Dixons Carphone raises GBP 100000 for Age UK's Tech Connected programme
Dixons Carphone extended Pennies, its digital micro-donation charity partner, across its Currys PC World retail estate in 2020
£100,000 raised for Age UK through over 400,000 microdonations
Dixons Carphone is aiming to raise £1million for charity partner Age UK
The money will help fund Age UK’s Tech Connected programme which will provide devices for older people and support to help them build their digital skills
Dixons Carphone, the business behind Currys PC World and Carphone Warehouse, has raised £100,000* for Age UK’s Tech Connected programme, which aims to support older people who want to build and develop their technology skills. The money raised will go directly towards providing older people with access to devices, helping them to achieve their digital goals.
The retailer is the first tech business to partner with Pennies, the leading fintech charity promoting micro-donations, giving customers the option to add a donation to their in-store card purchases. Thanks to the generosity of its loyal shoppers Dixons Carphone has been able to raise a massive £150,000 from switch-on to Pennies in 2016 to June 2021 for a variety of supported charities, including £100,000 for Age UK, despite stores being closed for some of this time due to Covid lockdown restrictions.
Since the outbreak of the pandemic, day-to-day life has changed dramatically, with many shopping and public services moving online to help keep everyone safe. Yet nearly two million over-75s in England are still digitally excluded[i] therefore unable to access many vital services.
Dixons Carphone is aiming to raise £1,000,000 for Age UK to help change this. The funds raised by Dixons Carphone will help Age UK’s Tech Connected programme support vulnerable older people who want to get online by providing them with the tech and skills needed to achieve their goals and stay connected to loved ones, making a huge difference to the lives of older people across the UK.
Alongside raising money in-store through Pennies, Dixons Carphone staff are also organising a range of fundraising activities to help raise vital funds for Age UK. Over 80 employees took part in the famous ‘Dixons Carphone Race to the Stones’, a gruelling 100km endurance event which took place on 10th-11th July 2021.
“Enabling Pennies instore to raise vital funds for our charity partner Age UK is all part of our longer-term commitment to help end digital poverty in the UK and we would encourage all of our customers to opt in,” explains Moira Thomas, Dixons Carphone Director of Group Sustainability and ESG.
“As the UK’s number one electrical retailer, we believe it is our responsibility to ensure that all generations are furnished with the equipment needed to stay connected with friends and loved ones and are given the support to understand and get the most out of the latest tech.”
The pledge underscores Dixons Carphone’s commitment to its vision ‘We Help Everyone Enjoy Amazing Technology’ and promises a sustainable approach that delivers the excitement and inclusivity of technology to everyone.
Laurie Boult, Fundraising Director at Age UK, said: “We are so grateful to Dixons Carphone for their support and for helping to fund Age UK’s Tech Connected programme. It’s fantastic that they’ve been able to raise so much money through in-store donations despite the challenging circumstances retailers have been facing - we’re really thankful to them and their customers.
“At Age UK we believe no older person should have to struggle alone. We are here to provide information, support and friendship to those in need. As the world we live in becomes increasingly digital there are millions of older people who aren’t online and are at risk of being left behind. The Age UK Tech Connected programme will make a massive difference to those that want to build their digital skills, and we couldn’t do this without support from organisations such as Dixons Carphone.”
Alison Hutchinson CBE, CEO of Pennies said, “Pennies is proud to have partnered with the Dixons Carphone group since 2016, and we are of course thrilled that we’ve now extended the option to add a few digital pennies to a purchase to Currys PC World customers. The growth of the partnership will mean thousands more vulnerable older people can get the support they need to get digitally connected, which is especially important right now.”
*10% of donations go to Pennies
[i] Age UK analysis, February 2021. There are 4,777,650 people aged 75 & over in England. 41.63% are defined as non-users at the time of the survey, so 41.63% of 4,777,650 = 1,988,936 over-75s.
Other activity by Dixons Carphone to address digital poverty includes:
We have donated hundreds of laptops, mobile phones, SIM cards and headsets to enable Age UK’s partner charity The Silver Line Helpline to operate remotely and we also worked with Age UK to equip 500 isolated and vulnerable older people with tablets, connectivity and support
In addition, we have recently invested and provided colleague volunteers to Age UK’s Telephone Friendship service.
We have loaned store display Chromebooks to 450 Dixons Carphone colleagues to enable them to home school their children
We have supported Barnardo’s with 100 refurbished tablets and the Big Issue with 15 refurbished tablets
We have donated over 800 pre-loved tablets to schools, local councils and hospitals across the UK including:
The Handsworth Association of Schools, which consists of 30 schools in Birmingham, Liverpool City Council and Southampton Hospital
ID Mobile, the mobile network owned by Dixons Carphone, has supported existing customers aged 70 and over with free and unlimited data for the duration of the lockdown periods imposed by the government
ID Mobile has also provided NHS frontline staff extra data, calls and texts for free for the duration of the pandemic. All existing customers who work for the NHS have been entitled to this Covid-19 support package
