The recent NIHR ARC Yorkshire & Humber blog, “From Electronic Frailty to INCLUDE”, written by David Smith (Trustee at Cross Gates Good Neighbours), speaks directly to two issues that matter to us at Leeds Older People’s Forum: how older people are involved in shaping research from the very beginning, and how digital exclusion continues to affect many older adults.
The blog reflects on the INCLUDE study, which looks at how digitally excluded older people can be better identified and supported. What particularly resonates with us is the study’s focus on understanding who is digitally excluded, why, and how services and organisations can respond more effectively. This kind of research helps move beyond assumptions and provides evidence we can use in our work with older people across Leeds.

For various reasons, about 20% of people over 65 and over don’t use the internet at all, and about 40% don’t have the skills to use it successfully and safely

Digital exclusion isn’t just about access to devices or the internet; it’s about confidence, skills, relevance, and support. As a membership organisation, we know that many older people are at different stages of their digital journey. Research like INCLUDE highlights practical ways to identify older people who may be digitally excluded and, importantly, points to how we can work alongside our member organisations to support people to become more digitally included in ways that work for them.

We’re also encouraged by how older people themselves have been involved in shaping this research, helping to ensure it reflects real lived experience. This mirrors our own approach at Leeds Older People’s Forum, where we work to make sure older adults are involved early in research design, not just as participants, but as partners whose insights help make research more inclusive, relevant and impactful.

You can read the full blog by David Smith on the NIHR website: https://arc-yh.nihr.ac.uk/resources/blogs/from-electronic-frailty-to-include/

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