We all know that data has become an increasingly valuable commodity. From our spending habits to our whereabouts, digital organisations are using this information to help them improve their service or sell their products.
But with so much of our personal data online, this opens us up to potential threats. It’s vital to ensure that this information doesn’t get into the wrong hands - and that’s especially true for your school’s data.
Secure, cloud-based platforms are increasingly being employed by businesses and other organisations to make sure that their data can only be accessed by the right people, at the right time. As the information that schools hold on their staff and students is particularly sensitive, it’s not surprising that the Department for Education has offered guidance on how education settings can also move to cloud-based systems.
But moving a school’s systems onto the cloud is a job not to be taken lightly. Yusuf Johnson is head of IT services at Hurlingham School in Wandsworth, London, and took up the role in 2021 when the school was at a pivotal point, having partially moved its systems to the cloud.
“They had fully migrated in terms of email, but the file storage and documents were in two places, with some in the cloud and some still on local storage,” he explains.
So began a process of “sorting and prioritising” to make the big switch to a fully cloud-based system. There was some initial concern among staff, Johnson continues, so he was careful to “reassure them that it wasn’t going to be a sudden cut-off” of access to essential documents.
Getting buy-in from staff is key when rolling out new systems, so Johnson ensured that the benefits were made clear. He also made sure he had “a few people who were a bit more comfortable with that technology who could give advice and help colleagues as necessary”, he says.
Why it’s time to move your data to the cloud
So, before you embark on your own digital data shift, what are the benefits that come with cloud-based data storage and why is now the time to make the switch?
1. Improved security
Sara Parker is group product director for ParentPay Group and SIMS, and says that data protection is a key advantage of making the move to cloud-based systems, as “it is likely to be more secure in our private cloud platform than it would be in local school servers”.
She points out that many schools have been subjected to ransomware attacks over the last couple of years and that these incidents have “serious real-world consequences”.
“Data security is one of the key things for any school to consider going forward,” she continues. “Moving it into the cloud is a really good way for them to secure that data and know that it is safe.”
2. Reduced costs
Another major benefit for school leaders is the potential cost reduction in moving to cloud-based services, Parker explains, from reduced hardware outlay to upfront subscription costs.
“The savings will obviously vary from school to school, based on different school types and how they’re currently configured,” she explains. “But you don’t have to have the server hardware on the premises, so you don’t have the costs associated with that, and you don’t have the costs associated with making changes to the software, which we provide along with upgrades, patches and so on.”
3. Increased reliability
A particular benefit for IT staff, Johnson says, is that cloud-based tools “are just a lot more reliable”.
“In terms of day-to-day working, that’s why I like the idea of moving systems to the cloud,” he says. “When you have systems running locally, you run into more trouble in terms of having to maintain them, and manage the upkeep of local hardware software, with patching and so on. Having things in the cloud removes a lot of that and is a lot more reliable.”
4. Greater flexibility
Johnson says staff at his school are now experiencing greater freedom thanks to the remote access options of cloud-based systems.
“One of the major benefits for us is that it has enabled us to implement our transition to a more mobile system, so having devices that the teachers can use anywhere they are,” he explains. “It’s made a big difference to the way people work, with flexibility that means the teacher doesn’t need to be tied to a certain place.”
And that freedom means that staff can be more efficient, Parker explains. “That is obviously very beneficial,” she says. “If you’re a teacher who needs to take a register when you’re not in the classroom, on a trip, for example, you can do that using any mobile device, whether that’s a phone or a tablet.
“It’s incredibly effective for teachers, enabling them to optimise their time and maximise their ability to get teaching, which is what we want to help them to do.”
