The county’s longest-established independent recruitment agency, Allen Associates, has donated seven laptops to a new initiative which is spearheaded by Oxfordshire Community Foundation and run by partners including Aspire, Oxford.
Online learning platforms have become popular tools to complement in-person learning in schools. Now two disadvantaged pupils at Didcot Girls’ School can access the same learning as their peers thanks to donations of rebuilt laptops.
Some families do not qualify for benefits such as Free School Meals, but their household income is only just over the threshold, which means the cost of a laptop can be a serious burden to them. Six students from Cheney School have received extra help via Getting Oxfordshire Online.
The Getting Oxfordshire Online partnership is encouraging people to give them unwanted laptops to be refurbished and passed to disadvantaged school students, older people and job seekers across the county.
Oxford Computer Consultants (OCC) is a lively, growing software company based in the centre of Oxford. They are passionate about developing software that makes a useful contribution to society.
The team set out their aspirations to address the needs of thousands of people in Oxfordshire who are not online. Their vision is that by 2025, the majority of those who are not currently online will have the digital access they need.
Oxford City Council has provided a further 70 pre-owned laptops to help children in the city learn online, in addition to 50 donated to an Oxford school earlier in the year.
School children going back to school will need laptops to support them with their learning.
This session by the business networking group B4 was the chance to hear from schools and community outreach organisations about the continued problem of digital exclusion.
Getting Oxfordshire Online will refurbish devices donated by the public and local businesses for school children, isolated older people and others in need.