Thousands of laptops given to children in the region

A MAJOR scheme to support thousands of disadvantaged young people has been hailed for the spirit in which it was delivered, even though authorities have revealed delays in accessing equipment.

More than 13,000 laptops have been given to the most vulnerable young people in maintained schools in 11 authorities in Yorkshire as well as disadvantaged students set to sit their GCSEs next year, analysis reveals.

Some councils have revealed early battles over shortfalls in supplies, but appeals and requests for additional devices have now largely been met.

While the scheme has not been “perfect”, one cabinet member conceded, the efforts to tackle emerging inequalities over digital access have been praised.

“It has highlighted the disadvantages to some extent,” said Coun Viv Kendrick, of Kirklees Council, which secured 1,300 laptops and 200 routers through the Government scheme.

“Some children have actually progressed more in this situation, but for others it does really depend on how much they have taken part in online education.

“A lot of that is to be found out in the future. I am grateful to all the people who made it happen so well. It has worked well – it was the right thing to do. I’m sure we could have done it better, nothing is perfection. But the effort has been put in quickly in recognition of how important this is.”

As many schools turned to remote learning in March, the Government had announced it was to offer free laptops or digital devices to “take the pressure off” home learning.

Despite pledges, there were still reports even as schools prepared to close for summer last month that the promised devices were yet to be delivered.

Authorities in Leeds, Hull, and East Riding, when asked by The Yorkshire Post, confirmed the number of devices delivered had initially fallen short of what they had requested.

These numbers have since been matched, the authorities confirmed, when further applications and appeals were made to the Department for Education.

In Bradford, 2,154 laptops were provided, while the council has pledged an additional £1.2m for vulnerable children aged from pre-school to care leavers to access devices and connections.