ICT partnership contract for NI primary schools

Northern Ireland’s education sector has received a major boost following the announcement of a £26.2 million NGFL Managed Service contract with Learning Technology, the parent company of Viglen, who will work in partnership with local IT services partner, Sx3.

The contract is for the second phase of the Classroom 2000 project and will result in NI’s 329 larger primary schools benefiting from ICT Managed Services. The deal follows on from Viglen and Sx3’s success in winning the £16 million contract last October, which was for the provision of a three-year managed service solution to the 574 smaller primary schools in Northern Ireland.

Building on the strengths of its partnership with Sx3, Viglen will deliver over 10,500 PC workstations, over 660 servers and 329 CD servers to each of NI’s larger primary schools. This will provide around 120,000 pupils with state-of-the-art computer equipment, internet and email access to learning materials. The contract will also include all training, technical support and maintenance.

Jimmy Stewart, Classroom 2000 Project Director welcomed the signing of the new contract: “It is our belief that ICT constitutes the future for education and we aim to give our teachers, pupils and communities the best ICT resources to help them meet their ongoing education needs. Viglen’s partnership with Sx3 is also important as it provides the hands-on, local experience which is so relevant when dealing with technology in education today.”

Managing Director of Sx3 Ireland Noel Brady added: “We are delighted to further extend our partnership relationship with Viglen, having worked closely with them on the delivery of Lot 1. We believe we are well equipped to deliver the high standards which are necessary to keep our education system at the leading edge. We have matched our experience, skills and expertise to ensure this contract is fully resourced in terms of management, support, maintenance and development, which in turn will result in the very best return on investment for the education sector, and will help make the National Grid for Learning a reality for teachers and pupils alike.”

Bordan Tkachuk, Chief Executive of Learning Technology said that over the last three years to company had transformed into a full Managed Services supplier with an education focus and have become a leading force in the sector.

(SP)