• Swindon & Wiltshire Community champions
• Tuesday June 13 2023
• Author Name: Peter Davison

Tech Hub CIC helps tackle digital poverty in West Berkshire

People in West Berkshire suffering from ‘digital poverty’ have been given a helping hand by Swindon-based IT recycling firm Green Machine.

Twenty five laptops have been delivered to the Newbury Community Resource Centre for redistribution into the West Berkshire community.

During the pandemic Green Machine launched a Tech Amnesty to get refurbished computers into the homes of children who were homeschooling but had no access to IT.

The scheme was then extended to help refugees from Afghanistan and Ukraine, and formalised as Tech Hub CIC.

In the last financial year, Green Machine Computers has donated over 600 electronic devices to people in need.

“Green Machines is on a mission to fight tech poverty. In a technological age, those without IT equipment have a significant disadvantage.

Access to current technology is no longer a privilege but a necessity,” said Simon Crisp, managing director of Green Machine.

Green Machine recycles tech – including phones, laptops, and desktop computers – from businesses regionally before wiping hard drives and refurbishing the items for sale or donation, or stripping them for parts.