everyone.connected Faces of Disconnection

EXHIBITION INTRO COPY:

Currently there are 1.7 million households in the UK living in digital exclusion. And new research estimates that one million more working families are at risk of falling on the wrong side of the digital divide due to the cost-of-living crisis. We believe that connectivity is essential and everyone should have access to the opportunities it provides. In fact, we've put tackling the digital divide at the heart of our business.

As part of our everyone.connected campaign, we pledged to donate connectivity to one million people living in digital exclusion. This evening, we invite you to celebrate us reaching that milestone, but more importantly, learn more about the issue as our work is far from done.

We've now extended our commitment to help a total of 4 million people cross the digital divide by 2025. We will do this by continuing to donate connectivity and tech where needed, offering targeted, affordable tariffs and services that make being connected more accessible. We will also continue to work with partners to upskill businesses and communities.

Showcased tonight is a collaboration between Vodafone and photographer Rankin, a series of images that depict the real stories behind digital exclusion that are so rarely told. The issue affects so many people, in every walk of life. With these images we hope to raise awareness, increase understanding and, crucially, make sure people know where to go for help. These are the ‘Faces of Disconnection’.

We'd like to say a special thank you to all of our charity partners for their work in helping us to tackle this important issue.

*Actors have been used to represent real people and their stories. 

·       A Ukrainian refugee who has a smartphone but no connectivity so feels lonely and disconnected

o  Displaced & Detached.

·       A girl with autism who feels overwhelmed by the online world and needs more support

o  A World of Isolation, Overwhelm and Exclusion.

·       A family forced to choose between utilities as the cost of living rises

o  Determined but forced to choose.

·       A woman who lost connectivity in an instant after an abusive partner broke her phone

o  Trapped with nowhere to turn

·       A teenager without the skills to feel safe online

o  Connected but at what cost?

·       An older man faced with daunting information on how to get online

o  The Digital Skills Gap: A Generation Left Behind.

·       A man who has found himself homeless and in a shelter

o  Down, Out and Disconnected.

Ends

Editors notes

Vodafone UK is a technology communications company that connects people, businesses and devices to help our customers benefit from digital innovation. Our services span mobile, fixed line connections, home and office broadband, and the Internet of Things (IoT).

We have a strong track record as a tech pioneer, making the UK’s first mobile phone call, sending the first text message, and making the UK’s first live holographic call using 5G in 2018. We were also the first to start carrying live 5G traffic from a site in Salford, Greater Manchester. As of October 2020, we have 5G in 57 locations in the UK and 193 across Germany, Spain, Italy and Ireland.

In September 2020, leading mobile benchmarking company, umlaut, named Vodafone as London’s best network for 5G. Our 4G network coverage currently reaches over 99% of the UK population. And in October 2020, Vodafone was named Network Provider of the Year by readers of leading technology advice website, Trusted Reviews.

Today, Vodafone serves more than 18 million mobile and fixed-line customers in the UK. To help deliver Gigabit UK, our full-fibre broadband roll-out programme now covers 15 UK towns and cities through partnerships with CityFibre and Openreach.

For more information about Vodafone UK please visit: www.vodafone.co.uk.