Restrictions to Microsoft Office software in Scottish schools: FOI Release

Information requested

1. All correspondence between Scottish Ministers to local authorities, Education Scotland and Scottish Government officials that relate to the introduction of restrictions to Microsoft Office software in Scottish schools from 1 August 2023 to date.
2. How many times has the introduction of restrictions to the Microsoft Office A1 Plus licence in Scottish schools been discussed at Cabinet from 1 August 2023 to date.

Response

1. All correspondence between Scottish Ministers to local authorities, Education Scotland and Scottish Government officials that relate to the introduction of restrictions to Microsoft Office software in Scottish schools from 1 August 2023 to date.

This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested. There was no correspondence between Scottish Ministers to local authorities, Education Scotland and Scottish Government officials in relation to Microsoft software restrictions in Scottish schools between 1 August 2023 and 11 July 2024.

2. How many times has the introduction of restrictions to the Microsoft Office A1 Plus licence in Scottish schools been discussed at Cabinet from 1 August 2023 to date.

This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested, as the introduction of restrictions to Microsoft products in Glow has not been discussed at Cabinet between 1 August 2023 and 11th July 2024.

Whilst Glow is funded by the Scottish Government, Glow is delivered and managed by Education Scotland via Local Authorities.

Because local authorities are ultimately responsible for education, including decisions around which technologies to deploy to what effect, it is worth stating that Education Scotland has no direct relationship with Glow users in local authorities (primarily learners, teachers and other school staff) – that responsibility for this lies with local authorities themselves, as does responsibility to assess the local impact of any change.

However, Education Scotland does engage with local authorities ‘Glow Key Contacts’ to ensure they are acting in accordance with their responsibilities. We are aware that Education Scotland did make key contacts aware of this issue on a regular basis from as early as August 2023 when Microsoft announced a number of changes to their free licence offers.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.