CUSTOMER STORY
West Kirby Grammar School
‘Outstanding’ Grammar School expands student horizons with modern Microsoft technologies.
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About West Kirby Grammar School
As one of the top 50 performing schools in the UK, West Kirby Grammar School has a highly driven body of 150 staff and 1,200 students to equip and empower each day. Its passion for discovering and nurturing each child’s unique talents sets the school apart. That doesn’t start and stop with what the students learn; it embraces how they learn and how the school can help them gain confidence and independence. Liam Hayes, IT strategy leader, has taken the school on a 3-year journey to integrate and modernise its systems and technologies to prepare the school for the next generation of technology and students.
The challenge
West Kirby Grammar School’s IT environment had grown over the years into a patchwork platform comprising unconnected systems from different IT companies and a basic PABX telephone system. The software had dated features and offered no real personalised or group working capability. Inflexibility made everyday systems management ever more complex, and a significant amount of time each day was spent dealing with malfunctioning tools, access and security issues. IT failed to support the teaching and learning environment in such a high-achieving educational environment.
"Our outdated, costly IT systems have become a dynamic, collaborative environment. The classroom is no longer a physical barrier, creating radical change. We can offer our students Microsoft Office Pro Plus free on their home devices, which has positively affected teaching and learning immeasurably. We couldn’t be without these fantastic tools now. Microsoft provided us with educational services fit for the 21st Century."
Cutting-edge technology with efficient reliability
Today, West Kirby Grammar School works seamlessly and creatively with Microsoft Office 2013 and other productivity apps provided through Office 365, a cloud-based ‘Virtual Learning Environment’ powered by SharePoint, personal document storage for all students, staff and teachers in OneDrive for Business, intuitive Windows 8.1 virtual desktops and an integrated telephony, video conferencing and instant messaging solution enabled by Skype for Business. Windows Server 2012 Datacenter edition and SQL Server 2012 provide a flexible and scalable underlying server environment.
Business benefits
- Powerful Windows 8.1 tablet with OneDrive for Business integration.
- SharePoint underpins an extensive ‘Virtual Learning Environment’.
- Students benefit from individual, secure, cloud-based document storage environments.
- ‘Single sign-on through Active Directory Federated Services.
- Windows 8.1 devices are breathing new life into practical subjects.
- Modern Office 2013 applications.
- Teachers no longer need to be onsite to work efficiently.
CUSTOMER
West Kirby Grammar School
INDUSTRY
Education
COMPANY SIZE
100+ Employees
SERVICE
IT Professional Services
Ready to streamline your IT operations
Situated between Manchester and Liverpool, our IT experts are perfectly positioned to take care of the tech, so you can focus on what really matters.
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