Glasgow’s digital strategy highlights digital rights for citizens

Glasgow City Council has published a new digital strategy, with a focus on how to better equip the council to deliver a set of missions, underpinned by digital technologies.

The council’s previous strategy, which was launched in 2018, was geared towards specific digital transformation programmes. However, the current six-year strategy focuses on the organisational change needed to benefit from digital.

The strategy has three key missions: creating a fair and empowered digital society, an inclusive digital economy, and sustainable and innovative digital public services.

It highlights the importance of “digital rights” to be placed at the centre of digitisation and sets out “an integrated and joined-up plan for putting in place stronger foundations for equipping Glasgow to benefit from the ever-increasing opportunities that digitisation can provide for our society, the city’s economy, and for public services, whilst at the same time addressing the challenges that digitisation brings”, according to the strategy.

Chair of Digital Glasgow, councillor Paul Leinster, said the strategy “recognises the increased role that digital technology and services will play in the future, and sets out the key actions to deliver the key priorities of the strategy”.

“These priorities include not only the delivery of innovative digital public services that bring an improved experience for all those who receive them, but also make our digital economy more inclusive, to increase opportunities and develop skills, and to encourage and enable greater digital inclusion, participation and confidence,” he said.

The council, which covers some of the most deprived areas in Scotland, launched a strategic plan in 2022, aiming to reduce poverty and inequality and increase opportunity and prosperity for its citizens. Digital is seen as key to achieving this, according to the strategy.  

“The actions within the strategy focus on how we continue to build our capacity and capability to use digital to improve outcomes. They go beyond just technology implementation and instead look more holistically at our approach to leadership, skills, user-focus, collaboration, data, technology, security and innovation,” the strategy said.

“These are capabilities we will need to make use of digital technology to underpin the Glasgow Strategic Plan and build the foundations that we need for Glasgow to prosper and flourish in the digital world.”

According to the digital strategy, a recent survey shows that although access has improved, 7% of citizens in Glasgow still do not have access to the internet and many still have low confidence and trust in using digital services such as online banking and public services.

To improve digital inclusion and equality, the council plans on engaging with the telecommunications sector to promote broadband vouchers and find opportunities to improve broadband affordability, as well as targeting digital inclusion support and skills training for those who need it the most, including a skills pathway with the option of gaining skills to improve employability.

The council plans to establish a single directory of digital inclusion support, working with the third sector, libraries and housing associations, as well as creating Digital Rights Advocacy Group to develop plans for promoting and making people aware of their digital rights.

It will also ask Ofcom to undertake a review of media literacy in Glasgow, and improve service user experience and accessibility of the council’s digital services, including a website revamp.