Who is acting on digital exclusion?
A tracker of which Scottish councils have published a digital inclusion strategy, which bodies have a mandate to act and what they have delivered, and where accountability is missing. We update this as we find out more — tell us if you know something we've missed.
Methodology
We search council websites, Local Housing Strategies, corporate plans, and published strategy documents. "No visible strategy" means we searched and found nothing — not that nothing exists. If your council has something we've missed, tell us. This tracker is a live document.
Bodies with a mandate
These organisations have either a formal mandate or public funding to address digital exclusion in Scotland. This is what we know about what they have actually delivered.
Digital Inclusion Alliance Scotland
A multi-sector body with Scottish Government backing intended to coordinate digital inclusion activity across Scotland. The SCVO has described its early work as a "talking shop" with no clear lines of accountability. No published action plan, delivery framework, or outcome metrics have been identified.
SCVO on the Digital Inclusion Alliance →COSLA Digital Office
COSLA's Digital Office co-owns the national Digital Strategy for Scotland (jointly with Scottish Government), which commits under "No-One Left Behind" to world-leading digital inclusion. The strategy also commits to "Digital Education and Skills" and "An Ethical Digital Nation."
In August 2024, Audit Scotland published Tackling Digital Exclusion — an independent assessment that was direct in its findings: roughly 1 in 6 Scottish adults (15%) lack the foundation digital skills needed for everyday life — the same figure the Scottish Government cites elsewhere as "15% lack foundational digital competencies"; momentum has stalled and leadership has weakened since the pandemic-era Connecting Scotland programme; there is no clear action plan for reducing exclusion, and it is unclear who is responsible across Scottish Government, local government, and the third sector. The Digital Inclusion Alliance had made slow progress and governance groups met infrequently. Audit Scotland called on Scottish Government and COSLA to develop a clear action plan with defined leadership by end of 2024/25.
COSLA's own internal paper (LD/24/025, May 2024) acknowledged the strategy needed refreshing and flagged reduced funding to local areas as a risk to delivery. The Third Force News summarised the situation as: "No leadership, no momentum: Scottish Government has failed to act on digital exclusion."
Note: a separate body — the Digital Office for Scottish Local Government (digitaloffice.scot) — is hosted at COSLA but operates independently, focused on digital transformation and data maturity within councils. It is distinct from COSLA's own Digital Office function.
Audit Scotland: Tackling Digital Exclusion (August 2024, PDF) → · Audit Scotland news release → · COSLA Digital Office →Scottish Government — digital inclusion
The Scottish Government declared a housing emergency in 2024. Connecting Scotland — its flagship digital inclusion programme — has had no updated national strategy and no published delivery plan since its Covid-era phase. The SCVO has described digital inclusion work in Scotland as "under-resourced, undervalued, and increasingly stretched." No successor programme has been announced.
Scottish Government: digital policy →Ofcom
Ofcom has the power to require ISPs to offer social tariffs and to monitor take-up. Only 1 in 12 eligible households currently use the social tariff they are entitled to, and 70% of people on benefits have never heard of them. Ofcom has published data on this but has not used regulatory powers to mandate active promotion by providers.
Ofcom: social tariffs →Scottish Housing Regulator
The Scottish Housing Regulator oversees RSLs and local council housing. It does not currently require RSLs to report on digital inclusion or tenant connectivity as part of regulatory performance reporting — meaning the scale of digital exclusion among social housing tenants remains largely unmeasured at a national level.
Scottish Housing Regulator →The 32 Scottish councils
Scotland has 32 local authorities. Each has responsibility for housing, community development, and local services — and each could act on digital exclusion within its area. Below is what we have verified so far.
GigaPlus Argyll: community-owned infrastructure serving Colonsay, Mull, Iona, Jura and other Inner Hebrides islands, developed with Community Broadband Scotland funding. Infrastructure-focused — no standalone digital exclusion strategy found.
View source →Scotland's first Digital Housing Strategy 2022–2028. Evidence base found 65% of social rented households do not use home broadband. Backed by 32 RSLs covering 75% of stock. No standalone evaluation published yet.
View source →HIE and Community Broadband Scotland have supported pilots in the area including Applecross. Note: Highland Community Broadband (Ullapool) closed April 2026 after nine years due to rising costs — a significant loss. No standalone council digital inclusion strategy identified.
View source →Not yet verified — help us find out
We haven't been able to confirm what, if anything, these councils have in place. If you live or work in one of these areas, check and tell us.
Help us complete this tracker
31 councils still need verification
If you live or work in any of the unverified council areas, you can help. Check your council's website for a digital strategy, digital inclusion plan, or any reference to digital access in its Local Housing Strategy or corporate plan. Then tell us what you find — including a link if there is one.
If your council has no plan, that itself is worth recording. A formal absence is accountability information.
Accountability requires attention
Join WIRES and help us track what councils and bodies are actually doing — not just what they say.