If you wish to apply for a laptop or desktop computer please contact your ward or community based nurse or social worker and ask them complete an application form with you.  Then ask them to send it to us.

All ward and community based nurses working with teenager along with social workers have been sent application forms and information sheets. We have reproduced the contents of the application information sheet on this web page.

This information sheet is to help professionals, parents and the teenager in completing the application form as fully as possible so as to enable the MattDotcom team to process your application as quickly as possible.

When completing the form please try to ensure each section is completed fully. Not doing so could lead to delays or even MattDotCom rejecting your application. We have to work within the confines of our charitable status and as such we have to ensure that each application meets our criteria. If you look at our mission statement above you will see that we have underlined and numerated some key words. By filling the form in fully you will help us to ascertain if we can help you. It also helps us if we have to at a later date justify why we lent some one some equipment. Below you will find the numbered guidance that related to relevant part of the application form and our mission statement.

Mission Statement: To provide(10) teenagers(4) who are suffering from long term illness(3) with access to computer technology(8), thereby enabling them to continue their education(2) and maintain contact with their school(5) so assisting them to continue to develop key life skills(9) and help them to cope with their illness(7) be that in hospital(6) or at home(1).

If you have any problems please contact anyone from MattDotCom for advice.  Contact numbers are given at the bottom of this sheet.

1 – The professional completing this form with you needs to state their background. This provides us with clinical verification and helps us with audit purposes.

2 – Our aim is to lend equipment for educational purposes and as such we cannot be seen to be giving out equipment purely for entertainment purposes.

3 - We were originally set up as an organization for teenagers with cancer but our remit has been extended at the request of nurses and social workers working with teenagers who have other long term illnesses. Completing this box helps us gauge service requirements and with audit purposes.

4 – We can only provide equipment to teenagers. These questions provide us with the necessary evidence of this, along with information as to where the equipment will be when you are not in hospital. Our monitoring equipment will tell us, for example if the laptop is stolen, where it is. Once we have your home address and hospital we will set the equipment so that whilst it is being used at either of these places it will not report itself as being stolen, unless you tell us otherwise. If you require additional addresses to be registered we can do that for you.

5 – If you do not have an e-mail address we will set one up for you so that you can use the equipment. This will then allow you to stay in contact with your school or college.

6 – See 4 above

7 – For some teenagers [those under 16 years of age] we are required to have an adult sign for the equipment when it is delivered and to be legally responsible for it.

8 – Because of the cost of equipment and the fact we cannot gauge demand we ask that you give us some idea of what you want. It may be that we will go to our suppliers and get additional equipment. Alternatively we may have to ask you to wait for a short period of time until some equipment is returned.

9 – We carry a small number of educational programmes and may be able to provide you with some that help you with your studies.

10 – We have been advised that we should ask for a regular monthly payment towards the running costs of the equipment. Because our charitable aim is to provide teenagers with access to computer technology we are asking parents, if they can afford it, to make a donation towards the running costs. Whether you make a donation or not will have NO bearing on whether we can lend your son or daughter computer equipment.

Please note that everyone who works for MattDotcom does so in a voluntary capacity and as such you may not get an answer if you call. If the answerphone is on please leave a message and some one will get back to you as soon as possible.

NOTE FOR STAFF - if you are working with teenagers who are undergoing long term treatment and have not received application forms and information sheets please contact David Harding-Price.  david@mattdotcom.org.uk