Kent County Council iPhone Spend

Kent County Council bought more than 800 iPhones for staff and spent £234,000 taxpayer’s money.

17:25 25 March 2019

Kenty County Council has bought 800 new handsets for staff last year spending an average of £276 on each handset. It also paid an additional £8,000 to repair its supply of iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6S, 6S Plus, 7 and SE models.

 

The iPhones are mainly used by social workers to keep in touch with children in their care. Children are able to provide feedback and tell social workers assigned to them if they are unhappy or feel unsafe through an innovative app called Mind Of My Own (MoMO). The phones are also being used when staff members work from home or out of the office.

 

Chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, John O'Connell, said: "Moving away from paper and embracing new technology can create savings in the long term, but the question is why so much money has been splashed out on iPhones when there are so many other cheaper options on the market.

 

"Taxpayers' money is all too often taken for granted by public sector bureaucrats."