EVERY foster child in Swin-don could soon have access to a computer under a new council proposal.

The £150,000 scheme will mean that personal computers will be delivered and installed in every foster home in the borough over the next three years.

The machines will enable young people to have access to the internet and e-mail, as well as be able to run educational software and use standard office packages to complete their school work at home.

Leading councillors will be discussing the scheme at a cabinet meeting on Wed-nesday night.

The initiative will help the council meet the targets set in the Government Quality Protects Scheme, which requires the educational attainment of fostered children to be raised every year.

Marie Seaton, the director of housing and social services, said: "Young people who are looked after have often had difficult lives, and can miss out on schooling.

"Their educational attainment, on average, is much lower than that for children who live at home. This scheme will help to assist young people to maximise their life chances.

"Encouraging young people to become computer literate and proficient in using the world-wide web will assist in developing future trends for home working and shopping."

Each computer that is delivered to a foster child will have safeguards placed upon them to prevent the children seeing undesirable internet sites. This comes in the form of Net Nanny, a programme which stops any irresponsible use of the web.

The council has already carried out a survey of every foster home in the borough to see what computer needs there are.

A decision was made to prioritise secondary age children in the first year's allo- cation.

So far 30 machines have been delivered so that every child of secondary age now has one.

The computers have been provided by PC World and each computer comes with full Encarta encyclopaedia packages as well as special programmes for GCSE maths and English.