BEST – Be A Better You is the latest Swindon charity to benefit from a local scheme run by MP for South Swindon, Sir Robert Buckland.
Sir Robert originally began the ‘Laptops for Local Schools Campaign’ to run alongside the Government’s ‘Get Help With Technology Scheme’ back in January 2021.
Local businesses, SP Computers, and Excalibur Communications joined forces with Sir Robert and have taken in donated devices to be refurbished and put back into use.
To date, around 60 laptops have been donated to school children across Swindon through the scheme.
In May 2021, Robert decided to extend the successful green scheme so that local charities could also benefit from donated laptops.
Following this, many local charities have benefitted from donated devices including Voluntary Action Swindon, Threshold Housing, Swindon Neuro Wellbeing Centre, and Wiltshire Wildlife Trust.
BEST has now received four laptops, which were donated to the scheme by Swindon business Catalent and refurbished by the dedicated team at Excalibur.
The laptops will be put to use immediately here in Swindon by young people supported by the charity with different social, emotional, and mental health barriers.
Craig Hiscock from BEST commented:
“BEST are extremely grateful for the four laptops that were kindly donated to us.
“We are a small charity, and the laptops will be invaluable to us. They will be put to use to help young people with their studies”.
Peter Allen, General Manager of Catelent’s facility in Swindon said:
“Catalent is delighted to have been able to contribute to the scheme and help develop the potential of the next generation of innovators and scientists.”
Speaking about the successful campaign, South Swindon MP Sir Robert Buckland said:
“I am extremely grateful to Catalent, as well as the many local residents who have donated laptops to the scheme, not to mention the brilliant teams at Excalibur and SP Computers who have stepped up at such a difficult time and repaired hundreds of devices.
“I am calling for more local businesses and residents who have unwanted or unused devices to get in touch so that these can also be put to good use.
“I am also calling for local charities to get in touch if they could benefit from a refurbished device.”
For more information about this scheme, please contact Robert by emailing [email protected] or phone 01793 533393
For more information about BEST’s work here in Swindon, please visit https://www.bestrust.co.uk/
