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About Becta

Becta leads the national drive to inspire and lead the effective and innovative use of technology throughout learning.

 

Call for industry to support Systems Interoperability Framework

ICT industry players involved in the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme are being asked to re-double their efforts in identifying and implementing a way to collect data about students in a "write once, use many times model".

With around half of all local authorities in England now engaged in the BSF programme it is becoming increasingly important that a Schools Interoperability Framework [now known as the Systems Interoperability Framework] is adopted without delay, according to Tim Byles, Chief Executive of Partnerships for Schools, who was speaking at the Schools of the Future Summit on 11 June 2008.

Tim Byles said: “We are challenging the ICT industry, through the recently revised ICT Output Specification, to develop and provide systems which will enable diverse applications within the education and wider children’s services sectors to interact and share data efficiently, reliably and securely, regardless of the platform hosting the applications.

He added: “Becta has championed the adoption of the Schools Interoperability Framework (or SIF as it is known) as a national standard for schools’ data interchange, and has led the way with a pilot in Birmingham last year. I applaud their work to date and look forward to working with them further on this issue, and as the BSF programme accelerates and school leaders get to work in their new ICT-rich school environments, we have to make sure that they have all the tools at their disposal to ensure that the commitment translates into something that is meaningful and which works on the ground.”

Further information

Find out more about the Systems Interoperability Framework.

You can read Tim Byles' full speech or the press release on the Partnerships for Schools website.