A NEW service has been set up to refurbish old laptops to be donated to families that need them throughout the pandemic.

“Ade’s Computer Angels” is made up of five volunteers who are working from home to collect laptops, wipe them and install the right software.

Once ready, they are then then donated to children for free across Eastleigh, Chandler’s Ford, Hedge End, and even further to help with home learning whilst they are unable to attend school.

Families can request a laptop on the groups Facebook page and once this is done, a series of checks are carried out before a device is made available to collect or be delivered.

Ade Jupe, the man leading the effort, is an IT and security engineer from Chandler’s Ford.

He decided to set the service up in March last year when the first lockdown began and his paid work slowed down.

With the latest lockdown restrictions, demand has once again increased and the group has now donated 63 devices since January 4.

Ade said: “Ade’s Computer Angels is growing at an exponential rate, and I couldn’t do it without my fantastic team who also juggle this with their day jobs.

“It’s so satisfying knowing we can cut through red-tape and get these systems where they need to be - in people’s homes and educating our future generations.”

About 15 requests are currently being submitted daily, and the group are hoping to have donated over 100 laptops by the end of the month.

Jordan Dent, who is running the groups social media and admin, said: “It started small and now it’s absolutely blown up.

“People are so grateful and we’re so overwhelmed by the support. It’s opened our eyes to just how many people need this to learn.”

A GoFundMe page has also been set up where people can donate to help pay for the software.

After the pandemic, the group want to become a registered charity and continue the service to help those who need it.