Make IT support reliable, measurable and reviewable

IT support keeps teaching, safeguarding systems and day-to-day operations running. But in many schools and trusts, the reality is a mix of contracts, informal processes and scattered records, making it hard to answer basic questions like: what are we paying for, how quickly are issues resolved, and what risks are we carrying?

With budgets under pressure and limited time to review, it is easy for service levels, training and improvement work to slip. The DfE IT support standard sets clear expectations for planning, commissioning and reviewing IT support. Computeam Compass helps you assess your current position, assign next steps, and keep a clear record of contracts, SLAs, reviews, incidents and improvements in one place.

Request Your Free Compass Demo Login

47% of secondary schools with outsourced IT support have no minimum or maximum contracted hours.

Source: Technology in schools survey: 2024 to 2025 – Research report (Department for Education, carried out by IFF Research, published Nov 2025)

The IT support checks you need in place

The DfE IT support standard sets expectations for how schools and colleges plan, commission and review IT support services. It defines IT support as the people and providers who make sure your digital technology works reliably, stays secure and is kept up to date. This can include in-house staff, trust or local authority teams, external suppliers or a hybrid model.

The standard links closely to the wider DfE digital and technology standards. IT support is expected to help your school or college meet the six core infrastructure standards for 2030, as well as areas such as cyber security, digital leadership and governance, and filtering and monitoring.

At a glance, this digital and technology standard covers:

Making sure IT support helps you meet the DfE digital and technology standards

Ensuring IT support maintains and improves technology in line with your digital strategy

Agreeing clear expectations for responsiveness, escalation and service levels

Reviewing IT support at least once a year, including value for money and capacity

Providing staff with guidance and training so they can use technology safely and effectively

When IT support is inconsistent, confidence in technology drops

IT support underpins almost every aspect of school life. Staff rely on it to keep core systems – from MIS and safeguarding platforms to email, telephony and cloud services – running smoothly. When support is unclear or overstretched, small issues can quickly disrupt lessons, office work and communication with families.

There is a significant focus on safeguarding and data protection as IT support plays a key role in maintaining secure networks, applying patches, managing user accounts and keeping filtering, monitoring and backup systems effective. Weaknesses in any of these areas increase the risk of cyber incidents, data loss and serious safeguarding concerns.

The IT support standard also highlights the importance of responsiveness and capacity. Without agreed expectations and a clear way to track support requests, it is hard to know whether issues are being handled quickly enough or whether extra capacity is needed at busy times such as exam periods or the start of the academic year.

For multi-academy trusts, a structured approach to IT support makes it easier to manage risk across multiple sites, plan upgrades and ensure that staff and pupils receive a consistent level of support wherever they are taught.

How Compass helps you get control of IT support

Computeam Compass translates the DfE IT support standard into clear, trackable expectations. It gives schools and trusts a single place to see how IT support is organised, what needs attention and who is responsible for next steps.

Make the expectations visible

Compass presents the IT support requirements as a structured set of criteria, aligned with the DfE guidance. Schools can record how support is provided, which providers or teams cover which systems, and what response and resolution times have been agreed. Trust leaders gain a consistent view of how IT support arrangements compare across sites, without needing to search through separate contracts and documents.

Assign ownership and track actions

Where gaps are identified, Compass allows you to create actions with named owners and due dates. For example, you might assign tasks to formalise service levels with a supplier, improve helpdesk processes, review peak-time capacity or update staff training plans. Progress is visible to SLT, IT managers and business staff, which supports timely follow-up and reduces the risk of important work slipping off the agenda.

Keep a secure, auditable record

Compass provides a secure space to store and reference key evidence, such as support contracts, SLAs, annual review notes, performance reports, incident summaries and staff feedback. Each update is time-stamped, so schools can demonstrate how IT support has been reviewed, how decisions were reached and what improvements have been made over time. This supports conversations with governors, trustees and external reviewers.

Give MAT leaders a trust-wide view

For multi-academy trusts, Compass brings IT support information from multiple schools into one dashboard. Central teams can see which schools have up-to-date reviews, clear service expectations and sufficient capacity, and where additional support or contract changes may be needed. This helps with planning trust-wide support models, prioritising investment and targeting help to schools with greater risk or demand.

Your next steps

If you are reviewing your IT support against the digital and technology DfE standard, Computeam Compass can give structure and visibility; helping you see what support you have in place today, plan realistic improvements and maintain the evidence you need for internal assurance and external scrutiny.