Digital divide: Gloucestershire woman given laptop amid fears of loneliness

BBC News

4 days ago

A woman who fears "being left behind and lonely" and a home schooling mum are just two beneficiaries of a charity working to tackle the digital divide.Alyson Bowden, from Sedbury, Gloucestershire, has a lung disease that affects her breathing and has previously struggled with booking medical appointments online.She said receiving a laptop from ITSA Digital Trust, based in Cheltenham, will help her to stay more independent as well as keeping in touch with her friends.ITSA has now launched an appeal for 10,000 computers to give out by the end of the year, with chief executive Geoffrey Newsome, adding that the charity is "trying to bridge the gap" for those without IT equipment and skills.
Ms Bowden, who has stage four chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, said she has previously been "a bit technophobic" but is now excited to use her new laptop."I'm willing to give it a go," she said. "One, to be in touch with my family and friends, and two, to be more independent in shopping [online] instead of having to ask somebody to get it for me."Some time in the future, I'm not going to have enough energy to go out, so I don't want to be left behind and lonely. I need to have friends, everybody does."
ITSA has been running for 20 years and has helped more than six million people in Africa get educated in IT.It receives donations of unwanted IT equipment from businesses and organisations, including schools and councils, before refurbishing it at its base in Cheltenham so it is ready for donation.
Mum Honey educates her two sons, aged 13 and nine, at home in Drybrook, but said that after their laptop broke about six months ago, the family were "not in a position" to buy another one.While Lucas and Ted can do some learning through books, other things are exclusively online, she said."I can borrow a laptop from work, but it's really difficult when there's two or three of us trying to get stuff done and we're squabbling over a laptop," Honey said.ITSA have now provided the family with a laptop."It's amazing. It will make a massive difference to us."
Mr Newsome said the charity is now aiming to reach its new target to hand out 10,000 computers to people in the UK as well as abroad."Digital technology is improving lives for some, but sadly still leaving far too many behind," he said."In the UK, digital deprivation continues to divide society and exclude people who do not have technology or cannot use it effectively."Our aim is to give everyone the opportunities we have to benefit from the wonders of IT."