CRL1997 Posted May 2 Posted May 2 Hi, i got told yesterday that my internal role is going be dissolved and the trust is going to a full MSP, which i’m assured i’ll be TUPE’d over and theres a “ton” of progression…. I have been running a secondary school on my own with over 1000+ pupils pretty much alone for the last 18 months due to other staff leaving. We currently have a MSP and feel the usual pain points as we have with the other 2 companies we have used, so obviously i’m very concerned about this and seeking union advise, has anyone else been in this situation? My minds doing overtime as you can imagine, especially as they haven’t agreed on the new MSP and wont for at least another month.
Sibrows Posted May 2 Posted May 2 As the decision is yet to be made see if you can be involved in the procurement of the MSP you know what your school needs best. This will then allow you to better hold the MSP to account. The MSP are more likely to be up for your CPD which will benefit you longer term. 1
ConceroEdu_Matt Posted May 3 Posted May 3 What are your concerns? I made the jump from a school, to a trust and then to an MSP - they all have pros and cons. MSPs are not a 'bad thing' - they are fully focused on IT, and if that is what you enjoy, thats a good thing! But it has to be the right one for you and your school. 2
CRL1997 Posted May 3 Author Posted May 3 My main concerns are around the t&c’s of my contract. I.e pension contributions etc. I know its a positive, however there are things like how I'm the main budget holder and when to repair or complete a job i can just get; where now its going have go through 3 or 4 people before hand. So its all the finer details that worry me, along with im quite respected within my school and have a lot of say with things - this is all going changed. if that makes sene.
ConceroEdu_Matt Posted May 3 Posted May 3 TUPE means these cannot be changed, your contract and pension will stay the same, unless you choose (you can't be forced) for it to be changed. In terms of the work, and how this may change onsite - it may do, but it does really depend on the MSP. For example, we really value local knowledge and expertise, it's priceless. 1
TheHyperTechie Posted May 5 Posted May 5 On 02/05/2026 at 08:58, CRL1997 said: Hi, i got told yesterday that my internal role is going be dissolved and the trust is going to a full MSP, which i’m assured i’ll be TUPE’d over and theres a “ton” of progression…. I have been running a secondary school on my own with over 1000+ pupils pretty much alone for the last 18 months due to other staff leaving. We currently have a MSP and feel the usual pain points as we have with the other 2 companies we have used, so obviously i’m very concerned about this and seeking union advise, has anyone else been in this situation? My minds doing overtime as you can imagine, especially as they haven’t agreed on the new MSP and wont for at least another month. Interesting, I was a similar situation about ~12 months ago. Our trust merged with another Trust who solely used an MSP for support. They TUPE'd me across, but not to the MSP. My contract is still with the school. 1
CRL1997 Posted May 5 Author Posted May 5 2 minutes ago, TheHyperTechie said: Interesting, I was a similar situation about ~12 months ago. Our trust merged with another Trust who solely used an MSP for support. They TUPE'd me across, but not to the MSP. My contract is still with the school. Yeah, that happened to us orginally - however the other 3 technicans accross the trust have left. They were very clear on the internal role is going be made redundant which baffels me as in January i was told the moduel should always be at least one school tech as its "ears on the ground"
TheHyperTechie Posted May 5 Posted May 5 1 minute ago, CRL1997 said: Yeah, that happened to us orginally - however the other 3 technicans accross the trust have left. They were very clear on the internal role is going be made redundant which baffles me as in January i was told the moduel should always be at least one school tech as its "ears on the ground" This doesn't fill me with much hope haha! joking - I am expecting news soon (I have prepared myself). Can you not push for a central role within the school/Trust? In my opinion, there still needs to be a central member of IT, as it just adds to the overall effectiveness of the support, and you know the staff/schools well. 2
CRL1997 Posted May 5 Author Posted May 5 Just now, TheHyperTechie said: This doesn't fill me with much hope haha! joking - I am expecting news soon (I have prepared myself). Can you not push for a central role within the school/Trust? In my opinion, there still needs to be a central member of IT, as it just adds to the overall effectiveness of the support, and you know the staff/schools well. Its took 6 years and many CFO changes to make this happen! I have tried - no luck... My honest opinion is that it means the trust dont need manage IT within operations... I agree with you though, i would 100% prefer be employed at trust level and manage / work with the MSP to work on stratergy and involve trust exec team as and when needed... 1
TheHyperTechie Posted May 5 Posted May 5 (edited) 1 hour ago, CRL1997 said: Its took 6 years and many CFO changes to make this happen! I have tried - no luck... My honest opinion is that it means the trust dont need manage IT within operations... I agree with you though, i would 100% prefer be employed at trust level and manage / work with the MSP to work on stratergy and involve trust exec team as and when needed... I have been curating a sort of "list" to help identify the areas of where a central IT member would work well. So I have something to present to them. But like you say, if they are adamant - you can't change their minds. Every Trust around me locally have the relationship that you explained, Head of IT, and then the MSP as 2nd line that they work with. This appears to be a very good setup (from what I have heard). Edited May 5 by TheHyperTechie
synaesthesia Posted May 5 Posted May 5 Just be careful of who the MSP is. MSP's are not inherently a bad thing as Matt above points out, but some are just diabolical. 2 examples, neither of which I'll name but I'll hint at - one often posts here for jobs and nearly always ends up on the Devalued thread for extremely poor salary. The other has posted here in the past for jobs, have a few trading names one is often part of a car clutch and comes after "Dual Mass" and the other is a popular gaming youtube channel coming after "Gaming Nxxxx". Would run away from both! 2
JazzFlute Posted May 5 Posted May 5 On 02/05/2026 at 08:58, CRL1997 said: Hi, i got told yesterday that my internal role is going be dissolved and the trust is going to a full MSP, which i’m assured i’ll be TUPE’d over and theres a “ton” of progression…. I have been running a secondary school on my own with over 1000+ pupils pretty much alone for the last 18 months due to other staff leaving. We currently have a MSP and feel the usual pain points as we have with the other 2 companies we have used, so obviously i’m very concerned about this and seeking union advise, has anyone else been in this situation? My minds doing overtime as you can imagine, especially as they haven’t agreed on the new MSP and wont for at least another month. Not sure of your length of service or age, but could redundancy be an option? This could be considered either as a business decision, or if they attempt to change terms and conditions (such as location). If you are over 55 and made redundant, you may be able to draw your LGPS without penalties. Combined with a redundancy payment, this might be enough to support you for a while. You could also still apply for other roles, including within the new MSP, if they offer you a different/lesser (and acceptable) position which in the long run could save them money so might be viable to them being as they have a central IT Team. 1
TheRobins Posted May 5 Posted May 5 On 02/05/2026 at 08:58, CRL1997 said: Hi, i got told yesterday that my internal role is going be dissolved and the trust is going to a full MSP, which i’m assured i’ll be TUPE’d over and theres a “ton” of progression…. I have been running a secondary school on my own with over 1000+ pupils pretty much alone for the last 18 months due to other staff leaving. We currently have a MSP and feel the usual pain points as we have with the other 2 companies we have used, so obviously i’m very concerned about this and seeking union advise, has anyone else been in this situation? My minds doing overtime as you can imagine, especially as they haven’t agreed on the new MSP and wont for at least another month. I am sure this is a worry for anyone, especially in the first instance its almost sounds like you are being forced out. Not experienced it myself yet, however have helped a couple of people who have been through this process. If it was me personally, I would try and keep a positive view on it, even speak to your current line manager / team and asked to be involved in the selection process or at least be updated on progress. Show willing will allow you to see what is coming down the road. It’s like any sort of outsourcing, there are good ones and there are bad ones. There is certainly career potential going forwards, more so concentrating on a strand of IT rather than what we do, everything with a plug on it and more. Schools usually have their reasons for taking these routes so again, is it worth asking why they are doing this. I did visit another school last week, a big one that’s very popular and they have had huge issues with their current MSP who they are kicking out as soon as possible. Once you start asking questions it all seemed very political and the people who made the decision to outsource have now gone themselves once it started to go south in a big way. Best of luck with it and hopefully you get a clearer picture from those making the decisions. 1
empty Posted May 5 Posted May 5 1 hour ago, JazzFlute said: If you are over 55 and made redundant, you may be able to draw your LGPS without penalties. Combined with a redundancy payment, this might be enough to support you for a while. This depends on your length of service. It very quickly becomes far too expensive for any TRUST CFO to sign off on having to pay the pension strain of any one too far away from retirement. 1
JazzFlute Posted May 5 Posted May 5 7 minutes ago, empty said: This depends on your length of service. It very quickly becomes far too expensive for any TRUST CFO to sign off on having to pay the pension strain of any one too far away from retirement. Yes i agree its expensive and maybe worth bringing up at the start of outsourcing IT support with an MSP so they can factor in that option as the MSP might not have/want the current job role in their current or future plans as I know of a school who went from a NM and 2 techs to just 1 tech when an Academy took them over. There's not always the same job available once an Academy takes over as they have their own central team and ways of working as the jobs you may think are important and fill your working week up now become centralised and what you personally think the school cant do without all of a sudden can although things take longer and are different but its all in the trusts plans and not the individual schools anymore. 1
ConceroEdu_Matt Posted May 5 Posted May 5 2 hours ago, CRL1997 said: Its took 6 years and many CFO changes to make this happen! I have tried - no luck... My honest opinion is that it means the trust dont need manage IT within operations... I agree with you though, i would 100% prefer be employed at trust level and manage / work with the MSP to work on stratergy and involve trust exec team as and when needed... I absolutely think having someone trust based to be a key liaison, employed by the trust is a good move, for both the trust and the MSP. But don't forget, whoever wins any tender, may well suggest this, and a role created. 1
ConceroEdu_Matt Posted May 5 Posted May 5 4 minutes ago, JazzFlute said: Yes i agree its expensive and maybe worth bringing up at the start of outsourcing IT support with an MSP so they can factor in that option as the MSP might not have/want the current job role in their current or future plans as I know of a school who went from a NM and 2 techs to just 1 tech when an Academy took them over. There's not always the same job available once an Academy takes over as they have their own central team and ways of working as the jobs you may think are important and fill your working week up now become centralised and what you personally think the school cant do without all of a sudden can although things take longer and are different but its all in the trusts plans and not the individual schools anymore. An MSP would need to TUPE - you can opt out as an individual, but you are therefore basically leaving with no redundancy option. Obviously if there are new roles/opportunities within the MSP after they take over the contract - this could be something open to you, but it may mean a new contract, and therefore losing some of the TUPE protection. 1
CRL1997 Posted May 5 Author Posted May 5 3 hours ago, synaesthesia said: Just be careful of who the MSP is. MSP's are not inherently a bad thing as Matt above points out, but some are just diabolical. 2 examples, neither of which I'll name but I'll hint at - one often posts here for jobs and nearly always ends up on the Devalued thread for extremely poor salary. The other has posted here in the past for jobs, have a few trading names one is often part of a car clutch and comes after "Dual Mass" and the other is a popular gaming youtube channel coming after "Gaming Nxxxx". Would run away from both! Feel free to message me, im intregued to who you are on about! im quite new to Edugeek!
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