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EE has launched a campaign starring brand ambassador Kevin Bacon to promote the availability of unlimited data to pupils struggling to stay connected during the coronavirus pandemic.

Created by Saatchi & Saatchi, “A message for teachers” stars the Footloose actor as he sits alongside a photo of his mother, who was a teacher. 

“I know just how crucial education is,” Bacon declares as he outlines the issues faced by schoolchildren as they get to grips with accessing educational resources from home.

Teachers, parents and carers are encouraged to search “EE lockdown learning” to find out more about the initiative. The ad ends with Bacon announcing: "Let’s give every kid an equal chance."

It will debut on BT Sport tonight (Friday) and will be joined by digital and social media activity from next week. 

The work was created by Rodrigo Castellari, Gary Arnold, Neil Ritchie, Alice Marani and Cristiana Candido, and directed by Chris Faith through Saatchi & Saatchi and Prodigious. Media is handled by Essence.

In April, EE launched a similar initiative (also backed by a campaign featuring Bacon) that gave unlimited data to NHS workers at the start of the UK outbreak.

"As a national champion, we want to ensure no-one is left behind while face-to-face teaching is on hold," Marc Allera, chief executive of BT’s consumer division, said. 

Allera said that EE’s Lockdown Learning scheme has already helped thousands of families to benefit from free unlimited mobile data and access educational resources such as BBC Bitesize via fixed and mobile networks.

The brand has also given out “tens of thousands of BT Wi-Fi vouchers” to schools to hand out to families in need during the Covid-19 crisis.

Allera continued: "With Ofcom estimating around 880,000 family homes are without a broadband connection, we want to help more families.  

“I'd encourage anyone who needs help getting their kids connected for learning to apply for help from BT and EE through their school – and please pass that message on to anyone you think might benefit.”

Bacon has been a brand ambassador for EE since 2012, when he appeared in a spot inspired by viral game "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon".

In November 2020, he starred alongside Rita Ora in an EE spot promoting the mobile operator's 5G offering, although the ad was later pulled after the pop star breached lockdown measures.