Wiltshire Residents respond to call for old tech.

Two Hundred pieces of technology have been saved from landfill following a charitable awareness drive across the county.

Donate Your Digital Day on Friday, January 7^th 2022, was created by Wiltshire Digital Drive with the aim of encouraging people to donate any tech they had replaced over the festive period such as laptops, tablets and desktops.

Drop off points across the county saw a combined number of 1,000 devices donated from Wiltshire residents which included Kingfisher PLC, the home improvement company whose retail banner B&Q is based in Southampton, contacting the non-profit organisation to pledge over 800 laptops to the cause.

These devices are now set to be refurbished and handed back out to schools, organisations and charities free of charge to support pupils and service users to access the opportunities that technology affords us.

Holbrook Primary School in Trowbridge is one of the organisations supported by Wiltshire Digital Drive. Rosie Nunn, Deputy Head Teacher, said:

“It is hard to express the impact Wiltshire Digital Drive has had at Holbrook Primary School. They helped us to provide devices to our most vulnerable children at the earliest possible opportunity in the first lockdown and have continued to support us in ensuring every Holbrook pupil has access to an appropriate device at home.

During periods of remote learning, our teachers were able to provide high quality online learning for children feeling confident that every child could access it. As a result, we found we had very good engagement with remote learning from Holbrook families which has had huge, long-lasting benefits for children on their return to school.”

Tom Wooler, Head Office and Retail Support Manager at Kingfisher, said:

“At Kingfisher, we are always looking for ways that we can give back to the communities we serve. Having access to a computer opens up boundless opportunities and it is becoming more and more important for everyday life. We are thrilled to have been able to support Wiltshire Digital Drive and Naturally Social to provide laptops for those who otherwise wouldn’t have access to them while extending the life of IT hardware and reducing what may have otherwise ended up in landfill.”

Wiltshire Digital Drive ensures every piece of technology donated is tested and securely wiped. If a machine isn’t feasible to upgrade, it will remove all reusable parts and recycle the rest, so nothing goes to waste. In 2021 WDD’s campaign has meant 6.2 tons of unused technology has been saved from landfill; the equivalent of 54,956 kgs of CO2e embodied Greenhouse gas emissions.

Anyone who would like to know more about the project can visit www.wiltshiredigitaldrive.org