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Third of UK homes still lack access to web
With the levels of broadband in UK homes increasing, new figures from ON’S reveal that more than a third of households are still without an internet connection.
According to the ONS’s 2008 Internet Access report, 65 percent of homes — some 16.46 million households — now have internet access: an increase of 1.23 million households since 2007 and while 35 percent of UK homes remain internet-less, the figure is down from 43 percent two years ago.
The statistics also show a digital refusenik attitude is growing among Britons, of those households that do not have internet access, a larger proportion of respondents said they do not need it or do not want it than two years ago. While other reasons for eschewing the web — such as access or equipment costs being too high — showed little or no increase.
There is also a clear link between a household’s level of education and whether it’s online, according to the ONS report. Individuals who have no formal qualifications are least likely to have internet connection in their home, at 56 percent now online, while adults under 70 with a university degree or equivalent qualification are most likely (93 percent).
The generation gap in web access persists too — adults aged over 65 are still the least likely to use the web, with 70 percent stating they have never done so. However, there’s evidence the gap is shrinking: that figure is down from 82 percent two years ago. Meanwhile, the 16 to 24 age group unsurprisingly used the web the most, with 77 percent using it every day or almost every day.
The ONS figures also reveal a growing north-south digital divide.
The Southeast is the most connected region, with 74 percent of households having net access in 2008, followed by London with 73 percent and then the East of England (70 percent). While the Northeast has the fewest internet-enabled households (54 percent), followed by the Northwest (56 percent), and the East Midlands and West Midlands (both with 61 percent).
The divide between North and South is getting bigger: back in 2006 there was a 12 percentage point gap between net connectivity in the Southeast and the Northeast. In 2008, that gap has risen to 20 percentage points.
View the report at:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/pdfdir/iahi0808.pdf
This entry was posted on Friday, August 29, 2008 at 6:48. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can also leave a response or trackback from your own site.
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