Hundreds more laptops and tablets given to disadvantaged children in Wiltshire
School leaders warn many younger children are still missing out though
Last updated 16th Feb 2021
Department for Education data shows 2,778 laptops and tablets had been sent by the Government to Wiltshire Council or maintained schools in the county as of February 7.
That was 506 more than the 2,272 reported on January 17, an increase of 22%.
The figures do not include devices allocated to academy trusts, as they are not maintained by the local authority.
Across England, 987,000 laptops and tablets have so far been distributed by the Government to help with remote learning during the pandemic as part of the Get Help with Technology scheme,
The distribution, which was accelerated at the start of this year, has been welcomed by the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), but officials say many primary school children are still missing out on the £400m scheme.
NAHT director of policy, James Bowen, said:
"While it is good to see more devices being delivered to pupils that need them, the Government has still failed to answer why it has excluded younger pupils from the scheme.
"We know that younger primary pupils are using technology to access remote learning too so why are the Government ignoring these children when it comes to providing them with the technology they need?”
The number of laptops and tablets allocated for schools is decided by calculating how many children are eligible for free school meals and using an estimate of devices the school and children already have.
Schools can ask for additional devices.
Children are classed as disadvantaged if they have no digital devices or are sharing a single device in their household, or they only have access to a smartphone.
As well as laptops and tablets, 140 4G wireless routers have been given to Wiltshire Council to help families with limited internet access.
This week, a DfE spokesperson said:
"We continue to provide laptops and tablets at huge speed and scale for those children who need them the most."
"This is helping ensure children can continue to receive the best possible education while at home."
SUPPORT FROM CHARITY AND COMMUNITY INTEREST COMPANY
The situation has led to many primary schools, as well as secondaries, running appeals for device donations in their local communities.
Last month The Trafalgar School in Downton issued an appeal on social media for more laptops after issuing 100 to pupils.
The High Sheriff Ashely Truluck heard about the appeal and contacted Wiltshire Digital Drive, a Community Interest Company formed last year to collect unwanted equipment and refurbish it before distributing it to families and groups in need.
Mr Truluck was familiar with the company's work as he's chairman of trustees at Wiltshire Community Foundation which gave them a grant of £5,000 from its Coronavirus Response Fund.
Wiltshire Digital Drive have now donated five laptops to Trafalgar School.
Assistant Headteacher Gilly Jackson said they're very grateful
"We have got a lot of students who are struggling to access remote learning because of not having a laptop or not having one each. We have been very lucky because we have had lots of donations of laptops or money, but we still didn't have enough."
"We have a mix of live and recorded lessons and these laptops will help the students access live lessons, which is so important. Often a family can work around recorded video lessons if their children share but they can't for live lessons if there are two at the same time. It's important for the students to have that connection with their classmates and their teacher."
PLEA FOR MORE LAPTOPS
Wiltshire Digital Drive has delivered more than 500 laptops to date but still needs donations of unwanted equipment from both individuals and businesses.
Any unwanted desktops, laptops and tablets are accepted but they do need to have a Windows 7, 8 or 10 operating system and a working keyboard and screen.
There are two donation points in Salisbury:
- Wilsons Solicitors -Mon & Weds 11am to 1pm
- Godolphin School -Tues & Thurs 10.30am to 11.30am
Director Kieran Thomas is particularly keen to hear from local businesses who can help.
"We would really love to hear from more businesses to pledge their kit when they replace any, we can provide Certificate of Data Destruction or we are more than happy for businesses to remove the hard disks and donate laptops as we will install a new disk. Businesses can email us on info@wiltshiredigitaldrive.org. "
You can find out more on their website wiltshiredigitaldrive.org.