A flexible solution that comes highly recommended.

Ashley Down Junior School relied on XMA to help staff replace a fixed computing suite into a wireless, mobile solution. The school’s pupils now have the chance to access a flexible ICT solution from their desks and can benefit from a new library on the site of their old ICT suite.

Introducing any new ICT system to a school can be a daunting experience so it is always reassuring to feel you can trust your ICT provider to deliver. So when Ashley Down Junior School head Laurence Pitt needed to implement a new solution he looked for recommendations before choosing a partner.

He says: “One of the teachers at the school had worked with people from XMA before and recommended them as a good company to use. Also, staff at our local education authority regarded the organisation as a reputable one. It all helped me to make the decision to work with XMA.”

The small school, which caters for youngsters between seven and eleven, was providing pupils with a fixed suite of computers but wanted to upgrade to a wireless networking solution with laptops that could be taken into individual classrooms. The school recognised that ICT had become essential for its young pupils but wanted a solution that suited the nature of the school.

Pitt says: “We have a fairly small building and all our classrooms are very close together. As we hadn’t got a lot of space, it was easier to get a trolley of laptops which could be shared by the students.”

“We liked the flexibility of allowing smaller groups to take two or three laptops into different areas around the school rather than what had been happening which was that a few pupils had to take up all of a room that could be used for different lessons or activities.”

He adds: “In fact, doing it this way actually freed up a room for us. We wanted to develop the room which housed our computers as a library because we didn’t have one. Once the solution was implemented we were able to do that.”

The school asked XMA to install a new server and provide 20 laptops along with all the wireless networking required. Mr Pitt also relied on XMA staff to set up the entire solution and bought into a support contract which enables the school’s issues to be dealt with remotely by XMA technicians.

Going the extra mile

Building a good relationship between the school and its supplier turned out to be particularly important for staff at Ashley Down Junior. The solution had to be put into a Victorian building that did not lend itself to an easy installation. Moreover, the junior school was on the same site as an infant school whose staff wanted to retain their fixed computing solution. The extra complications meant that the school needed a provider that was prepared to put a little bit more effort into creating the best solution.

Pitt says: “How well XMA have performed is obvious when you consider that the infant school is now also using a wireless solution delivered by them. They saw the success that we enjoyed and decided wireless was the right solution for them and XMA was the right provider for them too.”

Ongoing support

For Pitt, the need for support was vital. He says: “My staff and I aren’t technicians so we don’t want to have to understand complicated ICT solutions. In fact, we haven’t really had to use the support too much but it has been reassuring to know that it’s there if we do want it.”

“We know if there are any issues we can easily contact XMA and their staff can resolve them remotely.”

Working in partnership

However, according to Pitt, it was the fact he felt he could trust XMA to deliver an effective solution that really secured the partnership.

He says: “From the beginning I thought the service was very good.”

“In fact, I liked XMA far and away above the other companies we looked at. It wasn’t the cheapest or the most expensive but it seemed a much more personable company than others.”

“The people came across as trustworthy and that’s been the case. If they say they are going to do something it does happen. The company has lived up to its reputation, which is why I’m now happy to recommend it to other people.”