Manx Lottery Trust has awarded £25,216 to Code Club through its Community Awards programme, enabling the charity to update its technology offerings.
The grant will fund a new fleet of 16 MacBook Air laptops and associated accessories, which will be used to deliver coding and technology education to young people across the Isle of Man, including children who may not have access to suitable equipment at home.
Code Club’s initiatives include weekly sessions, workshops, competitions and community events, covering areas such as coding, robotics, physical computing, artificial intelligence and digital making.
The refreshed fleet of laptops, replacing the existing machines which the charity say were displaying “diminishing performance”, are set to ensure that the charity can continue to provide reliable and consistent digital literacy training for years to come.
Owen Cutajar, Chair and Founder of Code Club, said: “At Code Club, we want every young person to have the chance to discover what they can create with technology. Having access to a dependable laptop should never be the thing that holds them back.
“These laptops will give our young people the tools to turn their ideas into something real, whether that’s writing their first program, bringing a robot to life or exploring artificial intelligence.
He added: “For our volunteers, reliable equipment means more time spent helping young people learn and experiment. This support will make a lasting difference, helping us nurture the skills, confidence and curiosity of the Island’s next generation.”