Total cost of implementation of National Improvement Hub: FOI release

FOI reference: FOI/17/01734
Date received: 27 July 2017
Date responded: 16 August 2017

Information requested

You asked for details of all expenditure on the National Improvement Hub being implemented by the Head of Digital Services.

Details of all suppliers costs including vat during 2016 and the costs so far in 2017. Please also provide details of the expected continuing costs of this system after it is finished.

A breakdown of costs by supplier if there is more than one, plus details of what competitive process was used by the Head of Digital Services in selecting the suppliers and placing the business is also requested.

Response

Education Scotland initiated the National Improvement Hub programme with the aim to overhaul the entire corporate web estate to provide simplified end-user web channels, comprehensive and up-to-date content and digital resources designed to support improvement in Scottish education. Education Scotland is engaged with a wide range of stakeholders, including those who work directly with learners, to ensure the design supports improvement in the system

The (high level) scope of the technical work stream of the National Improvement Hub programme:

• Secure resilient Cloud infrastructure to house all corporate online channels.

• Technical developments required for production release of core Website channels.

• National Improvement and Hub & Education Endowment Foundation data.

• Corporate Website.

• ParentZone.

• National Qualifications.

• Technical content migration to new architecture.

• Technical decommissioning of legacy web hosting architecture and (56) microsites.

Technical Supplier, Cost Profile (inc. VAT) 2016-17

• 2016: £279,144: Leidos

• 2017: £466,566: Leidos

Procurement/Competitive process

As the contract value exceeded £50k, this National Improvement Hub Web development requirement/procurement was publicised on the Public Contracts Scotland website (in accordance with Section 23(2) of the Procurement Reform Act 2014) using a competitive procedure, to ensure value for money is achieved, along with registering the contract in Education Scotland's Contracts Register

The recommended and utilised procurement route to market was with the Crown Commercial Services (CCS) G-Cloud 7 Framework Agreement.

This route meets the main procurement requirements:

• Reduced procurement timescales allows for the development to be complete in line with the time inflexible requirements of the National Improvement Hub programme.

• Use of existing framework reduces the resource requirements, whilst providing a level of competition and ensuring compliance with EU legislation.

Ongoing development/continuing costs

Programme and product delivery is currently in development and final production launch on the National Improvement Hub website is scheduled for integration during September 2017. Continuing development/enhancement of the Education Scotland web channels will be reviewed in conjunction with key stakeholder analysis and will influence ongoing costs, however, currently, there is no commitment to further enhance the web estate beyond September 2017.

About FOI

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