Gosport mum launches lockdown laptop campaign to help children bridge the digital divide

After schools were this week closed to all but key worker and vulnerable children, concerns have once again been raised about the digital divide with recently published figures from Ofcom estimating that up to 1.78 million children in the UK (9 per cent) do not have home access to a laptop, desktop or tablet.

It was after learning of the plight of some of her own children’s friends at St John’s Primary School that sales manager Sarah McBride, 43, decided to launch a campaign on Facebook to help bridge the digital divide.

Sarah said: ‘While we have digital devices for my children this is not the case for all families. The school has done its best but it did not have enough laptops for all the children who may need them.

‘There’s a massive divide in children being able to access that visual contact with their teacher which a laptop or tablet can provide. It’s not just a problem for St John’s. I’ve contacted other local primary schools and we need about 180 digital devices.’

After launching the campaign on Wednesday (January 6), Sarah has already received donations of 22 laptops, 12 printers and six tablets.

She commented: ‘I didn’t expect such a response and it has been amazing to see people’s generosity. A lot of devices were no longer being used or had been updated so people wanted to put them to good use. They were either dropped them off at my house or I have gone and collected them.’

With large numbers of children currently attending school due to lack of digital access at home there have been concerns raised about the potential impact this could have on the effectiveness of the lockdown.

Sarah added: ‘I think if children can stay off school at the moment then they should do and hopefully the laptops will help with this.’

Primary schools in the Gosport and Fareham Multi-Academy Trust (GFM), including Rowner and Gomer Junior Schools, are just some of those hoping to benefit from Sarah’s efforts.

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Assistant headteacher in the GFM, Luke Mulhall, commented: ‘We are aware that technology access, often due to family financial matters, is a problem for much of Gosport. We are challenged to enable our 4000 plus learners to all have one-to-one access.

‘A number of learners live in households with multiple occupants requiring much tech. Furthermore, a live teaching model demands good internet connection. Some children are trying to access their learning on phones or having to share devices which is problematic.

‘We are trying to address these problems for our families. We are really very grateful to members of the community, such as Sarah, for supporting our pupils. Each and every device makes a difference to the learning a child can access’.

Anyone who would like to support Sarah’s campaign should call her on 07824 471827.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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