A team of North East tech specialists are on a mission to help charitable and socially-focused organisations across the region embrace digital technology.
BornGood CIC, a community interest company, has been set up by Simon Howatson to provide refurbished IT hardware and support to the region’s voluntary, charity and social enterprise (VCSE) sector.
The not-for-profit organisation aims to make it more cost effective for organisations to purchase hardware; easier to apply for funding and reduce their carbon footprint and ultimately, help tackle digital poverty.
Simon Burdus, social impact and growth manager at BornGood CIC, said: “We have three core aims which underpin everything we do.
“Firstly, we are helping to promote digital inclusion by providing affordable and accessible devices to communities, schools, charities and individuals who are digitally excluded.
“Secondly, we are helping organisations significantly reduce their costs and carbon footprint by purchasing secure, high-quality, refurbished hardware.
“By purchasing a refurbished business laptop for example, you typically save 318 kilos of carbon, 190,000 litres of water and 1.2 tonnes of earth being mined, as well as up to 45% of the cost of buying a new product from a retailer. It literally prevents your IT equipment from costing the earth.
“Finally, we are working with VCSE organisations to help them write funding bids which can help support the purchase of new equipment, particularly those who perhaps don’t have bid writers in-house.
“We believe technology should be accessible to all and this is why we set up BornGood, to make technology smarter, fairer, and more sustainable for businesses, communities, and the planet.”
While the CIC is new, the work isn’t. As a spin-out of BornGood, an award-winning business specialising in refurbishing and supplying IT and telecoms equipment which was behind the Donate Digital and Laptops for Kids campaigns, the CIC has been set up to establish a team that can focus solely on community benefit.
Simon Howatson, founder of BornGood, said: “BornGood works with some of Europe’s largest companies to refurbish and re-distribute Grade-A kit but we have always done a lot of work in the community, which is why we decided to set up the CIC.
“We know the UK – and particularly the North East – is in the midst of a crippling digital poverty crisis, with millions of people still lacking the confidence, access or finance to embrace digital technology, and we are on a mission to change that.
“We have already placed thousands of refurbished laptops into the hands of families, schools, and community organisations and going forward, we want to further build on this by providing thousands more refurbished devices to charities, schools, and families across the UK.”
BornGood was supported in its journey to set up a CIC by the social enterprise team at the North East BIC, which provided support and helped the company engage with potential VCSE organisations through its many networking events.
“I had a previous relationship with the BIC through my work at previous employers, so I knew they would be the perfect people to speak to,” said Simon Burdus.
“They have been a huge help in helping us get set up and we’ve been going to their Connecting for Good events which have been a fantastic way for us to further build our network.
“It has really been a continuation of the brilliant relationship we’ve always had with the BIC and we are delighted to be working with them again to help grow BornGood CIC.”
Anthony McDermott, business adviser at the BIC, said: “BornGood CIC has a clear mission to tackle both digital exclusion and e-waste, building on the team’s proven track record through previous initiatives.
“I know of Simon Howatson’s strong reputation in this space but most notably – I know of his passion to help others and this, alongside the recent addition of Simon Burdus, whose wealth of experience in the VCSE sector adds further strength, tells me that the CIC is well-placed to grow its impact regionally and nationally.”