SHARES Lancashire have recently launched their not-for-profit Help to Learn education program. Supported by Virtue Technologies, SHARES Lancashire, want to help more pupils access digital learning resources. They are asking local businesses to enable them to give laptops to children in need in West Lancashire. SHARES are requesting donations of old and unused laptops, tablets, or desktops that they can re-purpose to support students’ digital learning.
“Here at SHARES, we work with our schools for the betterment of our students and their families. Many of our schools are based in areas of West Lancashire that suffer from some of the highest levels of deprivation in the County.” says Kevin Davidson, Chief Executive at SHARES Lancashire Ltd. “Help to Learn is a way to combat that deprivation and ensure our pupils have equal access to digital resources and have the best possible opportunities to participate in remote learning.”
“When SHARES approached us about Help to Learn, we were keen to get involved. We’ve worked with several of their schools for years and anything we can do to support them through these tricky times is the right thing.” says Bruce Parker, Primary School Account
Manager at Virtue Technologies Ltd. “The program will be not for profit, because our focus is the pupils and their families, we’re working with SHARES to make it self-sustaining in the hopes that we can run it and help as many people as possible through to the Summer.”
Schools are currently teaching in a hybrid fashion. While they remain open to keyworker children, the National Curriculum is being taught to the rest of their pupils through web-based resources to children at home. This means students who live in a house with no device or internet; or a house with one laptop being shared between several people, are being seriously affected, and they are getting left behind. SHARES know that businesses in West Lancashire can help. Their old IT hardware can go to these families.
They are asking for any laptop or tablet with its charger/power cable or a desktop PC if it is in good working order. SHARES and Virtue want to get devices to students as quickly as possible, so we do need kit that is still working fine. SHARES Lancashire will collect devices (in West Lancashire or nearby), and Virtue will then data wipe and install new software on those devices so SHARES Lancashire can then distribute those devices to students who need them. SHARES Lancashire and Virtue Technologies will be running the program until Summer 2021.
Send SHARES your old devices. It does not matter how old they are, as long as they are in working order. Virtue Technologies will data wipe your devices, install a new operating system and SHARES Lancashire will deliver the device to a child who cannot currently get online for virtual lessons.
To donate your devices email info@shareslancashire.co.uk or call 01695 729 897 so we can arrange collection.
