Now We Are Back In School
Now that schools are back to normal, the maintained schools amongst us are thinking about our new budgets whilst all schools will be looking towards their resourcing for the next school year.
The task of budget setting and bidding for departments, or the spending of the rest of the school’s allocated budget in academies, is well underway. As always, the School Business Leaders amongst us are doing everything we can to achieve the best value for money.
Like many schools during the lockdown, we used preferred suppliers who could guarantee immediate delivery and consistent supply, all whilst observing financial probity.
Now that we are back to ‘normal’ our usual procurement processes will come back into play. So, what will our priorities be?
School-wide resources
Making sure that our staff and students have the resources to deliver the intended curriculum, required catch-up work, summer school and after school provision.
Items for school-wide use, such as general resources, paper etc. are often purchased in bulk to achieve value for money. Looking for a supplier who can meet these costs at the best price is key.
Subject budgets
All schools will be looking at resourcing specific items for the curriculum subject and using up what we had left from last year to fill any gaps. There will be catch-up costs but, as we will be looking to use what we have already purchased, a stock check will be required.
ICT
During the lockdown, all schools were fortunate to receive extra hardware through the government’s ICT initiative, meaning that some schools might already have sufficient devices for their needs.
IT infrastructure, however, may need to be looked into, as an increase in devices can put a strain on network and Wi-Fi capability. This provision will need to be considered for both sustainability and succession planning.
Also, the devices that we received during lockdown will all reach the end of life at the same time, so we need to devise a plan to replace them.
Contracts
A review of contracts will ensure that schools are using products that are both affordable and still fit for their purpose. Contracts all come with terms and conditions and a contracts register will ensure that you have a process of review and do not end up paying for products that you no longer need.
We are all guided by our school finance policies which outline how we achieve the best value and value for money. Schools do plan ahead and make strategic purchases but due to the nature of the beast, we also need suppliers who can be reactive and supply good value at short notice.
As such, we strive to create relationships with suppliers who can meet this need and understand that we are spending public money. The ability to pick up the phone and receive immediate support is imperative.
Of course, if they have a sale on all the better, who doesn’t love a bargain!
Product References:
Here at KCS, we are here to help you plan for what your school needs. We’ll help you find the right products and deliver them to you when you need them, providing support at every step of the way.
If you would like to see what products we offer, please visit our digital catalogue:
https://www.kcs.co.uk/kcs-catalogue
Speaking of bargains, don’t forget to check out our Clearance range here:
https://www.kcs.co.uk/online-offers/clearance?
Purchase from our range of paper goods here:
https://www.kcs.co.uk/catalogsearch/result/index/?cat=14&q=paper
We offer Frameworks that ensure digital and technology needs are covered now and in the future.
For more info visit here: https://www.kcs.co.uk/frameworks/managed-services