A VALLEYS school is cutting back on the expense of paper work and text books by providing 150 pupils with netbook computers for their homework.

Abertillery Comprehensive School will provide its year seven pupils, who start in September, with a netbook to use at home.

Pupils will be able to send their homework electronically from home and all of the resources they need to help them will be available online.

Headteacher Paul Stock said the netbooks will be funded from the school's budget through savings made from reduced photocopying and costly text books.

Mr Stock said the school currently spends around £1,500 a month on photocopying.

These savings will go towards the cost of the netbooks - each of which costs £160 making the total cost around £24,000 for the expected size of the year group.

Mr Stock said the netbooks will also be useful for pupils who are off sick from school or if the school is forced to close perhaps because of snow.

The headteacher explained how the aim is for the whole school to eventually be provided with the netbooks so each child has the same netbook as they progress through the school.

The school is also the first in Blaenau Gwent to achieve the BECTA Quality Mark for ICT. To achieve this it had to provide it had reached tough standards in several areas of ICT.

It also has 100mb broadband and is believed to be one of the first schools in the area to have gone completely wi-fi.

The school also has a new ICT room which will be used as a flexible learning space for the whole school from September.