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Northern Grid for Learning holds a contract with Netmedia to provide a pupil and teacher learning platform for schools within the region. This contract is due to expire on January 28th 2009. The Local Authority Learning Platform group has asked that the contract with Netmedia be extended until the end of the academic year in August 2009. This has been agreed with Netmedia. Schools which do not cancel their current Netmedia learning platform account by the end of May 2008 will have access to this service until August 2009. A regional re-procurement will begin in August 2008, in order to ensure continuous service and provision of a regional learning platform Northern Grid is working on a Statement of Requirement for the regional learning platform. This will be available for comment, review and feedback, via the Northern Grid portal at the beginning of June. Northern Grid will use the BECTA framework for approved learning platform providers. The procurement will be launched in August 2008. Companies on the BECTA list will be invited to bid for the regional contract. The invitation on the BECTA site will give the BECTA approved companies two months to respond. The final date for submissions will be at the end of September 2008. An initial evaluation of responses in will take place in October. This will result in a shortlist of providers being drawn up. The shortlisted companies will be invited to attend presentation workshops after half term in October. This will result in the identification of two possible providers. The two possible providers will be asked to set up trial accounts in 2 primary schools and 2 secondary schools in each LA in the first half of the spring term. The approved final preferred provider before will be identified by Easter 2009. Contracts will be finalised and signed during the summer term of 2009. The new contract will begin from Sept 2009. Schools are invited to take part in the selection process. If you are interested in being involved in the initial shortlisting, the presentation workshops or the Spring term trials, please contact Mel Philipson at the Northern Grid for Learning office on 0191 4611844 |
