The lives of hundreds of homeless people are about to be transformed thanks to a new project providing them with refurbished laptop computers and training. The Laptops for Homeless Support Initiative is the brainchild of Socialbox.biz, a social enterprise company specialising in innovative storage and ground-breaking recycling solutions for business, in partnership with the charity Thames Reach.
Jeremy Swain Chief Executive of Thames Reach London said: “These computers will give the homeless and marginalised people who receive them the opportunity to communicate with friends and relatives, develop new interests and improve access to advice to improve their skills and employment prospects. Our Employment Academy is helping thousands of unemployed and economically disadvantaged people in the capital and the partnership with Socialbox will enable us to help even more people.”
Peter Paduh Chairman of SocialBox.biz said: “Society is becoming ever more dependent on computerised technologies, but thousands of people are still with no access to this vital resource and as a consequence living in social and digital exclusion here in London. An estimated two million working PCs are scrapped in UK every year. Our priority is to turn them into a valuable resource for our local community where you and I live. We take those computers no longer needed, arrange for them to be refurbished and give some of them to organizations that help those who need them most gain access to information technology and search for employment. We’re delighted to be working with Jeremy and Thames Reach on this exciting project which I’m sure will engage the enthusiasm of leaders and executives at companies and organizations across the region.”
Sharon Lewis spokesperson for Shell London added: “Many companies replace their older laptop computers with the latest in new technology well before their old computers have become completely useless. As part of a past Shell London community investment initiative, we worked with Peter on similar community focused projects. My personal reflection is that initiatives such as this should be encouraged as part of firms and employee Corporate Social Responsibility efforts.”
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