Partnerships for Schools



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Partnerships for Schools
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Press Releases

Press Releases

PfS unveils new open source online presence

18 March 2008

Partnerships for Schools, the Government agency responsible for delivering the multi-billion pound Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme, will unveil its new-look open source website at the ICT in Building Schools for the Future event in London on Tuesday 18 March.

The site is the product of an 18-month web rationalisation and knowledge management project by PfS to make information about the national BSF programme more accessible for all stakeholders. It also provides a single focus for programme information which was previously available to stakeholders via a PfS website, a BSF website, and a BSF Knowledge Portal (the last two were managed by the Department for Children, Schools and Families).

PfS worked with Ixxus, an Alfresco Gold partner in the UK, to define and deliver an enterprise-class solution which provides both strong content management and social computing functionality. With around 100 staff working across England and a growing content set, PfS has put in place a system which provides control and management of content types across the organisation. The new site will also improve communication and knowledge sharing with diverse stakeholders nationwide including local authorities, schools, and private sector partners.

Tim Byles, Chief Executive of PfS, said the new online presence would be developed further over the coming months to enhance networking and collaboration opportunities for the BSF community. He added: “As a national programme involving all 150 local authorities in England, thousands of schools, a wide range of private sector partners, and with a significant number of PfS staff working remotely, it is important that we harness technology to provide access to the latest information and sharing of best practice for the success of the programme.

“I want to encourage anyone with an interest in BSF and educational transformation to not just look at our new site, but become actively engaged with it and with us. Ultimately I hope that our collaborative working areas will become a kind of Facebook for BSF, with stimulating and relevant online discussions.”

Karl Hoods, Head of Information Systems at PfS, said: “As a publicly-funded organisation we needed to ensure a value-for-money solution to our information management needs in support of our delivery goals and targets over the lifetime of the programme. The Alfresco product set provides us with the underlying technology to help achieve our aims and provides a flexible architecture on which we can build and adapt to the demands of a programme of this size and complexity.

“PfS is committed to sharing knowledge and experience with our stakeholders, and so the use of open source software – which could be reused by PfS or other members of the community – was an important element for us. In addition, open source offers us a flexible, tailored solution which allowed us to spend the budget where it matters most, providing functionality on the product rather than on licence fees.”

Karl Hoods will be available for further comment. Contact Nicky Old, Senior Communications Manager, for more details on 020 7273 0031 or email nicky.old@partnershipsforschools.org.uk

Notes to Editors:

  1. The new PfS site will be available at: www.partnershipsforschools.org.uk
  2. The ICT in Building Schools for the Future event is held at the Royal College of Surgeons on Tuesday 18 March. Speakers include Minister of State for Schools and Learning, Jim Knight MP; Tim Byles; Colin Penfold, Director of Partnerships and Commissioning, BECTA; and Neil Salton, Head of Innovation, Cordless Consultants. See: http://education.guardian.co.uk/bsfevent Media are invited to attend.
  3. Building Schools for the Future (BSF) is the largest single schools capital investment programme for over 50 years. The aim is to rebuild or renew England’s state secondary schools estate during the lifetime of the programme.
  4. There are now 12 BSF schools open nationwide: Ifield, Kent (March 08), Michael Tippett SEN School, Lambeth (Feb 08), Sandon High School, Stoke (Feb 08), Birches Head, Stoke (Oct 07) Elm Green, Lambeth (Sept 07 – open in temporary blocks until new build is completed in 2009), Bristol Brunel Academy (Sept 07), Sixth Form, Haringey (Sept 07), Oxclose, Sunderland (June 07), Chaucer, Sheffield (Oct 06), Bamburgh, STaG  (Oct 06), All Saints, Newcastle (Sept 06), Solihull Centre for Inclusive Learning (May 06).
  5. Partnerships for Schools (PfS) is the delivery agency for Building Schools for the Future. PfS was established in April 2004 as a Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB), and is operated and funded under a joint venture between DCSF (formerly DfES) and Partnerships UK.