Vulnerable children in Cheshire East were given hundreds of laptops from the Government during the coronavirus lockdown, new figures reveal.

The Department for Education provided 200,000 devices to local authorities and school trusts between May and July to help children access remote learning while schools were closed.

Figures obtained by the organisation show Cheshire East Council ordered 759 laptops and tablets, the maximum number they were allowed to.

Councillor Kathryn Flavell, Cheshire East Council cabinet member for children and families, said: "We know that when schools closed back in March, many disadvantaged children and young people across Cheshire East were unable to access the same online learning resources as those whose parents have access to IT.

"Following the government announcement of the digital device initiative back in April, we worked quickly with schools and colleges, our early help, social care and education teams to identify all eligible children and young people who had no access to a computer for home learning. We then ordered enough devices to meet this need.

"Laptops, tablets and 4G routers were delivered during June and July, and eligible pupils received them during July and August. We have distributed devices to a wide range of children and young people, from early years and pre-school children with social workers to care leavers aged up to 25.

"Our aim has always been that all pupils feel safe and supported in school and that we provide equal opportunity for all. We continue to work with schools across the borough to help children and young people to catch up on their education as schools reopen this week."

But the office of the Children's Commissioner for England said the £100 million scheme, aimed at care leavers and pupils with social workers, failed to help hundreds of thousands more children.

Simone Vibert, senior policy analyst at the CCO, said 9% of families in the UK do not have a laptop, desktop or tablet at home – a "digital divide" that became more apparent during the Covid-19 crisis.

She said: "During this pandemic, proper access to the internet is not a luxury for children having to learn at home, it is a necessity.

"The Government needs to ensure that all children are able to access education in the coming weeks and months, hopefully in school, but also remotely if that becomes their only option."

Though the devices were "very welcome", the Children's Commissioner Office estimated there are 540,000 children in groups eligible for the scheme, meaning many more missed out.

In addition, 20,000 were set aside for disadvantaged Year 10 pupils who were singled out because of concerns they would fall behind in preparing for their GCSEs in the coming school year – with 138 allocated in Cheshire East.

But the Children's Commissioner Office said this overlooked the needs of disadvantaged children in every other year group, and even the Government's planned extension of the scheme to years 3-11 may be "insufficient".

Cheshire East was also allocated 137 4G hotspot devices, and 31 for Year 10 students.

A Department for Education spokesman said: "For disadvantaged children whose education is disrupted in autumn term, we are initially providing an additional 150,000 laptops and tablets to schools, who will be best placed to pass these on to children who need them.

"Children will be returning to school full time in September and we have invested £1 billion in a Covid Catch Up Fund which will also provide one-on-one and small group tutoring for disadvantaged pupils."