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Free Vodafone scheme benefits Eastleigh College learners

Eastleigh College students who lack or have poor quality home wifi will now benefit from Vodafone’s extended free data scheme, enabling them to better access their studies remotely.

The Vodafone schools.connected programme was originally launched to support 250,000 school pupils, but is now also open to FE colleges. The initiative to extend the scheme aims to provide connectivity to 100,000 disadvantaged 16-18 year olds across the UK.

Eastleigh College has received access to Vodafone data which is free to learners who find it difficult to access education from home. It will support the College’s existing programme of digital support which provides laptops, Chromebooks and SIM routers, as well as IT support to learners.

Rob Brooks, Computer Services Manager at Eastleigh College, said: “The scheme is a fantastic and welcome gesture from Vodafone, and we’re delighted they’ve extended it to include FE college students too. We’ve already had interest from learners and been able to further support them with easier access to their online learning.”

Nick Jeffery, Chief Executive of Vodafone UK, said: “We were stunned with the positive response to our schools.connected programme and the immediate demand for SIMs from schools in every corner of the UK.

"We recognise we can’t solve this problem alone but we are doing what we can and I’m delighted we’ve been able to extend this offer to reach an additional 100,000 children and young people.”

Eastleigh College learners who feel their studies would benefit from one of the Vodafone SIM cards or need any other assistance to support their home learning should speak to their tutor or click here for more information.