Awareness campaign aims to reduce amount of technology going to landfill

By Jessica Durston - 7 December 2021

Community
  • Kieran Thomas and Natalie Sherman, co-directors of Wiltshire Digital Drive

    Kieran Thomas and Natalie Sherman, co-directors of Wiltshire Digital Drive

'Donate Your Digital Day' encourages members of the public to donate old laptops, tablets, desktops and other items of technology to avoid them going to landfill.

Taking place just after Christmas on Friday, January 7, Donate Your Digital Day has been created by Wiltshire Digital Drive (WDD) to encourage people to donate any tech they had replaced over the festive period.

Donated devices will then be refurbished and handed back out to schools, organisations and charities free of charge, to help the people they support.

Natalie Sherman, co-director at Wiltshire Digital Drive, said: “We’re so excited to launch our own awareness day. With many people receiving new laptops and tablets for Christmas, or having treated themselves in the Black Friday or Boxing Day sales, now is the perfect time to let us have your old tech. By giving it to us, not only will the device help another member of our community, but it will also stop it going to landfill.

“The figures speak for themselves. In just one year we’ve given more than 1,000 school children, families and organisations a laptop or computer. Imagine how many more we could help after this new plea. And it’s not just members of the public that can get involved; we’re also asking businesses who are looking at upgrading their IT to consider donating their old tech to us.”

Local businesses and schools have opened up their doors to become drop off points for the donated items. They can be taken to:

 

  • Household Waste & Recycling Centre, Swindon
  • Hearing & Mobility Store, Marlborough/ Swindon/ Wroughton
  • Islington Motors, Trowbridge
  • Priority IT, Westbury
  • Islington Vauxhall, Chippenham
  • Naturally Social, Corsham
  • Aster Housing, Devizes
  • Castle Sundborn, Malmesbury
  • Godolphin School, Salisbury
  • Turner & Partners, Bath

 

Anyone wishing to help who does not have a device to give. Those without devices can make a donation to the non-profit’s Go Fund Me page. A £30 donation will cover all the parts needed to refurbish one laptop. The Go Fund Me page can be found at www.gofundme.com/f/the-wiltshire-digital-drive.

More information about Wiltshire Digital drive can be found at (including how to apply for DYDD and how to donate) www.wiltshiredigitaldrive.org.

WDD says it ensures every piece of technology donated is tested and securely wiped. If a machine is not feasible to upgrade, WDD says it will remove all reusable parts and recycle the rest, so nothing goes to waste.

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