Nearly 1.8 million children in the UK don’t have access to a laptop or desktop, with thousands in Lincolnshire still needing devices to help them learn.
Recently, the BBC launched an appeal called ‘Make a Difference: Give a Laptop’ to encourage the public to donate their old laptops to disadvantaged school children. Since the launch of the appeal over 85,000 laptops have been offered to families and schools to help with learning.
In Lincolnshire, Sivill Service and Ark ICT Solutions Ltd. joined the campaign earlier this year to help get children online.
Phil Callow, owner of Ark ICT Solutions Ltd. learnt about the appeal from a friend and decided to help out.
“As a company, we already look after 200 schools in the East Midlands area and when speaking to my friend she told me that the amount of laptops her school had been given was lower than their need. I thought it would be a good idea and after some time we are now listed on the BBC website as one of the companies to contact.”
Ark ICT Solutions have given out over 100 laptops to local schools and Sivill Service is nearly at 350.
But with schools preparing to return on Monday, March 8 and continue their term face-to-face teaching, why is there still a demand for laptops?
Kelly Teasdale, manager at Sivill Service, said: “Some of the schools are going to be using laptops within the classrooms to reduce contact, so they will have a heavy reliance on using the equipment there.
“There are a lot of kids that don’t have the equipment at home or are trying to share one laptop between multiple children, which is where there is a problem with learning.
“They will still need the laptops for homework or if there is another lockdown.”
Both businesses combined have given laptops to over forty schools in Lincolnshire.
You can donate a laptop by contacting Sivill Service or Ark ICT Solutions Ltd. and someone will be sent out to collect it from you.
Click here to see how the campaign works.
