simple tasks like storing and saving documents, setting up email accounts, and using video conferencing tools like Zoom and Teams.
3. Understanding and managing digital risk
This could be anything from managing personal security, to knowing how to apply parental controls, to being able to spot unsavoury emails and hacking attempts.
It also indicates what stage in their lives children should have access to, or be proficient in, those products and skills in the MDLS criteria.
Now to put everything into action
The team are now putting the MDLS into action, running surveys to evaluate how many UK households meet or fall beneath the minimum standard.
The group recommend that the government use the MDLS at all levels – in Westminster, the devolved administrations, and local authorities. And, for the government to work with Ofcom and the telecommunications sector to make sure broadband and mobile data infrastructure is right where it needs to be for MDLS to succeed.
They also call for funding and research to assess other household types to see whether MDLS meets the needs of everyone it’s designed to support.
Sources
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