Research from operator found only 8pc of UK public sector workers have 4G because 42 per cent of decision makers don’t understand benefits
The UK public sector could be missing out on the opportunity to provide faster services due to slow 4G adoption rates, according to Vodafone.
Research from the operator found that only eight per cent of UK public sector workers are equipped with 4G connectivity, despite the service being available in the UK for almost three years.
EE first launched the service on October 30 2012, while Vodafone and O2 followed suit at the end of August the following year, but take up in the public sector has been slow, according to Vodafone.
The operator attributed the slow take up to a lack of knowledge of the benefits of 4G amongst decision makers (42 per cent) in the sector. 30 per cent named cost as another major concern around take up.
“As public sector organisations face continued budget cuts, delivering quality services to citizens is an increasing challenge,” said Vodafone UK head of public sector Mick Wayman.
“Armed with cost-effective mobile devices and 4G connectivity, frontline workers can access and update centralised records such as medical and criminal history while they are out in the field. This helps them to make better decisions in the moment, eliminates the need to go ‘back to base’ to complete paperwork and reduces time spent on administration.
“They can reinvest time and resource where they’re needed most, whether that’s visiting a patient in their own home, on the beat, or elsewhere in the community. In frontline services such as the police where every second counts, 4G really can make a big difference.”