Student Devices

At STFS we are committed to integrating technology across our school, harnessing both established and emerging tools to equip our students for the digital era. Learning to use digital resources appropriately and effectively is a vital part of each student’s education and we endorse the use of Windows laptops in school and at home to enhance learning.

We have adopted a blended learning strategy, combining traditional teaching with digital tools. We believe this approach helps empower students to take ownership of their education, and have invested in several learning platforms to enhance their independent studies.

All students are required to bring a device each day to access learning resources and complete digital tasks in lessons. This is an essential part of the curriculum and sits alongside other mandatory equipment such as uniform, calculator and PE kit. The device should be purchased through the school - this will ensure it complies with the online security regulations stipulated by the Department for Education. Orders can be placed in the Summer Term, in preparation for September.

We understand that some families may need support with this expectation. The school will continue to offer guidance, flexible purchase options, and appropriate support where needed.

To support our families, we have teamed up with Freedom Tech, a company who specialise in providing robust and affordable technology for students to use in school.   

The package provided by Freedom Tech includes:

  • A Lenovo 300w (4th Gen) Laptop

  • Microsoft 365 License, 36 Month Advanced Swap Out Warranty, 36 Month Repair Service and full school specific device configuration are all included. 

  • The devices are fully protected, so if a student were to damage their laptop, Freedom Tech will replace or repair the device. Freedom Tech ensure students are never without a working laptop by providing a temporary device for them to use until their own is returned. 

  • A flexible payment plan and with payment terms of 1, 12, 24 or 36 months available. Monthly payments start at approximately £18 for a 36 month plan, and are heavily discounted for students in receipt of Pupil Premium and Pupil Premium Plus.

  • We open an ordering portal every Summer Term and will provide details via email to all our exisiting students, and our new Y7s.
    The first payment will be collected in August, and the laptops delivered and issued to students at the beginning of September.

  • Unfortunately not. In order for the school to be able to manage the devices and ensure they comply with the online security regulations stipulated by the Department for Education, your child will not be able to use their own device. In school they must use one of the laptops offered by STFS/Freedom Tech.

  • This will vary depending on the lesson context and objectives. Some lessons will use the device for a large proportion of the time, whereas in some lessons it will not be used at all. Lessons will be a hybrid of traditional learning supported by learning on the device.

  • Yes, students should definitely use their device at home and
    it will be required to complete the majority of their homework tasks.
    Outside of school, if you choose to allow it, personal accounts can be used that allow unrestricted access to the laptop. Website filtering and monitoring is not applied by STFS on personal accounts so we recommend that you set your security settings on your Wi-Fi accordingly.

  • We have effective filtering and monitoring systems on our school network which work alongside the school managed settings in the laptop, to safeguard students from harmful online material. Filtering restricts access to online content, while monitoring allows user activity to be reviewed.
    Students are unable to connect to our network with a personal account so we can be confident we are providing a safe environment for learning.

  • The laptops come prebuilt with a plethora of accessibility options, such as changing on screen text size or activating an on-screen text reader. There are also a number of extensions that can be made available to aid accessibility.