Amazon donates 10,000 Fire tablets to help kids struggling to learn from home

Amazon is donating 10,000 Fire tablets to schools across the UK to help children learn from home.

Kids across the UK are being taught remotely due to schools being closed until at least March 8th with only vulnerable kids and the children of key workers allowed to attend physical classes in school.

For many families, learning from home has been a struggle if the children don’t have access to a laptop or internet.

To help those families, Amazon confirmed it will be setting aside 10,000 Fire Tablets for schools that need them.

Working with education charity Teach First the devices will be handed out to schools rather than directly to families, then each school can decide which pupils need the devices. 

It comes after Teach First found that more than one third of parents in England have at least one child who doesn’t have exclusive access to a computer. 

John Boumphrey, UK country manager for Amazon, said: “It is critical children across the UK have access to devices so they can continue to learn remotely, but also to support STEM skills and education for the future.

“We’re proud to work with Teach First in supporting the immediate needs of children in underserved communities while also helping to inspire and unlock the potential of the next generation of builders, inventors and innovators.”

The schools will be contacted by the charity so they can order the devices and they will get to keep the tablets once they have received them.

Kathryn Hobbs, headteacher of David Nieper Academy, a Teach First partner school in Derbyshire, said: “When it comes to schoolwork, a smartphone just isn’t sufficient – but the hard truth is that some families simply can’t afford IT equipment.

“To support our pupils through this pandemic, we need more access to devices… so that nothing holds our pupils back from their fundamental right to learn.”

You can see a full guide on how to get a free laptop for your child plus other support that is available here.