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Poor children to be given free laptops and broadband

1:20pm Friday 5th February 2010 in News By Neil Vowles

Thousands of poor families will be given free lap-tops and broadband to help their children get online.

Children between the ages of seven and 14 who are eligible for free school meals will be able to apply for a portable computer as part of the Government’s £300 million Home Access scheme.

Almost 5,000 pupils of all ages are eligible for free school meals in Brighton and Hove alone.

The parents of eligible pupils will be able to apply for a grant to buy a laptop from an approved supplier.

Looked after children up to the age of 18 will also be included in the scheme and there will be packages available suited for children with special needs.

But politicians were last night split over whether the money involved could be better spent on other projects.

Families who think they may be eligible should ring 0333 200 1004.

What do you think? Should the money be spent on other projects? Leave your comments below.

Comments(25)

magoo says...
1:27pm Fri 5 Feb 10

What a great way to get kids looking at more ****! And i doubt many will end up on ebay at akk wil they...

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rs says...
1:33pm Fri 5 Feb 10

apparently they are giving vouchers for £600!!! a friend of mine asked me to help him choose a decent laptop for his wife just after xmas and i found a great dual core with 3gb ram etc etc for £369.00. crazy

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Jo-scuba says...
1:47pm Fri 5 Feb 10

Why can't they just use an internet cafe, or the computers at school? I work hard, and I can't afford a laptop! Why should they get one for nothing? Besides, all they're (and their parents) are going to do is either sell it, or use it for downloading illegal films/music, online gambling, and shopping. Very educational. And who's going to pay for their internet access? Most of them have probably got laptops already anyway..

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Jo-scuba says...
1:48pm Fri 5 Feb 10

..off the back of a lorry!

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Jolly Rodger says...
2:28pm Fri 5 Feb 10

Why bother working?

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mower says...
2:38pm Fri 5 Feb 10

Don't forget there is an election coming up!! Amazing where this Gouvernment keeps finding more of my money to blow....still make the most of it..the pain is coming!

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Granny says...
2:39pm Fri 5 Feb 10

Well said Jolly Roger. It does not pay to work , and scrimp and scrape to buy your children computers when you could just become a lay- about and get one for free. This does not give anyone the incentive to work and earn money. This government have their priorities all wrong and it is about time the working people of this country saw some rewards, instead of more and more of their taxes being spent on "carrots" to obtain votes.

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cheezburger says...
2:58pm Fri 5 Feb 10

The laptops will, or at least should be low spec and very cheap, you can get laptops really cheap nowadays. They dont need any fancy specs. The article doesnt say anything about the free broadband though. if they have Sky, which im sure many do, do they still offer free broadband?

As someone who grew up poor though with free school meals i think its great for the kids, and it MUST be used for educating, not for parents. But as a tax paying adult i have to wonder if this is really the best use of money?

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Old Dog says...
5:01pm Fri 5 Feb 10

Gordon's out looking for the chav vote again!

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yorkie44 says...
5:20pm Fri 5 Feb 10

Perhaps if all the children are on line then the schools could be closed and the kids can all be taught over the internet. Think of the saving in money. Is this the reason for the free computers?

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Arriseme says...
5:25pm Fri 5 Feb 10

Having skint the nation, Gordon Brown is borrowing money from China so that he can dole out free laptops to the lazy and the feckless - on top of all their other benefits. The nation is sinking in debt to maintain a welfare dependent, bone-idle underclass; no wonder so much of the world is so anxious to get here. Fortunately, the Labour government is to be obliterated in the May election, so this laptop lunacy should bite the dust. All the other welfare daftness might take a little longer, but how long have we got?

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Mrs Newcastle says...
6:49pm Fri 5 Feb 10

This is such an excellent idea, it is my understanding that providing these grants for lower income families, there will be many opportunities for parents pupils and schools to work together to raise school standards. Pupils will be able to access the school website / learning platform and their parents can have online information regarding their children's school attendance and behaviour , hopefully it will improve effective communication between home and school too!

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rayellerton says...
7:13pm Fri 5 Feb 10

Yeah great idea....make the children of this country even more lazy and obese! Why no put money into encouraging the uptake of sporting activity or outdoor pursuits...it will toughen them up and make them more able to face life rather than sitting on their *sses on facebook or itunes...

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Big Nasty says...
7:42pm Fri 5 Feb 10

Why do they have to have laptops, why not a cheap desktop/tower that can be brought for £100, I also note that these so called poor family's can always afford to smoke, drink, have sky tv and the latest plasma telly's etc, I think it is disgusting the government is even thinking about wasting my tax money on this ridiculous idea!!!!!!!.

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UglyAmerican says...
7:49pm Fri 5 Feb 10

Brilliant. A whole legion of zombie PCs for a bot net waiting to happen.

Use the money to build up the computer labs in schools & libraries. At least there the bandwidth is restricted to appropriate use (or should be) and the machines are maintained to some standard (or should be).

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TyneLiz says...
8:22pm Fri 5 Feb 10

Sounds like the Govt is trying to encourage more people to go on benefits !!!!

Parents with children who do not
qualify for free school meals do not necessarily have spare cash to splash out on laptops and broadband.
If they have more than one child between the qualifying ages they will be expected to provide a laptop for each child.

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pw24 says...
9:52pm Fri 5 Feb 10

my two kids would love a laptop but as a WORKING single parent we dont qualify for the grant .....so its not so much for the low income families but for the benefit receiving families!

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scthetruth says...
11:21pm Fri 5 Feb 10

When Brown is booted out of No 10 in May I wouldn't be surprised if Cameron and his wife finds piles of freshly printed cash stuffed in every nook and cranny. I'm sure Brown has a few large suitcases at the ready!

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hahahehe says...
9:08am Sat 6 Feb 10

pw24 wrote:
my two kids would love a laptop but as a WORKING single parent we dont qualify for the grant .....so its not so much for the low income families but for the benefit receiving families!
ahh but some single working parents will qualify for the grant, its all to do free school meals so i'd check your entitlement

single parents on certain tax credits levels are entitled to free school meals thus being entitled to the grant

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King from Hove says...
9:56am Sat 6 Feb 10

Labour electioneering con.What is the point in being a hard working,tax paying,law abiding citizen in the UK.You are better off on welfare,no mortgage,being a rehabilated criminal,be a single non working parent of many kids.Enjoy being stoned permanently and get druggie benefits.Incidently Who will pay for the broadband monthly charges? etc etc..We are really governed by sink Britain brigade.

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Patrick Mustard says...
10:29am Sat 6 Feb 10

Mrs Newcastle wrote:
This is such an excellent idea, it is my understanding that providing these grants for lower income families, there will be many opportunities for parents pupils and schools to work together to raise school standards. Pupils will be able to access the school website / learning platform and their parents can have online information regarding their children's school attendance and behaviour , hopefully it will improve effective communication between home and school too!
I am sure that is exactly what the residents of 'East Brighton' will be planning on doing with their latest freebie.

Meanwhile, back in the real world, the forgotten tax payers struggle to keep their heads above water and support their own families whilst also shelling out for the latest Labour vote-pulling initiative through their taxes.

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Mrs Newcastle says...
3:26pm Sat 6 Feb 10

back in the real world ' Patrick Mustard', if your a Parent of a severely disabled child and find you do not qualify for this grant, remember that the Family Fund helps families on low incomes who care for a severely disabled child to have choices and the opportunity to enjoy ordinary life, there are grants for things such as Laptops. The fund is a registered charity supported by e Government funds that helps 50,000 families in the uk with £30.5 million in grants a year.
contact www.familyfund.org.u
k

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LimpWristed says...
10:12am Wed 10 Feb 10

Jolly Rodger wrote:
Why bother working?
There isn't a day that goes by when I don't wonder the same thing.

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D Merrett says...
11:11am Wed 10 Feb 10

The Argus Arm-chair brigade amaze me with their one-sided look at life. Think before you print. You moan if the children vandalise, you moan if they do anti-social things, you moan if more police are needed. You give all the children living in one area a "title"....maybe this initiative answers all three problems and keeps them off the street and trying to improve their social position and job prospects. Hopefully one of the things they won't do is become hypocritical back stabbing commentators in this newspaper.

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tpebop... says...
3:18pm Thu 11 Feb 10

HA HA, who said there was no FREE meal ticket ?

All you need to do is VOTE for Brown !
ALL GONE MAD !!!

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