4 minute read
Independent Catering Audit
DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
As cloud and collaborative solutions are prominent and deliver better overall value, The Education Space is offering a strategic service to reframe ICT services in schools.
The service is offered from the consumers’ service perspective rather than a ‘server refresh’, and will assess current reliability and capacity risks to ensure delivery in a logical manner with outcomes for students and teachers in mind.
TITLE- Vanessa Pittard, Formerly Assistant Director, Department for Education
The Education Space is investing in a vision to equip the children of today with the skills of tomorrow through collaborative learning. Educating the four C’s (Creativity, Critical Thinking, Communication, and Collaboration) is at the heart of The Education Space’s Digital Strategy for delivery of ICT services to its customers.
The Education Space is committed to providing services that deliver maximum value through the use of technology. Our vision is to reduce spend on operational ICT and shift the budget towards education improvement, leading to better outcomes for children. This will also alleviate the added pressure of a potential reduction in budgets, due to funding formula changes.
Phase 1 - Understand
We will assess current services and risks, to understand what is being used and how, to enable risk reduction and better interim performance.
Outputs:
• A report on shared data within your school to provide information on current access and use of data to enable decisions on data cleansing
• An audit of applications that are being used and their purpose to provide visibility on usage/potential duplication.
DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
Phase 2 - Define
We will define a course of action using information collected from phase 1.
Outputs:
• A review of shared data • A review of applications and their usage • Initial CPD and SLT buy-in session provided by The Education Space
Certified Google Trainers • A review of any automated processes (account/group creation).
Phase 3 - Implement
We will implement platforms using the design created from phase 2 and reduce capacity and performance risks by migrating documents into Google Drive.
Outputs:
• CPD for staff in preparation for using Google Docs and Drive and Classroom • Implementation of G Suite accounts and groups as per the permissions defined in phase 2 and automation considered • Creation of a folder structure as defined in phase 2 • Roll out of drive file stream to enable Google Drive to be accessed on Windows Machines • Migration of files and folders from on-premise infrastructure to Google Drive • Consider application audit and alternatives if required.
This will produce the following outcomes:
• Reduce reliance on on-site server based technology • An opportunity to review backup costs and scale down as required • Reduce risk of data loss by placing documents on a well-protected and supported resilient platform • Children benefiting from using Google as a collaborative platform • Teachers benefiting from using Google Classroom as a learning platform • No longer require on-premise storage disks, with Google Drive offering unlimited capacity for free.
ACADEMY CONVERSION
Ensuring you cover all the bases for a smooth transition to becoming an academy
The planning and preparation required for converting to an academy requires controlled project management, to ensure that all requirements are delivered on time. Schools need to consider how stakeholders should be consulted, and the impact including building and land transfers, and TUPE requirements.
As an experienced provider of conversion services, we will project manage your transition to an academy, supporting you throughout the process of forming into a MAT, or joining an established MAT.
Benefits
To date we have supported 21 projects. We have developed our support, in consultation with schools, initially assisting with TUPE arrangements during conversions to providing a fully comprehensive project management conversion service. By partnering with The Education Space, you will work with our team of consultants, that will oversee each stage of your project.
Through a strategic approach to development, growth and natural maturity, we aim to support schools to reduce your ‘challenge curve’ as they expand, ensuring they remain financially sustainable.
TITLE
Products
• Application forms submitted, requests from DfE for supplementary information responded to and documents signed and returned to the DFE within deadlines.
• Project funding secured from the DfE for
Academy Conversion; Trust Start-up Grant and
Sponsor Capacity Funding.
• Co-ordination of Staff and Public consultations and submission of reports to the Governing Body.
Contract types
• Bespoke project designed and agreed in advance
TITLE CONSULTANCY SERVICES
Custom Data Analysis
The Education Space MIS Support team can offer bespoke analytics driven from live MIS and finance data, using the latest data visualisation tools, to offer greater clarity for school leaders.
Enhanced Finance Support
The Education Space MIS Support team can offer enhanced on-site and remote finance support, performing key finance routines on behalf of a school, to assist and support school business manager function in schools.
Governance Review
A successful school requires good governance, to not only comply with regulations, but to achieve its objectives and drive improvement.
We assess the effectiveness of the governance arrangements by attending governing board meetings, reviewing key documents, interviewing key individuals and recommending improvements.
Peer Governance Review
We carry out a governance review for each partnership, comparing and contrasting what works well, and the good practice that could be shared.
Stress Management
When partnerships are formed, new roles with greater responsibilities are created. Schools and partnerships have a responsibility to help staff manage any stress involved in their new role.
We work with schools to reduce stress absence, support vulnerable members of staff and staff with high levels of responsibility or prominent roles within an organisation.
