Once the birthplace of the industrial revolution, Manchester's rich legacy of innovation has been preserved by a thriving digital ecosystem, that similarly embraces the extraordinary pace of technological change. Today, Manchester is recognised as the UK's number one regional tech city outside of London and the South East, and the fastest-growing tech hub in the North of England
While Manchester’s vibrant digital sector plays an increasingly important role in the city’s growth, the opportunities technology creates are not universally accessible. In a city that over 10,000 digital and tech businesses call home, more than a quarter of Manchester’s neighbourhoods sit within the highest scoring group of the Manchester Digital Exclusion Index, leaving residents isolated from the skills, resources and connectivity essentials they need to be able to fully participate in an increasingly digital world.
The pace of technological change has never been faster. As digital increasingly shapes the ways we navigate and interact with the world around us, Internet access has transformed from a luxury to a neccessity. Sitting alongside Greater Manchester’s £6.1 billion digital ecosystem, over 450,000 residents are classed as “non-users” of the Internet, excluded from economic opportunities, social connections, and access to vital services. Proximity to innovation does not necessite access to its benefits.
At Manchester City Council, we champion a people-centred approach to digital, rooted in the belief that technology should enrich everyone in our city. To realise a genuinely inclusive future society, we have a responsibility to avoid excerbating existing inequalities for communities that struggle with barriers to digital access and create opportunities for everyone to shape, experience, and benefit from new technologies.
To achieve this vision, Manchester’s five-year Digital Strategy: Doing Digital Together sets out a clear plan of action to achieve a progressive, equitable and sustainable digital future. Supporting Manchester City Council’s ambitions to become a world-leading digital city, the Digital Strategy builds upon the city’s existing strengths to lay the foundations for a digital sector that empowers and uplifts our diverse communities, offering new opportunities for residents and attracting investment for sustainable growth.
We believe that digital innovation should not only create opportunities for economic growth and business success, but drive positive change in the lives of ordinary people, inspiring solutions to social challenges and delivering meaningful public benefit.
Our commitment to these core values underpins every initiative driving the delivery of the Digital Strategy.
Through showcasing the impact of human-centred approaches to technology in driving sustainability, economic growth and digital equity, we aim to demonstrate how embracing inclusive innovation through cross sector partnerships and collaboration can deliver a better quality of life for everyone in our city.
For a broader range of people to meaningfully engage with technology, including those from communities at greater risk of digital exclusion, inclusive opportunities to access training and resources need to be within reach.
People’s Panel for AI
The People’s Panel for AI, developed in collaboration with Manchester Metropolitan University, aims to redress the imbalance of power in decision-making around AI initiatives. Interactive roadshows and training sessions, held in areas of Manchester most at risk of digital exclusion, empower residents to explore the risks and opportunities of AI and better understand the impact it could have on their lives. Residents who enrol as panellists apply the skills and knowledge gained in training to consult with sector leaders across health, social care, transport and digital, supporting public-facing services to better respond to the needs, challenges and hopes of communities.
Digital Inclusion Toolkit Project
Through the Digital Inclusion Toolkit project, our Digital Inclusion team has supported over 48 grassroots organisations to become digital centre partners, and helped to establish 37 National Databank centres. In 2024, over 8,000 free mobile SIMS were distributed by our Libraries team alone. Through building the infrastructure for community-based digital and tech support, and supporting the provision of SIM cards for people who struggle to access the Internet, the project has enabled more people to use, understand and navigate new technologies. For many residents, receiving the support to get online has been transformative – enabling parents to engage with their children’s education, jobseekers to explore career pathways, and elderly people to stay connected with friends and family.
Even where residents possess the skills and knowledge to navigate the Internet effectively, lack of reliable access to a digital device can be a significant barrier to accessing opportunities and services online.
XMA Partnership
The Digital Inclusion team’s partnership with IT provider XMA has provided 300 laptops to charitable organisations and people across Manchester, at no cost. Alongside supporting the circular economy and reducing harmful e-waste, connecting charities with high quality refurbished devices has helped to alleviate the challenges charities face in meeting demand for services and empowered community organisations to scale their impact to support more people.
As our dependency on digital services grows, having reliable and future-proofed digital infrastructure has become essential to support increasing technological demand. High-speed, secure and affordable connectivity should not be a luxury of the privileged; everyone in Manchester should should be able to engage with the digital world. At Manchester City Council, we aim to ensure that our digital infrastructure is equipped to meet the needs of all people, businesses and organisations in our city.
Small Cells Connectivity Agreement
As part of the wider Our Manchester Strategy, we have a commitment to become a more connected, progressive and equitable city. Following a tripartite connectivity agreement between Amey, Freshwave and the City Council, 20 Virgin Media O2 small cells were deployed in busy areas of the city to reduce demand on the wider mobile network, improving the quality of service across Manchester to allow more people to stay connected throughout the day.
Mobile Connectivity Mapping
Our mobile connectivity mapping project, delivered in partnership with street asset mapping company Network UX, aims to build a clearer picture of the current connectivity landscape in Manchester. Through collaboration with our waste disposal partners, Biffa, sensors capturing the speed of telecommunications operations were attached to Manchester City Council’s fleet of bin lorries. By tapping into existing resources, we could eliminate the need for dedicated survey vehicles, reducing the burden on the environment. By understanding which areas have the best connectivity, and which are in greater need of digital support, we can begin to develop solutions that address inequalities in network access. Initital data will be used to inform the Council’s Our Town Hall project, identifying the coverage and capacity needs of mobile signal around the renovated town hall to improve quality of service for staff and visitors.
Digital Infrastructure Design Guide
Although reliable connectivity is essential for economic growth and digital inclusion, the construction of digital infrastructure can cause significant disruption to a city. Working with a range of stakeholders across the digital, technology and construction fields, the Digital Strategy has contributed to the development of the Digital Infrastructure Design Guide, which offers practical guidance on how best to deploy digital infrastructure in new developments. Advocating “home run” fibre networks and a “dig once” accreditation policy, the guide aims to give Internet providers more control over the services they deliver, offer people in Manchester more meaningful choices between Internet packages, and reduce the impact of construction on residents’ everyday lives. The Digital Infrastructure Design Guide also supports our wider sustainability ambitions by reducing the unnecessary construction of digital assets to mitigate impact on the environment.
