AdEPT Multi-Academy Trusts
Simplifying technology and future proofing IT strategies to pave the way for innovative new learning and drive positive outcomes across all sizes of Multi-Academy Trusts.
IT Support
Bringing a group of schools together under a MAT umbrella often results in multiple IT support staff, third-party companies and methodologies that make it difficult to deliver a consistent and proactive approach.
AdEPT Education can help develop a unified way of handling everything from cyber security to onboarding new teachers, schools and boosting how the Trust manages knowledge sharing, compliance and training. We will take responsibility of IT infrastructure and group-wide support needs with defined SLAs for every eventuality.
Our fully managed service includes:
- Single point of contact and remote monitoring for your entire environment (infrastructure, network, applications, backup, security, firewalls).
- 24/7 central help desk support and optimal on-site technicians who can advise on ICT best practices and act as an extension of your IT teams. All staff are fully DBS checked.
- Centrally managed ICT audits, software patching and disaster recovery.
- Free network health check to provide an audit of your MATs IT infrastructure. This will form the basis of your MATs support plan and technology road map.
Sage
Sage Intacct is a cloud-based accounting software that enables MATs to consolidate multiple school accounts and create numerous reports through one single database from any location at any time. It is simple to use and built to support scaling Trusts looking to minimise complexity and maximise impact.
With real-time dashboards you can see how your MAT is performing across any school, year group, department or subject, giving you greater control and immediate insights into spending, budgeting and forecasting.
Key features include:
- Group accounting allows you to manage several revenue streams from multiple schools and departments and report on all transactions through one system.
- Powerful budgeting and forecasting functionality turn multiple spread sheets into one system with immediate insights.
- Custom reporting via prebuilt DfE general ledger codes and EFSA SoFA as well as balance sheet reports can be configured to the individual requirements of each school within your MAT.
- Cloud-based means no need for expensive infrastructure. Data is hosted on remote, secure, high-speed servers that give you and your team access to real-time data.
- Easily integrate with other key school management systems including MIS and school budgeting software. An open API allows you to configure software to work with existing systems.
Business Central
As your MAT grows, there is a natural need for end-to-end processes to be synchronised and streamlined. Schools and MATs have learned rapidly to adapt to changing situations, embracing technology to transform the classroom and deliver better learning outcomes.
AdEPT are fully aware of the challenges schools face on a daily basis with aging and uncompromising finance systems. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is a cloud-based all-in-one office platform that allows you to manage and connect information, storage, email, and wider Microsoft Office applications from one remote system that can be accessed at anytime from anywhere. This enables MATs to become more collaborative and benefits those wanting to build out business processes from within the Microsoft 365 environment.
Microsoft 365 for MATs
Microsoft 365 for Education is a powerful suite of applications that will help build collaborative classrooms, connect with colleagues and enable safe and secure learning environments.
As a Microsoft partner and Microsoft Authorised Education Provider, AdEPT can help you take advantage of the cloud to unleash new digital workplace, collaboration and communication services that will:
- Transform how you engage with external stakeholders, governors, trustees and parents.
- Enable you to tap into a vast array of digital teaching and student management resources.
- Make it easier for pupils to learn in the classroom and at home by allowing instant access to productivity tools, lessons and learning materials.
- Create best practice hubs where teachers can share resources.
Key applications include:
- Teams – classroom chat, video calls, collaboration.
- Outlook – school-wide email and calendar systems.
- OneDrive – store files securely in the cloud and access them any time from any device.
- Word – share or co-create and work on documents together.
- PowerPoint – create powerful and customisable presentations.
- Excel – spreadsheets with calculation and graphing.
- OneNote – digital note taking.
Cyber Essentials
Cyber threats against schools are intensifying as cyber criminals find new avenues to maliciously gain access to sensitive information or deny access to critical services. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has warned education institutions across the UK about a significant increase in targeted cyberattacks involving ransomware, whilst the DfE has updated its cyber-security standard for schools, ranging from basic training to recovery plans. MATs also need to take steps to ensure students are shielded from other Internet-delivered risks like online bullying, grooming, self-harm and radicalisation.
Cyber Essentials Certification is a government backed scheme that assesses a MAT’s current cyber security position. It aims to ensure the right processes and technical controls are in place to assist in blocking and partially mitigating 99% of possible cyber-attacks.
AdEPT are Cyber Essentials Plus Certified – the highest level of certification offered under the scheme – as well as an official IASME certification body. Our Cyber Security audit entails a thorough and detailed report of your current practices, whilst our managed cyber security services enable MATs to address challenges in a centralised and highly efficient way.
Our disaster recovery solution includes:
- Virtualisation of the server to protect critical IT infrastructure.
- Onsite and offsite data backup of files, folders and applications.
- Replication of data to multiple devices in real-time so workloads can be back online in a matter of minutes.
- Network redundancy that ensures network connectivity is never lost.
- Hardware replacement in the event of a hardware failure.
Wi-Fi ‘Connect the Classroom’
During the pandemic many schools issued their students with laptops and tablets to enable learning from home. These devices now need to be implemented into classroom learning which has in turn placed a higher stress on many schools Wi-Fi network infrastructure.
Connect the Classroom is a programme fully funded by the DfE that aims to help MATs in Priority Investment areas that have unreliable internet connectivity access an effective, robust wireless networking solution.
AdEPT have already secured over £3million of Connect The Classroom DfE funding for multiple schools and academies across England and can help you through the funding application process.
The UKs Leading Technology provider For Schools
Here at AdEPT, we are solutions orientated and proactive when it comes to updates and advice on the latest in ICT. With over 30 years’ experience providing ‘designed-for-schools’ technology, our award-winning products and services are already being utilised by over 4,000 schools across the country to enable their digital learning visions.
Our team of Specialist Education Advisors will help streamline every aspect of your ICT environment and initiate future-proofed IT strategies to pave the way for innovative new learning experiences and strategies – transforming how you operate and consume the services you need with technology that is easy to deploy, easy to use and budget friendly.
With over 30 years’ experience providing ‘designed-for-schools’ technology
Andy Hibbitt COO Exceed Learning Partnership “The team at AdEPT are solutions orientated and proactive when it comes to updates and advice on the latest things we could be doing to make out lives easier. Plus, the benefits of bulking products and services together with one supplier are great, not just because of the cost savings, but because everything then links together across the MAT, and we don’t have the agony of various 3rd parties competing with each other.”
To read the full case study click here.
Head Teacher The Boleyn Federation “We chose Adept Education due to the level of service they provide in terms of support, knowledge, expertise and availability across the whole multi-academy trust.”
How can we help?
AdEPT empower organisations by uniting their technology, networking and data, providing seamless communication and the confidence to innovate. All underpinned by the latest security. And all with minimal fuss. We are perfectly placed to deliver a service you can trust. You can read more about some of our recent work in this area, by reading our case studies.
