Schools fibre internet service

NEW high-speed fibre internet could be installed at schools across Dundee at a cost of more than £2.5m if councillors accept the tender.

Members of the council’s city governance committee will be told that due to the increasing use of mobile devices and internet for online learning, current internet services are under strain.

John Alexander committee convener said: “These services will allow digital learning to be upgraded even further in schools and enable greater use of cloud-based services.

“The tender is structured in such a way that spare capacity will be built-in to ensure future growth can be easily accommodated.”

Stewart Hunter convener of the council’s children, families and communities committee added: “We are keen to achieve Digital Schools Award Scotland (DSAS) status by next summer and with digital infrastructure such as high-speed fibre internet as a key plank of digital learning this contract will be an important step on that journey.”

A report to the committee recommends that the £2.6m bid from Commsworld is accepted as it offers the best combination of cost and quality of the eight tenders received.

The city governance committee meets on Monday (November 20).