Choosing cost-effective broadband to support cloud services adoption in schools

Talk Straight is a trusted partner on our ICT Solutions Framework. They have provided insight on how schools should carefully select cost-effective broadband to adapt to the rapid growth of cloud services.

A leap in the adoption of cloud-services has pushed internet connections to their limit for some schools. Poor legacy broadband performance is prohibiting progress and causing internet frustrations in the classroom and back office, and these are just some of the ways schools are being impacted.

The growth in reliance on cloud technology means there is no escaping the fact faster broadband speeds are now essential for the effective running of schools today. The cloud is more secure, cheaper to run, affords greater collaboration, allows remote working, and provides data storage and recovery that can get your school up and running in a flash in the event of a network or data breach.

In 2022 the Department for Education introduced minimum broadband standards for schools:

• Primary schools should have a minimum 100Mbps download speed and a minimum 30Mbps upload speed
• Secondary and all-through schools should have a minimum 1Gbps connection
• An additional resilient backup connection, of a different type to your main internet connection should be installed
• A firewall and filtering service is required as part of the school’s internet and network system

Faster Broadband Speeds for Less

Until now, the cost of broadband speeds required to support the heavy demands of multiple cloud services has been somewhat prohibitive for most schools and tantalisingly out of reach for others. However, the latest addition of fibre technologies, known as Ultrafast Broadband or FTTP (Fibre to the Premises), is sweeping its way across the country at a rapid rate, providing incredible bandwidth and connection speeds at very attractive and affordable prices.

This technology is already proving to be a game-changer for Schools Broadband schools, with FTTP ultrafast connections providing download speeds up to 1000Mbps (Mega-bits per second or 1Gbps) for around the same price or sometimes less than a 100Mbps Leased Line; a staggering ten-fold increase in speeds for significantly less than the cost of a 100Mbps Leased Line.

What Activity will an Ultrafast Connection Support?

In some cases, an Ultrafast connection can provide full deployment of one-to-one devices throughout a whole school, and provide enough bandwidth to support a migration of school services to the cloud. We always advise you check with us as there are variable demands on speeds that should always be taken in to account.

Ultrafast FTTP uses full fibre connectivity direct to school premises. The network is expanding at a rapid pace and is already well-established, with thousands of additional premises being passed by the network regularly.

Do you think you could benefit from upgraded broadband at your organisation?  Our ICT Solutions Framework is free to access for all public sector organisations. Find more information below:

ICT Solutions Framework