Thorner Church of England Primary School

Thorner Church of England Primary is a small school with big ambitions. Awarded ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted, the school celebrates achievement and recognises the success of each of its pupils. Although situated in the quaint countryside village of Thorner, the school is not limited by its size. Thorner Church of England Primary School has a forward thinking outlook and likes to stay on top of technological advances.

In spring 2010, a decision was made to extend the school and increase student admissions. As part of this expansion, the school’s ICT suite was turned into a classroom, forcing the school to rethink the way that ICT could be delivered to students. Faced with limited space, Thorner Church of England Primary School turned to LapSafe® Products to provide it with a fully mobile and network enabled ICT management solution.

Headteacher Alison Wrigglesworth was determined that the removal of the school’s static ICT suite would not affect her students’ education. She said:

“Children are now computer literate from a very young age, with most having used a computer before they have even entered education. Children expect to learn with ICT, and we wanted to ensure that the school could still cater for their needs in the absence of a fixed ICT lab.

By purchasing a LapSafe® Midi Mentor™, the school could continue to bring ICT to its students, but in a much more flexible way. As Alison says, “All of our classrooms are now potential ICT suites.”

Although mobility was an important requirement, Thorner Church of England Primary School also wanted a charging trolley that was superior in its use of technology. Having previously been an ICT Coordinator herself, Alison was attracted to the sophisticated features of the SmartLine™ charging option. Alison said: “We chose SmartLine™ charging because we wanted a product that would charge our laptops safely and intelligently to protect battery life.”

With the use of individual cables that replace the AC adaptors, SmartLine™ charging saves time when deploying the laptops because students and teachers are not faced with excessive cabling.

In addition to intelligent and safe charging, Thorner Church of England Primary School needed a storage solution that was both resilient and secure. Alison explains: “Unfortunately, we have had issues with theft in the past, with the school being burgled on the evening after our last Ofsted inspection.

“Our laptops are a significant investment, especially as we no longer have a static ICT suite, and we needed a strong, reliable and resilient product to protect them from theft. With this in mind, it was essential for us to buy from a trusted and well known brand.”

Alison continued: “Having a mobile trolley has completely changed the way that we deliver ICT to our students, but it is not just the product that has impressed us. The level of service and support provided by LapSafe® was also fantastic, and the sales team went above and beyond to ensure our needs were catered for.