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Essex-based County Broadband has donated £10,000 worth of computers and laptops to Digital Essex to help tackle digital exclusion across the county.
The broadband provider has partnered with Digital Essex (part of Essex County Council) to support its Laptop Recycling Scheme in which unused laptops under seven years old are digitally wiped and recycled.
The money raised is then used to buy brand new laptops for individuals and families classed as being digitally excluded.
Aldham-based County Broadband, which is rolling out gigabit-speed full fibre infrastructure in rural Essex and across the East of England, has raised an estimated £10,000 with its donation of 12 laptops and six desktop computers.
Craig Larter, Stakeholder Engagement Manager at County Broadband, said: “In our increasingly digital world, no-one should be excluded from the right to benefit from online banking or digital health services that can make a huge difference to the lives of vulnerable people.”
An estimated 1.3 million UK households do not own an Internet-enabled device, according to a recent government report on digital exclusion.
Cllr Louise McKinlay, Essex County Council Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Levelling Up and the Economy, said: “These laptops and desktop computers will be used to help the many families and older residents who are offline and rely on donations like these to interact with the online world."
Pictured: Craig Larter, Stakeholder Engagement Manager, making the donation to James Tombs, Senior Business Development Manager at Tier 1, which is facilitating the laptop recycling for Digital Essex.
