Government looks to save £1m a year with new ICT framework

Information Management and Learning Services framework is launched after lengthy consultation with schools and local authorities, with RM one of the first partners to be announced

The government has launched a new information management and learning services (IMLS) framework which it claims will generate savings of over £1m a year.

Launched in partnership with the Department for Education, the four-year framework was developed after consultation with schools and local authorities.

Within the framework, suppliers have agreed to more flexible licensing terms, including the ability for customers to purchase licences without mandatory support, and the option to transfer licences to a successor body without any penalties.

According to the government, the framework offers transparency on costs, pricing for individual solution components, indicative pricing for support requirements and training needs, allowing organisations to benchmark and be more informed purchasers.

Marie-Helene Durif, head of ICT sourcing and category management at Government Procurement Service, said: “The IMLS framework is an important offering to our education customers which will deliver significant savings. We will continue to work in partnership with the Department for Education, which will provide customers with access to both technical and procurement support to meet their specific local needs.”

One supplier that has been appointed to the framework is RM.

Nigel Rayner, sales and marketing director for RM Education Software, which has set up a dedicated web page for the framework, said: “The market for education management systems has changed dramatically over the past two years, with more schools opting out of local authority control, for example by becoming academies.

"This framework allows all concerned to see the range of providers for essential services and enables a competitive market where schools may previously have felt they did not have a choice.

“Under the framework, they can now buy these services more easily from appointed providers and potentially make significant savings; similar to uSwitch or Gocompare for education management systems. It is also great news for RM, because it will enable us to offer our MIS and Learning Platform products to more customers.”