The disposal of surplus electrical equipment is now subject to the EU Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive 2002/96/EC and 2003/108/EC. Click here for more information about WEEE.

This requirement covers the disposal of computer equipment, such as computers, monitors, keyboards and printers but also covers other electrical and electronic devices as diverse as projectors, tape recorders and kettles.

Schools should recognise that any work that has been stored on a computer system may still be retrievable from its hard disk (even if it is deleted or the disk is reformatted) and so it could be accessed by malicious individuals. It is therefore very important that schools take all appropriate measures when disposing of ICT equipment. You will be aware of the issues raised by the national press recently when government departments "lost" information in transit. It is inevitable that more regulation will be forthcoming regarding the transmission and security of computer data.

Charges for secure disposal will be determined by the service provider, but our experience is that schools should expect charges for disposal at or around those shown in the following table (prices obtained 06/08):

Broadband Sandwell is aware of three suppliers who offer secure IT equipment disposal:

• Sandwell Council has approved Secure I.T. Disposals Ltd for the secure disposal and recycling of redundant computer equipment: Contact: 0121 643 2996 or www.sitd.co.uk.

• Greets Green Community Enterprises are based in Greets Green, West Bromwich, and so are the most local of the suppliers. Contact them on 0121 525 2772 or email ggce@ymail.com or ce@ggce.co.uk for a quote and to arrange a collection time.

• Alternatively, Envirofriendly Computers Ltd, based in Shropshire, (http://www.green-computer-services.co.uk/) offer WEEE services. Contact Envirofriendly on 01952 580814 for more information.