“My name is Julia. The Smith Family has supported me in my education since I was about seven years old. Before I started receiving help from The Smith Family, life was pretty tough. My mum was juggling multiple jobs and often trying really hard to get food on the table. It meant sitting out of a lot of school things like activities and excursions. In my family, we didn’t actually have the internet. We had to go to the public library and that’s where we would do our homework. We didn’t have laptops either; we would use the computers at the library or we’d go to a community centre. At school, we would just use the computers that they had on offer.”
The Challenge
In a country as digitally advanced as Australia, it’s staggering that 1.16 million young people still lack access to a learning device at home. This digital divide isn’t just a tech issue; it’s a barrier to education, opportunity, inclusion and social mobility. For young people like Julia, not having a laptop can affect their ability to succeed in their education.
That’s why The Smith Family, a national children’s education charity, and Telstra Foundation, Telstra’s youth and tech focussed charity, have partnered on a bold new initiative to bridge this gap and create scalable, sustainable change.
“This is a really exciting partnership with Telstra Foundation,” says Doug Taylor, CEO of The Smith Family. “We know that affordability is a significant barrier to digital inclusion for families on low incomes, who are often making significant sacrifices to help their children be digitally connected. Our new partnership will allow us to move from small-scale device distribution to a national strategy that reaches thousands more students as they transition from Year 6 to Year 7.”
Through their Learning for Life program, The Smith Family supports more than 71,000 students experiencing disadvantage across 91 communities. Many of these students face complex challenges, and all come from low-income families. While The Smith Family has scaled many components of its digital inclusion program in recent years, a sustainable long-term solution for the provision of laptops was still missing.
Thanks to Telstra Foundation’s strategic collaboration and investment ($3.27 million over 5 years), The Smith Family is now better equipped to tackle this problem.
“We’re proud to partner with The Smith Family to address digital equity,” says Jackie Coates, CEO of Telstra Foundation. “We are investing in The Smith Family’s capability, their structure and processes to solicit more donated laptops rather than directly purchasing these refurbished devices – a move that over time that will double the number of devices provided to students starting Year 7,” said Coates.
Telstra Foundation’s support also extends to digital literacy. Since June 2024, a $250,000 grant has powered The Smith Family’s Digital Skills Enhancement Project, delivering curated resources and online safety tools to Learning for Life families.
“While digital technologies are advancing at lightning speed, too many students are missing out on the opportunities they bring,” Coates adds. “This partnership provides more young people with equal access to devices, connectivity, skills, and support needed to thrive in a digital world and shape their own futures.”
“Together, The Smith Family and Telstra Foundation are ensuring that young people have the resources they need to build a great future,” says Taylor.
And for Julia, who once didn’t have a laptop, life looks very different today. With The Smith Family’s support, she received one in high school – and she’s now thriving as a university student.
“At the moment, I’m studying journalism, and I have hopes of becoming a journalist one day. My mum is really proud of my sister and me – that we are getting to go to university and pursue our dreams.”
