HOW YOU CAN HELP

Readers, companies and schools can transform children’s lives by joining our campaign — and it’s so easy

WHAT IS MAIL FORCE DOING?

WITH schools shut and children learning online, those without laptops are falling behind. As with last year’s successful drive to provide PPE to the NHS, Mail Force is sourcing laptops fast and passing them on to schools through the Government’s existing distribution scheme. We are working closely with the Department for Education.

ISN’T THE GOVERNMENT DOING THIS?

MINISTERS ordered 1.3million laptops, with 800,000 already delivered. But a third of families say they don’t have enough and schools could be shut until after Easter. We want to help speed things up for children missing lessons.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

WITH money donated to the charity, it costs as little as £15 to refurbish a second- hand laptop – which generous companies are already starting to donate. Mail Force will also purchase brand new laptops and tablets. This is on top of Government supply.

CAN I GIVE MY OWN LAPTOP?

SADLY not, for technical reasons.

LAPTOPS HAVE SENSITIVE DATA – IS IT SAFE?

YES, completely. The process is handled by experts at a firm of global IT specialists. Their clients include multinational banks, blue chip companies and governments who trust them to securely wipe old laptops to a ‘gold standard’. Mail Force is not directly involved in the process.

HOW WILL THEY GO TO THE RIGHT CHILDREN?

THE Department for Education prioritises those who need the laptops most, calculated by using a school’s number of children on free meals or pupil premium (funding for disadvantaged youngsters). The laptops are then sent to schools for head teachers to allocate to families.