2. Overview

This is the first annual publication of quarterly estimates of internet use by adults aged 16 years and over in the UK. This release has replaced the Internet Access Quarterly Update that was last published on 14 May 2014. This was discontinued following our consultation on statistical products that took place in 2013. Our response to the consultation on statistical products explained that in future, the estimates of internet users would be published on an annual basis.

Following the outcome of our consultation on statistical products, we conducted a further consultation on the future of statistics to measure the digital economy. This included questions on the format of this new annual internet users release. The majority of respondents indicated that their preference was to include all quarterly periods rather than just 1 quarter from each year. Therefore, this annual release contains all quarterly periods from quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2014 to quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2015.

Estimates in this release show how internet use is correlated to various socio-demographic characteristics, such as age, sex, disability and geographical location. As a result of user needs, this release has also introduced a new breakdown of internet users, into adults who have used the internet within the last 3 months (recent users) and adults who last used the internet more than 3 months ago (lapsed users). These replace the simpler definition of internet users as “adults who have ever used the internet” that was used in the discontinued internet access quarterly update.

The estimates in this release are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) and are not seasonally adjusted. The detailed regional estimates contained in Tables 5A and 5B are included to meet user interest. These estimates are based on smaller sample sizes than the higher level regional estimates in Tables 4A and 4B and are therefore subject to a greater degree of sampling variability, so should be treated with caution. In addition, in Tables 5A and 5B the categories of "last used the internet more than 3 months ago" and "never used" have been combined due to the small sample sizes at this level of geography.

On 7 August 2014, we published the annual Internet Access - Households and Individuals 2014 statistical bulletin. This provides more information on the range of activities carried out on the internet. However, while the estimates in the Households and Individuals annual bulletin are more detailed, they are derived from the Opinions and Lifestyle Survey, which has a much smaller sample size than the LFS. Therefore, any comparisons made between estimates in this release and the existing annual Internet Access Households and Individuals publication should be undertaken with caution.