[sims] ESS threatens Capita with injunction over SIMS use in Northern Ireland schools

[Hedgehog13]

Surely there must be a better way to resolve this dispute?

 

Education Software Solutions (ESS) has asked the High Court to intervene in a row that risks disruption at 1,100 state schools in Northern Ireland.

 

Capita sold the SIMS software to ESS, set up by the private equity firm Montagu, for £400m in 2020 as part of chief executive Jon Lewis’s efforts to reduce a £1.1bn debt burden. The outsourcer continued to provide the software to schools in Northern Ireland under licence, but ESS claims that permission expired in March.

 

Capita disputes this, telling the court it accepted “commercial terms” for an extension of the licence proposed by ESS during a phone call.

 

ESS wants the High Court to declare that no valid extension was made and have threatened to apply for an injunction forcing the software to be deleted across Northern Ireland.

 

Around 1,100 Northern Irish state schools could be forced to delete copies of the software provided by Capita, which ESS claims are effectively pirated.

 

Further information on this dispute and the court claims/counterclaims can be found on the WhichMIS? website at whichmis.com

[StuartAbrahams]

An interesting read.

It makes you wonder what caused such a breakdown in communications to end up in court?

Imagine the fallout if all Northern Irish schools have to remove SIMS?

[localzuk]

This seems like a great way for 1100 schools to stop using Sims altogether further damaging ESS.

 

A really misguided plan by ESS, I'd say.

 

ESS seems like it really needs new leadership, as it is constantly shooting itself in the foot.

[Starbug1]

Was there any outcome to this? I tried searching but was unable to find the outcome.

[ThomL]

Wasn't there some sort of open tender for the NI schools that Bromcom won? But then something else happened and now they aren't going with Bromcom? I'm not sure, I haven't read everything that's happened, answers might be here: [bROMCOM] Bromcom has been chosen for NI schools

[Aftab_Ahmed]

As far as I am aware, the Bromcom MIS is continuing and despite the cancellation of the Fujitsu contract. Schools in Northern Ireland are still going to be migrated as previously planned.

[Aftab_Ahmed]

Here is the link to validate this as well re Bromcom continuing in NI.

 

https://www.whichmis.com/485-million-fujitsu-contract-with-the-education-authority-northern-ireland-eani-will-not-continue/