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Memories in modern Leeds

Number of #Leeds posts across 4 platforms
Number of #Leeds posts across 4 platforms

In Leeds, people try to use digital technology to record the stories of their lives, as well as the history of their families.

Here are approximate statistics of posts on four major media platforms with the hashtag Leeds: 6,314,000 on Instagram, 24,000 on YouTube, 2,470,000 on Facebook and 36,000 on Tik Tok. People living here use these digital platforms to record their lives.



Now digital technology not only helps people record their own lives, but it can also help people use their own memories to complete the missing pieces of history. For a specific example, Samuel Duskis, a painter, is an occupier recorded in the book Quarry Hill Unhealthy Area in Leeds in 1900. His later generations posted something about him on the DUSKIS family page, which helps complete both Samuel's and their family's history.







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Samuel Duskis's record in the book
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The Facebook page of the record of Samuel Duskis from the Duskis Family, available at here

Digital technology and social media have arguably become legacy resources and repositories of value created by the act of personal identity-making. People in Leeds and worldwide can choose the values and meanings of the past they wish to preserve for the future through social media, using social media to make the experience a personal, individual one (Tagg et al., 2016).







Digital exclusion

Nevertheless, there are still many people who do not have access to the convenience of digital technology in recording their lives. There is still digital exclusion, which refers to the barriers that prevent people from accessing and using digital technologies such as computers, the Internet, and mobile phones. Digital exclusion can have a number of different causes, including factors such as lack of access to technology, lack of digital skills and literacy, and affordability issues. Some groups that are particularly vulnerable to digital exclusion include older people, low-income households, and people with disabilities. The essential digital skills needed for life and work. The Office for National Statistics counted the household Internet penetration statistics by household income in 2021, as well as recent and lapsed Internet users and Internet non-users by age group and disability in the UK from 2014 to 2020.

We have selected some of these as supporting evidence that digital exclusion always exists.




The proportion of people who achieved the Foundation Level, depending on their age group, conducted by Lloyds Bank
The proportion of people who achieved the Foundation Level, depending on their age group, conducted by Lloyds Bank
The proportion of people who achieved the Foundation Level, depending on their level of education, conducted by Lloyds Bank
The proportion of people who achieved the Foundation Level, depending on their level of education, conducted by Lloyds Bank
The proportion of people who achieved the Foundation Level, depending on their social grade, conducted by Lloyds Bank
The proportion of people who achieved the Foundation Level, depending on their social grade, conducted by Lloyds Bank
The household Internet penetration statistics by household income
The household Internet penetration statistics by household income
Recent and lapsed internet users and internet non-users, by age group (years) and disability, UK, 2014 to 2020
Recent and lapsed internet users and internet non-users, by age group (years) and disability, UK, 2014 to 2020


Many organisations and individuals are aware of the problem and have taken a number of actions aimed at promoting digital inclusion.

In Leeds, there is a '100% Digital Leeds' programme led by the digital inclusion team in the Integrated Digital Service (IDS) at Leeds City Council and Leeds Health and Care Partnership NHS West Yorkshire Integrated Care Board, which aims to give all people in Leeds equal access to digital tools, technologies and services in a way that suits them.





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The webpage of '100% Digital Leeds', available from here


According to data collected by '100% digital leeds', Leeds also has many groups that have a high risk of digital exclusion. Here are the detailed data.




The UK government's Digital Strategy includes a goal of ensuring that everyone has access to digital services, and the Good Things Foundation, a UK-based charity, provides digital skills training and support to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups.

However, despite these efforts, digital exclusion remains a significant issue in many parts of the UK, including Leeds. It is important for governments, organizations, and communities to work together to address these barriers and ensure that everyone has access to the digital tools and resources they need to participate fully in modern society.