Using the local authority for services such as payroll isn't the only option. More schools are using third parties or bringing the payroll function in house to save money and improve the service they offer to staff. But is it worth it? In the case studies below, two schools share their experiences with Leader - the magazine of the Association of School and College Leaders.
http://www.leadermagazine.co.uk/article.php?id=1694
Tuesday, 27 April 2010
Friday, 23 April 2010
See us at ASCL's first business managers' conference - 5/5/10
Strictly Education will be taking part in the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) first annual business managers’ conference, to take place on 5th May at the Birmingham NEC Hilton Metropole.
During the day we will be hosting a workshop on outsourcing your payroll to a third party provider.
For more information about the conference click here.
If you are planning to attend the conference please do drop by and see us or book a space on our workshop.
During the day we will be hosting a workshop on outsourcing your payroll to a third party provider.
For more information about the conference click here.
If you are planning to attend the conference please do drop by and see us or book a space on our workshop.
Planning any building work during the summer holidays?
If you are planning building work for this summer then you might be worrying about how smoothly it will run and who is going to oversee it.
If that’s the case, Strictly Education’s Property Services can relieve that burden.
There’s two ways we can remove the hassle.
Firstly, if you have your contractors lined up, we can act as Project Sponsor. That means we will take over the running of the project, liaise with your contractors and ensure everything is running to time and budget.
Or we can Project Manage the whole thing. It’s not too late for us to source contractors, produce specifications, develop a project plan and manage the whole thing against your timetable.
It’s what Canonbury Primary School did when they needed a new toilet block - “The project was completed on time and on budget and the school now has very smart toilet facilities which, thanks to Strictly Education, we are very proud of.”
Download more information here or visit our website for full details.
What’s more, you’ll find us highly competitive with our rates.
Find out more today – call our sales team on 01908 208289 or email us here.
If that’s the case, Strictly Education’s Property Services can relieve that burden.
There’s two ways we can remove the hassle.
Firstly, if you have your contractors lined up, we can act as Project Sponsor. That means we will take over the running of the project, liaise with your contractors and ensure everything is running to time and budget.
Or we can Project Manage the whole thing. It’s not too late for us to source contractors, produce specifications, develop a project plan and manage the whole thing against your timetable.
It’s what Canonbury Primary School did when they needed a new toilet block - “The project was completed on time and on budget and the school now has very smart toilet facilities which, thanks to Strictly Education, we are very proud of.”
Download more information here or visit our website for full details.
What’s more, you’ll find us highly competitive with our rates.
Find out more today – call our sales team on 01908 208289 or email us here.
Monday, 19 April 2010
Best Value Audits
There are many reasons why you may be considering a Best Value audit.
You may need reassurance that you are receiving value for money. Or you may have concerns about existing contracts – or the lack of them.
Whatever the reason, Strictly Education can help. We can audit building cleaning, catering, lettings management and premises management.
For one school recently, our cleaning audit, conducted by a BICSc accredited Field Officer, showed that they were receiving good value, although we were able to highlight a number of recommendations to improve the cleaning provision. This audit proved valuable evidence for the school’s FMSiS assessment.
For another school we had a very different situation. There was no formal cleaning contract in place and the school had been employing agency staff in the mistaken belief that this would allow them to abdicate out of employment rights. The school had overspent dramatically against its cleaning budget and the audit action plan required major change to upgrade the cleaning provision to a satisfactory level.
Amongst the actions arising from the audit we recommended that a formal cleaning contract needed to be set up. We have drawn up the tender documentation including specification and bills of quantities and will shortly be tendering the contract through the OJEU due to the size of the site. We expect to substantially reduce the school’s cleaning costs (potentially £40k saving) as well as upgrade the cleaning standards considerably.
Following contract award we’ll support with the TUPE transfer arrangements and monitor the contractor’s performance on behalf of the school. In effect the school needs to do very little and can concentrate on their core activities around educational achievement, enjoy a clean school environment and consider how they will effectively spend the funds they have saved on cleaning.
On another occasion, a catering audit highlighted concerns about which the school management had been unaware: food was not cooked or maintained at the correct temperatures, meat was unlabelled so no means of telling when it should be disposed of or if it was halal. Insufficient food was being prepared to get through the service and no batch cooking was being undertaken. Food was not nutritionally balanced and most of it was expensive frozen ready meals.
We recommended the implementation of a low cost sandwich bar, also selling pasta, salad and fruit and advertise meal deals to encourage take up. The catering team was sufficient to prepare freshly made meals and batch cook so this was a further recommendation. Forgoing frozen ready meals not only improved the nutritional balance of the meals offered but substantially reduced the cost resulting in a healthier menu at reduced cost.
You may need reassurance that you are receiving value for money. Or you may have concerns about existing contracts – or the lack of them.
Whatever the reason, Strictly Education can help. We can audit building cleaning, catering, lettings management and premises management.
For one school recently, our cleaning audit, conducted by a BICSc accredited Field Officer, showed that they were receiving good value, although we were able to highlight a number of recommendations to improve the cleaning provision. This audit proved valuable evidence for the school’s FMSiS assessment.
For another school we had a very different situation. There was no formal cleaning contract in place and the school had been employing agency staff in the mistaken belief that this would allow them to abdicate out of employment rights. The school had overspent dramatically against its cleaning budget and the audit action plan required major change to upgrade the cleaning provision to a satisfactory level.
Amongst the actions arising from the audit we recommended that a formal cleaning contract needed to be set up. We have drawn up the tender documentation including specification and bills of quantities and will shortly be tendering the contract through the OJEU due to the size of the site. We expect to substantially reduce the school’s cleaning costs (potentially £40k saving) as well as upgrade the cleaning standards considerably.
Following contract award we’ll support with the TUPE transfer arrangements and monitor the contractor’s performance on behalf of the school. In effect the school needs to do very little and can concentrate on their core activities around educational achievement, enjoy a clean school environment and consider how they will effectively spend the funds they have saved on cleaning.
On another occasion, a catering audit highlighted concerns about which the school management had been unaware: food was not cooked or maintained at the correct temperatures, meat was unlabelled so no means of telling when it should be disposed of or if it was halal. Insufficient food was being prepared to get through the service and no batch cooking was being undertaken. Food was not nutritionally balanced and most of it was expensive frozen ready meals.
We recommended the implementation of a low cost sandwich bar, also selling pasta, salad and fruit and advertise meal deals to encourage take up. The catering team was sufficient to prepare freshly made meals and batch cook so this was a further recommendation. Forgoing frozen ready meals not only improved the nutritional balance of the meals offered but substantially reduced the cost resulting in a healthier menu at reduced cost.
Monday, 12 April 2010
Build your school budget in minutes
This e-bulletin contains lots of useful information for schools - look for Strictly Education on page 9.
http://cde.cerosmedia.com/1U4b5ef834001c3012.cde
http://cde.cerosmedia.com/1U4b5ef834001c3012.cde
Let us help brush up your skills
Did you know that Strictly Education can offer training across a whole range of subjects?
Payroll - Whether you operate an in-house service, or just need to ensure you are up to speed on the latest requirements, we offer bespoke training and guidance on every aspect of payroll.
Finance - Finance training requirements are constantly changing. We offer group or individual training packages to suit your requirements. We can also provide training onsite, using your own data and systems that you are familiar with.
HR - We can help you give your staff the knowledge and tools to manage HR issues internally through our range of specialist training courses. We run courses aimed at Headteachers, Leadership Teams, staff and Governors and can design a bespoke course to cover any area of concern for you.
ICT/MIS – We run many ICT training courses at our training suite in London and also in schools. We can tailor courses to meet your
requirements. Typical courses are half day to a full day and cover MIS training and general ICT skills.
Property Support - Ensure your staff are aware of the ever-increasing raft of Health and Safety Legislation. Our Property Support Division is able to provide training, either on a bespoke basis or through our published programme of courses, covering several key Health and Safety subjects.
Visit our website for more information www.strictlyeducation.co.uk
Payroll - Whether you operate an in-house service, or just need to ensure you are up to speed on the latest requirements, we offer bespoke training and guidance on every aspect of payroll.
Finance - Finance training requirements are constantly changing. We offer group or individual training packages to suit your requirements. We can also provide training onsite, using your own data and systems that you are familiar with.
HR - We can help you give your staff the knowledge and tools to manage HR issues internally through our range of specialist training courses. We run courses aimed at Headteachers, Leadership Teams, staff and Governors and can design a bespoke course to cover any area of concern for you.
ICT/MIS – We run many ICT training courses at our training suite in London and also in schools. We can tailor courses to meet your
requirements. Typical courses are half day to a full day and cover MIS training and general ICT skills.
Property Support - Ensure your staff are aware of the ever-increasing raft of Health and Safety Legislation. Our Property Support Division is able to provide training, either on a bespoke basis or through our published programme of courses, covering several key Health and Safety subjects.
Visit our website for more information www.strictlyeducation.co.uk
Friday, 9 April 2010
Considerations when implementing a managed ICT service
In this extract from BECTA’s report on ‘Implementing managed services – benefits and considerations’ we detail the considerations when implementing a managed ICT service
· Gaining a more accurate picture of expenditure on ICT and associated services, and of the quality of that service before outsourcing will enable a more robust value-for-money proposition to be developed.
· If the current ICT is underperforming, then ICT costs will increase as there will be a need for capital investment in equipment alongside the managed element of the service. However, it is the managed element that provides extra value through greater reliability, increased confidence, and less staff time lost to dealing with problems.
· Establishments considering employing a managed service need to ensure that a senior member of staff is given sufficient time and resource to oversee and champion the process, ideally from procurement through to the final implementation.
· An output specification in which the benefits of the managed service are expressed in educational terms is very valuable. It is important to invest time in understanding and articulating these benefits.
· Specialist advice should be sought from the local authority or an independent consultant to help define the specifications and procure the most appropriate managed service.
· Establishments should have complete clarity of their business needs in regard to functional requirements and educational outcomes before they engage with suppliers. Becta’s procurement frameworks give guidance on this process. [www.becta.org.uk/schools/managedservices]
· Any affected staff, or unions, should be involved from the beginning. This will aid in personnel issues such as TUPE and the unease that this can create. It should be noted that respondents highlight tangible benefits for transferred personnel including training and career path benefits.
· Establishing a sound and realistic service level agreement (SLA) that is aligned with the establishment’s needs is an essential element to engaging any managed service.
· Gaining a more accurate picture of expenditure on ICT and associated services, and of the quality of that service before outsourcing will enable a more robust value-for-money proposition to be developed.
· If the current ICT is underperforming, then ICT costs will increase as there will be a need for capital investment in equipment alongside the managed element of the service. However, it is the managed element that provides extra value through greater reliability, increased confidence, and less staff time lost to dealing with problems.
· Establishments considering employing a managed service need to ensure that a senior member of staff is given sufficient time and resource to oversee and champion the process, ideally from procurement through to the final implementation.
· An output specification in which the benefits of the managed service are expressed in educational terms is very valuable. It is important to invest time in understanding and articulating these benefits.
· Specialist advice should be sought from the local authority or an independent consultant to help define the specifications and procure the most appropriate managed service.
· Establishments should have complete clarity of their business needs in regard to functional requirements and educational outcomes before they engage with suppliers. Becta’s procurement frameworks give guidance on this process. [www.becta.org.uk/schools/managedservices]
· Any affected staff, or unions, should be involved from the beginning. This will aid in personnel issues such as TUPE and the unease that this can create. It should be noted that respondents highlight tangible benefits for transferred personnel including training and career path benefits.
· Establishing a sound and realistic service level agreement (SLA) that is aligned with the establishment’s needs is an essential element to engaging any managed service.
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