Digital learning platforms need to be more inclusive

Ninety per cent of young people that are digitally excluded have reported that educational platforms are not accessible due to affordability and poor connectivity, as well as not catering for individuals with neurodivergences.

These are the findings from a new report from the Digital Poverty Alliance (DPA) which draws on survey responses, alongside desk research, to explore accessibility in digital education service design.
 
The findings show that while digital tools are now embedded across school routines, access and usability remain deeply uneven. This study focused on young people already experiencing digital exclusion, and among these respondents, 72 per cent said they were required to use digital education daily, yet only 36 per cent had access to a laptop for schoolwork and 44 per cent said a smartphone was their only means of accessing education platforms.
 
The report also revealed that respondents described educational platforms as hard to use, while support was named as a key factor in how confident respondents felt when using technology.  
 
Elizabeth Anderson, CEO of Digital Poverty Alliance commented: “Digital education is now routine across school life, but routine does not mean accessible. This report shows that when platforms are difficult to navigate, visually overwhelming, or poorly designed for different needs, the pressure does not fall evenly. Learners are being asked to adapt to systems that should have been designed with them in mind.”
 
“When we talk about accessibility in education, we mean more than simply having digital tools in place. It requires ensuring devices are not only available but affordable, that students have the connectivity needed to access updated curriculum material, and that platforms are designed to meet a range of needs, including the ability to tailor features so every learner can engage effectively. While SEND reforms have been spotlighted in the Schools White Paper, there has been little conversation around the link between digitisation and different needs.”
 
“Ending digital poverty is about making sure everyone can engage with the digital world confidently and safely. At a time when one in five children is in digital poverty and more than 19 million people in the UK are digitally excluded, the need to act has never been more urgent.”
 
The report also places these experiences in a wider context, highlighting how neurodivergence can intersect with digital poverty, language barriers and broader inequality.
 
It calls for more flexible and responsive educational platforms to better meet different needs, including interface customisation, stronger engagement with accessibility organisations, and broader consultation with those whose experiences are often least reflected in digital design.
 
As more of education moves through digital systems, those decisions will shape not only how students access learning, but how fairly they are able to do so.