Sheffield law firm donates £40,000 to Laptops for Kids campaign

Irwin Mitchell has raised the funds by recycling old laptops and aged server equipment via specialists at N2S, a professional services specialising in optimising supply chain economics.

The donation, which is the equivalent of 170 laptops, will be used to purchase computers and data dongles for schools and young people in need.

David Richards, co-founder of Laptops for Kids and CEO of WANdisco, said: “We are thrilled with this show of support from Irwin Mitchell – it demonstrates how businesses can be a powerful force for good in our communities and we encourage more companies to come forward and support the Laptops for Kids campaign.

“Covid outbreaks in schools have reached the highest level since December, further disrupting education for young people and especially those who cannot get online at home because of poverty.”

Laptops for Kids - launched in September 2020 by The Star, WANdisco and Learn Sheffield - was set up to tackle the digital divide across Sheffield, and it has now expanded to other cities and towns.

A survey recently revealed that four in ten schools are still not able to meet the needs of their communities.

As well as supporting pupils across Sheffield, Irwin Mitchell has a commitment to be more inclusive and sustainable, as part of its Responsible Business strategy.

Garry Dowdle, chief information officer at Irwin Mitchell and chair of its Responsible Business committee, said: “It’s vital that supplying young people with essential technology does not come to an end when lockdown does.

“While we continue to support a range of charities in our communities, tackling digital exclusion is key to improving the long term life chances for children and equipping them for the world of work.”

Head of IT Services, Fiona Benoist, added: “Technology is allowing Irwin Mitchell staff to be flexible by choice in how we live and work post lockdown and we’re proud to support Laptops for Kids in giving young people in the region the same tools to be their best selves and we encourage other local firms to support the campaign.

“In seizing the initiative to deliver responsible business, sustainability and recycling in practice, we are changing the way we work and making changes to schoolwork for children. There is no need to return to the status-quo of the past and we’re proud to be helping to take young people on this journey with us and look forward to expanding the programme to our network of offices across the country in the months ahead.”

Irwin Mitchell is planning to remove and recycle further equipment as the office reopens and the pandemic eases.

The firm is also encouraging colleagues to recycle their own, no longer used, IT equipment at home.

All money raised will support the law firm’s digital literacy campaign where it hopes to support similar initiatives to Laptop for Kids in other parts of the UK.

For more information or to make a donation, visit here.