There is no doubt that COVID-19 has caused disruption to many sectors, with education and school closures being one of the most prevalent. Remote school learning has surfaced the issue that many families do not have sufficient IT equipment at home, leading to some children becoming academically disadvantaged.
As a company within the technology sector, we are always looking for ways to digitally enhance our community. With this in mind, we took the initiative to reach out to local schools who were in need of equipment for basic education needs.
On February 25, iCoTech donated 3 Windows laptops with 1-Year Microsoft 365 subscriptions to Bedwas High School in Caerphilly, South Wales. These laptops will be distributed to digitally vulnerable families, enabling them to continue learning remotely during the pandemic.
Bedwas High School tweeted: “Massive thanks to @icotechgroup for their very generous donation of 3 brand new Windows laptops for our pupils. These will make a difference to lives.”
Joel Markham, CEO at iCoTech Services states: “It is a pleasure to support a community close to iCoTech’s offices. Every day we take for granted the ability to access the internet, with my smart watch, mobile phone and even my car being connected to services online. When informed of how many families at this school were without equipment to support home learning, I knew we had to do something.
“iCoTech’s clients are primarily public sector organisations who are working 24/7 to ensure COVID-19 is managed appropriately, so we feel it’s our obligation to support anyone in any way we can. I am excited to develop a strong relationship with local schools and colleges across South Wales, as my dream is to build a competency centre of technology experts that can ultimately change the way organisations and communities utilise technology.”
The bid to help local schools does not stop here. Despite many schools gradually fading back to in-person learning over the next few weeks, remote learning has highlighted the lack of IT equipment that families have, particularly in a world that is continuously digitally transforming. Furthermore, the pandemic has proved to cause unpredictable changes to normal life, so there is a possibility that remote learning may resurface again in future.
iCoTech Services is looking forward to continue contributing to the community and local schools, and hopes this contribution will inspire many more companies to do the same.
