Improving digital access and customer service
Performance reflections
A minor increase in households capable of receiving a full fibre internet connection and Coventry remains above the figure for England which has risen to 79% [figures from Ofcom Connected Nations November 2025]. As a baseline, 99.8% of Coventry households can access good quality fixed internet connectivity, which is defined by the UK government as a data service that provides fixed download speeds of at least 10Mbit/s and upload speeds of at least 1Mbit/s.
This data shows Coventry to have comparatively very good rates of access to good quality internet, in terms of the percentage of properties that could access it, but this doesn’t mean all do access good internet and it doesn’t fully protect against digital exclusion. Transactions progressed online, a 4% increase on last year.
Actions taken in year
Work continues to both make services available on-line and at the same time to ensure that they are more user friendly and simpler to use.
Coventry's 14 council-run and 3 community-run libraries help to tackle digital exclusion by providing free Wi-Fi and access to a total of 204 PCs and devices as well as study space and provision of free SIM cards via Good Things Foundation data gifting. For year 2025 to 2026 there were a total of 321,893 ICT hours (total number of PC and Wi-Fi hours accessed across libraries) made up of 702,497 individual customer sessions. Four thousand three hundred and eleven SIM cards were also provided to residents during this period.
Since its inception the #CovConnects programme has also achieved strong outcomes in tacking digital exclusion, across access, engagement and partnership delivery:
- over 6,000 digital devices distributed through the Device Bank
- more than 15,000 residents supported, improving access to services, education and employment
- over 200 delivery partners engaged, with more than 70 returning for additional support, demonstrating sustained demand across the city
Access to connectivity and digital support is strengthened through:
- a network of 133 digital inclusion hubs
- the distribution of 16,500+ National Databank SIM cards, supporting residents to access data and connectivity
- provision of Mi‑Fi devices and data-enabled SIMs to enable safe and flexible online access