Digital Places
Digital Places
Reliable mobile connectivity is essential for modern life. It supports businesses, enables access to public services, helps people stay connected, and underpins economic growth. Yet many communities across Oxfordshire and the UK continue to experience poor mobile coverage, limited network capacity, or unreliable service.
To help address these challenges, Oxfordshire County Council’s Digital Infrastructure Programme (DIP) commissioned Digital Places – an innovative programme designed to help local authorities better understand mobile connectivity issues and identify practical solutions. Oxfordshire is both the commissioner and a founding member of the programme.
Unlike traditional approaches that simply identify coverage gaps, Digital Places combines data analysis, local intelligence and industry expertise to understand why connectivity problems exist and what interventions are most likely to improve services.
What is Digital Places?
Digital Places is a collaborative membership programme that helps local authorities to tackle mobile connectivity challenges. The programme helps members identify mobile coverage and capacity issues, develop evidence-based action plans, and deliver targeted interventions that improve connectivity for communities and businesses.
The programme was established to help local authorities overcome three common barriers when seeking to improve mobile connectivity:
Targeting – understanding where connectivity problems exist and which areas should be prioritised.
Funding – developing viable business cases and attracting investment. However, it is not always necessary for additional funding to be secured in order to solve an issue.
Delivery – identifying and implementing the right solutions to improve connectivity.
By combining technical data, local insight and industry expertise, Digital Places provides a structured pathway from identifying a problem to delivering measurable improvements in mobile connectivity.
Find out more
The Digital Infrastructure Programme is proud to have commissioned Digital Places and to be using the programme to support Oxfordshire’s efforts to improve mobile connectivity and better understand local infrastructure needs. We look forward to sharing how Digital Places positively impacts Oxfordshire in the future.
To learn more about the programme or for your council to become a member, visit the Digital Places website.
Oxfordshire’s role in Digital Places
The Digital Places programme was commissioned by Oxfordshire County Council’s Digital Infrastructure Programme to help local authorities take a more informed, collaborative approach to improving mobile connectivity. Oxfordshire was the first local authority to invest in and join the programme, while also making it available for other councils to participate.
Our involvement in Digital Places spans several roles.
Programme commissioner
The Digital Infrastructure Programme recognised that existing approaches and publicly available mobile coverage data did not always provide the level of insight needed to understand local connectivity challenges or identify the most appropriate solutions. The team reviewed alternative approaches, explored options with industry experts and worked to develop the business case for Digital Places.
By commissioning the programme, Oxfordshire helped establish a shared model that enables councils to benefit from common tools, expertise, and processes.
Programme member
Oxfordshire is also a programme member and uses Digital Places to better understand mobile connectivity challenges across the county. Working with the Digital Places team, we review areas experiencing poor mobile coverage or network capacity issues, explore the underlying causes and assess potential interventions that could improve connectivity.
The programme supports a data-driven approach to identifying areas of need, understanding whether issues relate to coverage, capacity or specific network operators, and considering the most suitable solutions for each location.
Governance and sector collaboration
Members of the Digital Infrastructure Programme team sit on the programme board and governance groups alongside other participating organisations. Through this role, they help shape the programme’s strategic direction, share learning and support collaboration across councils.
The team also works with local authorities, mobile network operators and other stakeholders to promote collaboration and help maximise the impact of connectivity improvements.
How Digital Places works
Digital Places uses a wide range of data sources and local knowledge to build a detailed picture of mobile connectivity across an area. This information is analysed using the Digital Places Model, which helps identify service gaps and prioritise areas where intervention could have the greatest impact.
The programme follows three key stages:
Assessment
Mobile connectivity issues are mapped and analysed alongside local priorities such as population, transport networks, housing growth and economic activity. This creates an evidence-based list of priority areas for intervention.
Planning
The programme works with local authorities and mobile network operators to validate priorities and develop action plans. These plans identify potential technical solutions, delivery routes and funding opportunities.
Delivery and outcomes
Solutions can then be procured and delivered, supported by technical expertise and programme oversight to help ensure projects achieve measurable improvements in mobile connectivity for communities and businesses.
A data-driven approach to better connectivity
A key benefit of Digital Places is its ability to move beyond identifying problems and towards understanding solutions.
The programme helps Oxfordshire:
- Identify areas with poor mobile coverage or network congestion.
- Understand whether issues affect one network operator or multiple operators.
- Investigate the likely causes of connectivity problems.
- Assess potential interventions, such as new mobile infrastructure or small-cell deployments.
- Support future investment and funding decisions.
- Work more effectively with mobile network operators to encourage targeted improvements.
This evidence-led approach helps ensure that resources are directed where they can deliver the greatest benefit for residents, businesses and public services.
Working collaboratively
Mobile connectivity challenges are not unique to Oxfordshire. Digital Places was designed as a collaborative programme that enables local authorities to share costs, expertise, tools and best practice while developing a stronger collective voice when engaging with industry.
The programme supports the development of shared methodologies, templates and approaches that help participating organisations improve connectivity more efficiently and consistently. As membership grows, the collective knowledge and resources available through the programme continue to expand.