Insight selected to deliver £35m Microsoft cloud deal to Cheshire councils

Six-year deal will see VAR support Cheshire East and Cheshire West & Chester Councils as they adopt Azure cloud services

Insight has been entrusted with delivering a £35m cloud deal to councils in the North West of England on behalf of Microsoft.

The deal runs from December 2020 to December 2026 and will see Insight support Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester councils to adopt and consume Azure SaaS, PaaS and other cloud products and services.

The deal is a part of Microsoft's Cloud Navigator programme which was set up in recent years to assist local government and public sector organisations in digitally transforming their operations.

Georgina O'Toole, chief analyst at TechMarketView, attributed Microsoft's Cloud Navigator programme as being a "major part" of its success with local governments in the UK.

"The desire to adopt cloud exists but local authorities can find it hard to navigate a path through the complexity of existing technology," she stated.

"By providing early-stage consultancy via the Cloud Navigator programme - often for free - Microsoft is succeeding in knocking down some of the barriers to cloud adoption.

"The councils have stated that Microsoft's support for migration to new technology has been key over the last three years as the organisations have worked towards a complete refresh of their desktop estate and the adoption of cloud services."