The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority has partnered with Lloyds Bank and Vodafone for a digital inclusion scheme.
The partnership will see 4,500 receive a free android tablet, along with in-person training on getting the most out of the internet, and six months of free data.
The scheme will start with a pilot delivering tablets and training to 300 local people who are unemployed or economically inactive.
People will be referred from the Department of Work and Pensions Restart Scheme and the Ways to Work programme run by the six local authorities, with in-person digital inclusion group training sessions, delivered by Lloyds Digital Trainers.
Steve Rotheram, Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said: “It’s our duty to properly connect our residents up with this 21st century necessity and schemes like this will help us to directly target those who are most in need of our support.”
Nicki Lyons, Vodafone’s UK Chief Corporate Affairs & Sustainability Officer, said: “People can find themselves on the wrong side of the digital divide for a whole variety of reasons, from finances to a lack of skills. It’s through strong partnerships that we will really make progress.”