About the strategy

The NSW Digital Inclusion Strategy sets out the vision and context for digital inclusion in NSW. It is a key deliverable under Mission 1 of the NSW Digital Strategy: to make digital services accessible, inclusive and connected for everyone in NSW. It establishes an all-of-government strategic framework to direct policy, action and investment towards enhancing digital inclusion.

Development of the strategy has been a collaborative and iterative process. It has been shaped by extensive research, consultation, community engagement and co-design.

Qualitative and desktop research

The NSW Digital Inclusion Strategy is informed by extensive research into digital inclusion gaps and barriers, leveraging the most comprehensive evidence base for understanding digital inclusion in NSW. It has been complemented by insights gathered from interviews and focus groups with 85 digitally excluded participants, which were conducted to understand digital inclusion barriers and challenges among specific community groups. 

Additionally, the strategy has been informed by global and national digital inclusion frameworks. 

Community engagement and co-design

Community input was at the forefront during development of the strategy to ensure it was shaped by community needs and focused on delivering practical, meaningful results. A widescale community consultation was conducted via the NSW Government Have Your Say website to understand the challenges communities face in accessing digital technologies, services and resources, as well as how they can be supported to overcome them.

The consultation was open to the public from May to July 2024, providing opportunities to complete a survey, participate in a quick poll, share a story or submit feedback to the discussion paper. Hard copies of the discussion paper and surveys were also distributed on request, which included postage-paid return envelopes to enable offline submission options. A total of 1,637 contributions were made, including 793 survey responses, 776 quick poll responses, 12 stories and 56 submissions.

The proposed digital inclusion initiatives and solutions were also co-designed and tested with digitally excluded communities to ensure they meet the specific needs and aspirations of those groups.

All-of-government approach

To ensure a holistic approach to the strategy’s development, a cross-government Digital Inclusion Working Group was formed to serve as a consultative forum.

Ideation and co-design workshops, along with targeted consultations involving various government agencies and organisations, were conducted to foster an all-of-government approach.

Insights gathered from these consultations helped to validate digital inclusion challenges and barriers and also contributed to the development of innovative solutions that leverage new opportunities to address these challenges.

Consultation specifically related to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ experiences of digital exclusion in NSW was conducted by the Aboriginal Outcomes Unit within the Department of Customer Service and BlaQ Aboriginal Corporation as part of their joint work on Closing the Gap Target 17.

Collaboration and partnerships

Co-design workshops were conducted to ensure a comprehensive and inclusive approach to strategy development. This work involved numerous targeted consultations with non-government organisations and representatives from the telecommunications and technology industries. These engagements have enabled diverse perspectives to be integrated into the strategy, ensuring it addresses a wide range of needs and includes tangible solutions to digital inclusion challenges.