IT Strategy (2018 – 2023)

Introduction

This document provides a strategic framework and plan for IT services for the next
three years, 2018-2023. It builds on the Digital Learning strategy and the College’s Strategic Plan.

The strategy is underpinned by our IT Services Vision statements:

  • We will take a ‘user-first’ approach in delivery IT Services – Consider the user experience in everything we do.
  • Continually driving digital innovation – Be flexible by anticipating and adapting positively to change.
  • Ensure all IT services are safe and resilient – Keep systems secure and manage the risks related to information technology.

Strategic Aims

The following section outlines the strategic choices for the next three years:

Digital Learning

We will support the delivery of an excellent student experience through investment in high quality learning resources.

Investment in our physical estate alongside the virtual will support the provision of high-quality educational experience to all our students.

  • Currently IT Services provides a good experience for students and staff with up-to-date computers and facilities in various locations across the campus. The main IT focus is on providing a reliable and safe IT environment which staff and students can rely on.
  • Student-facing open access IT facilities are available throughout the College with the main concentration being in the Glyn Library. Over the next three years it is expected that the trend towards mobile devices will continue, with IT Services providing increased services for bring your own device (BYOD). We have already seen over 4,500 student mobile devices connected to College Wifi with a greater shift to tablets and laptops.

We will continue to develop IT services to fully support the Digital Learning Strategy:

  • We will promote digital learning by enabling students and staff to have access to College IT services and software from wherever they are; whether in an open access area on campus or working away from the College. We will take a web-first approach for students and staff on their own devices (BYOD) to support both on-campus and secure remote working.
  • Our main collaboration platform will continue to be Google Workspace for Education. We have worked to embed collaboration and the use of Google Classroom across the College and the benefits of this are now becoming apparent.
  • Working with our colleagues in the Library, we will provide training to raise the standards of digital literacy for staff and students (e.g. Google Classroom and Google Sites training).

We will continue investing in our physical IT estate:

  • Over the next five years, it is expected the trend towards Chromebooks to continue. We will provide additional Chrome OS devices (e.g. Chromebooks and Chromeboxes) in classrooms and open access areas to ensure students have sufficient access to IT. Teaching staff computers in workrooms and classrooms are consolidated into a single Chromebook where appropriate through a staff 1:1 device programme.
  • We will provide high quality and up-to-date computers in specialist IT classrooms that require access to software such as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Premiere, Blender, and Visual Studio. 
  • We will provide high quality and reliable audio visual facilities in classrooms that are easy to use and intuitive. This will include providing wireless projecting capabilities to enable screen-sharing from teaching staff mobile devices.
  • We will be bold and investigate new technologies to support digital learning.

IT Services to support efficiency and effectiveness

Invest strategically in our IT services and infrastructure to effectively and efficiently better support teaching, learning, and administrative functions.

  • The services which form the foundation of the College’s IT infrastructure will continue to be upgraded to provide up-to-date, reliable infrastructure including: high speed networking, high capacity WiFi network, and server storage. This investment will allow IT to keep up with the increasing demands placed on it.
  • We will provide Chromebooks as the default standard equipment for staff and students depending on requirements. Windows PCs and Apple Macs will only be used where there is a clear requirement. It is expected the number of PCs and Apple Macs in use will reduce and the number of Chromebooks will increase over the next five years.
  • Our use of Google Drive has led to a reduction in the demand for network storage for many users, however, this will not lead to a decrease in storage requirements due to increases in demand for photo, video, and music editing. We will need to continue to invest in high performance network storage to support this as well as the College’s administrative systems (e.g. CCTV, ProSolution, ZENworks).
  • Take a “user-first” approach to IT services and support to ensure all users (staff and students) receive a consistent service in every contact with IT Services.
  • Aim to reduce the number of internally developed systems by using existing or procuring new systems, unless there is clear, long-term value in maintaining an internally developed system.
  • Look for opportunities to migrate to cloud-based systems where it is possible to do so.
  • Provide energy efficient sustainable IT systems, taking advantage of energy saving technology where possible.
  • Work towards reducing the amount of printing which is needed across the College by sharing information digitally and moving to paperless meetings by implementing technologies and practises that will support this.
  • We will take advantage of new technologies which will drive improvements in the service, improve efficiency and reduce complexity.

Information Security

Information security is continuing to increase in importance and is now a strategic risk for many organisations. With all college activities depending on IT in some form, disruption caused by ransomware encrypting files or denial of service attacks could stop the college working and result in a damaged reputation. In addition to the risk of malicious attack, there is a risk of data loss caused by human error or misconfiguration of a system.

  • The security of information will be a priority and will require changes in staff and student behaviour, additional training, and changes in how we manage data and systems.
  • As our dependency on IT increases it is vital all services have a suitable level of resilience. 
  • Segregate our IT systems and network to reduce impact of an intrusion by following IT security best practises.
  • Ensure our policies and procedures continue to meet requirements of the Information Commissioner and GDPR.
  • Implement multi-factor authentication for web-based systems that provide access to personal data.