Understanding digital skills, confidence, and online safety across the region
Census is a youth-led research initiative by The Refract Foundation to help schools and workplaces better understand how students and staff use technology in their everyday lives.
Census gathers anonymous data on:
- Digital skills and confidence
- Online safety awareness
- Access to devices and the internet
- The emerging trend of AI
The objective is to identify patterns in digital literacy and highlight where additional investment may be needed within individual institutions and across the region.
How we measure digital literacy
The Digital Literacy Score
Every survey response helps to produce an average Digital Literacy Score (DLS) — a single number from 0 to 100. The DLS is the average of four equally weighted index scores — Access, Confidence, Safety and Development — each capturing a different dimension of digital life.
Digital Access
Access to devices, connectivity and the internet.
Digital Confidence
Comfort and self-efficacy using digital tools.
Digital Safety
Awareness of online risks and safe behaviour.
Digital Development
Skills, learning and ongoing digital growth.
Inside the survey
The survey takes around 5–7 minutes to complete, with no right or wrong answers. Demographics questions are optional — students can answer “Prefer not to say”. Sections 2–5 feed directly into the four Digital Literacy indices.
About You
A few short demographic questions, so every background is equally represented.
- What school year group are you in?
- What is your gender identity?
- What is your ethnicity?
- Do you receive free school meals or pupil premium?
Digital Access
Devices and connectivity outside of school.
Feeds the Digital Access Index
- Which devices can you regularly use outside of school?
- Do you have internet access outside of school?
- Where do you have reliable internet access?
Digital Confidence
Self-rated confidence from 1–5 stars across everyday digital scenarios.
Feeds the Digital Confidence Index
- How confident are you using a computer for everyday tasks?
- How confident are you spotting fake websites, scams, or phishing messages?
- How confident are you using AI tools safely and checking if their answers are accurate?
Digital Safety
Yes / No / Unsure statements about recognising and dealing with online risks.
Feeds the Digital Safety Index
- I can identify a scam email or message.
- I know how to stay safe online and deal with security problems.
- I feel safe when using the internet.
Digital Development
Where students learn digital skills, and what would help them develop further.
Feeds the Digital Development Index
- Where do you usually learn digital skills?
- What would help you most to improve your digital skills?
- Have you been taught about staying safe online?
Artificial Intelligence
How students use AI tools, and whether they feel AI helps or harms their learning.
- Do you use AI tools?
- Have you been taught how to use AI safely, effectively and responsibly?
- Overall, do AI tools help or harm your learning?
Open Feedback
Optional free-text questions for students to share challenges and ideas.
- What challenges do you face when using technology or the internet?
- How could schools or organisations support you to improve your digital skills or access to technology?
What we found
The first pilot ran with 261 students across Years 7–9 at Ormiston Sandwell Community Academy. Headline findings:
90%
of students use AI tools — regularly or sometimes.
63%
have been taught to use AI safely, effectively and responsibly.
75%
feel safe when using the internet.
36%
have clicked on something online that later felt unsafe or suspicious.
96%
have a smartphone outside school.
76%
of students learn digital skills at school.
Confidence varies by task — from 4.71 / 5 for using a smartphone to 3.28 / 5 for sending emails and attachments. Device access is uneven too: just two-thirds of students have a desktop computer outside school, and one in six have no laptop at all. The full OSCA Census report covers access, confidence, online safety and AI in detail.
Why this matters
Digital skills are now vital for learning, communication and work, however levels of confidence and access vary across the region.
Census turns anonymous, aggregated responses into the evidence schools need to plan their digital strategy.
All responses are anonymous and we report in an aggregated form.
How does Census work?
School registration
Schools express interest in participation and nominate a staff contact. If the school runs a student digital leadership programme, a student representative can be nominated too. The school decides where the survey is targeted — such as running staff and student surveys, student-only surveys, or focusing on particular year groups.
Survey distribution
Refract creates a secure survey link for students to complete during tutor time, IT lessons, or in their own time at home. If the staff survey is opted into, staff access a specific form they can complete in their own time.
Data collection
Responses are analysed to identify trends and key findings, displayed in a data-rich dashboard.
Reporting
Participating schools receive a summary report containing key statistics, trends and observations, suggested focus areas, and visual charts — plus a dashboard to view raw and filtered data.
Renew
Following a successful Census, schools are invited to renew, distributing the survey every one to two academic years. This captures data on new intake and lets digital strategy improvements be measured.
What schools receive
Every participating school gets a summary report and access to a data-rich dashboard containing:
- Key statistics — a clear picture of digital access, confidence, safety and development across the school
- Trends and observations — patterns identified from the responses
- Suggested focus areas — where additional investment or support may be needed
- Visual charts — accessible overviews for staff, governors and leadership teams
- A data dashboard — raw and filtered data for deeper exploration
The platform is branded to each school, so students and staff take part in a familiar, trusted environment.
Getting involved
We can’t wait to work with schools, businesses and local authorities in the West Midlands to conduct Census!
As of now, we’re particularly interested in working with secondary schools within the region to help us design our future programmes.
Please feel free to get in touch with us for further details: oliver@refractfoundation.org
Privacy
Protecting participants’ privacy is a core part of how Census is designed.
Census is designed to minimise the collection of personal information. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, it does not collect names, email addresses, student identifiers or other directly identifying information. Please do not include personal information in any free-text responses unless specifically requested.
Most findings are analysed and reported in aggregated or anonymised form to help identify trends and inform educational improvement, without identifying individual participants.
For full details about how we collect, use and protect information, please read our Privacy Policy.
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