Joskos wins first deal through £400m Becta framework

Capital VAR bags six-figure contract to refresh Romford school's ICT infrastructure

London reseller Joskos Solutions has won the first tender to be awarded through the recently unveiled £400m schools and academies ICT framework.

The education-focused VAR has been picked to revamp the technology estate of Broadford Primary School in Romford, as part of a wider redevelopment project. Joskos' slice of the deal is worth about £250,000 and work will begin in March.

The Highgate-based IT firm will install technology including hardware, software and networking to be used by Broadford's staff and 300-plus pupils. Ongoing maintenance and wraparound services will also be provided.

The school's redevelopment is part of Harold Hill Ambitions, a project from the London Borough of Havering Council to improve local quality of life through initiatives covering employment, education, lifestyle and housing.

The borough's senior inspector of ICT futures, Penny Patterson, said: "We had a number of very strong bids from the new Becta framework. The school will benefit enormously from the ICT infrastructure Joskos has proposed. I know teachers will welcome a robust and reliable network, and we look forward to the pupils having much-improved opportunities to learn, using ICT, across the school."

Suppliers on the Becta ICT Services Framework One were revealed by ChannelWeb in November. Joskos made the cut in Lot One, which covers the provision of kit and services to individual schools and the growing legion of academies.

Director Nick Madhavji said: "We are delighted to be providing the ICT infrastructure and related services to Broadford Primary school as part of the Becta framework and supporting Harold Hill Ambitions.

"At Joskos we place great importance on establishing strong and effective partnerships that successfully deliver successful ICT solutions to schools. Our aim is to reduce the cost of the ICT service while greatly improving the benefits realised by the use of technology to aid teaching and learning."