Education


periods. You also have high visibility of spend and a deep expectation that money is being used responsibly. If devices are disposed of poorly, you can miss the opportunity


to extend useful life through refurbishment, you can lose residual value, and you can add risk through inadequate data sanitisation. If they are disposed of well, you can reduce waste, reclaim funds, and build a credible sustainability story that stands up to scrutiny. It is also where the difference between a general recycling


supplier and a specialist technology partner becomes important. Sustainability in IT is about more than simply collecting devices – it covers security, auditability, and circularity, with measurable outcomes that can be reported in a way that procurement, IT, finance, and leadership all trust.


Social value requirements are raising the bar Education procurement leaders are already familiar with social value language. What is changing is the level of accountability expected aſter contract award. Te Procurement Act 2023’s move to Most Advantageous Tender


(MAT) is oſten read as a signal that authorities can more confidently balance wider public benefit alongside price and quality, rather than treating lowest cost as the default. Alongside that, the updated Social Value Model under PPN 002 sets out how social value should be taken into account for in scope central government procurements commencing on or aſter 24 February 2025. Even where education organisations are not strictly “in scope” in the same way as central government departments, there is an expectation that sustainability commitments are specific, measurable, and deliverable. Many education organisations continue to procure through


established frameworks that remain live under PCR2015 regulations until 2027 and beyond. Tese frameworks provide compliant, efficient access to suppliers without running a full tender. SCC, for example, is an approved supplier on CCS TEPAS 2 and the LUPC NDNA framework. Regardless of the route to market, the underlying challenge


remains the same. It is easy for suppliers to make broad sustainability claims. It is harder to evidence delivery across a contract lifecycle. Technology procurement is one of the few areas where this is possible, because devices are countable, traceable assets with a defined lifecycle. Reuse, refurbishment, recovery value, and zero-waste processes can all be measured.


The compromises education teams face Tensions that sit behind many technology decisions in education include the perceived compromise between security and circularity. Reuse and refurbishment are good for sustainability, but not if they create a data risk. Tat is why education organisations oſten default to disposal or destruction without exploring how to safely extend the life of assets. A second tension is between short-term affordability and long-


term cost. A low headline price today can create a higher total cost later through support demand, performance issues, and earlier replacement. Tere is also the energy profile of older devices, which can be material at scale. A credible sustainability approach should acknowledge this, rather than pretend the cheapest option is always the greenest.


www.pcr-online.biz A third tension is operational capacity. Many education IT teams


are stretched. Managing returns, collections, redeployments, and reporting can become another burden unless it is designed to be simple and auditable. Tis is where integrated sustainable IT services, delivered as part


of a managed lifecycle, can turn sustainability from a burden into a lever for cost efficiency and digital transformation.


Unlocking digital transformation through circularity It may feel counterintuitive to talk about digital transformation in the same breath as recycling. But a mature lifecycle approach can actively enable transformation. If you can extend device life where it makes sense, you can


stabilise fleets and reduce emergency spend. If you can build predictable routes for exit and replacement, you can plan refreshes around learning priorities rather than around failures. If you can evidence sustainability outcomes, you can strengthen your tender position and meet stakeholder expectations without creating an administrative burden. Device as a Service (DVaaS) is a strategic model that education


organisations are increasingly exploring. DVaaS shiſts devices into a predictable operating expenditure model, with built-in circularity, defined refresh cycles, and a clear route for assets to re-enter the cycle at the right time. For education procurement leaders, the appeal is operational clarity as well as financial. Devices are refreshed before they become a support and security problem, and end of life is managed through a defined process rather than informal disposal. Some institutions will prefer ownership for specific reasons. But


DVaaS is an example of how sustainability can be aligned with cost control and performance outcomes rather than treated as a competing priority. Whether you are running a formal tender or testing the market,


the quality of sustainable IT claims can be assessed with a small set of practical questions. • Ask how data sanitisation is performed, which standards are met, and what evidence you receive for each asset.


• Ask what happens to devices aſter collection, including whether refurbishment and remarketing are in-house or subcontracted.


• Ask how ‘zero waste to landfill’ is defined and evidenced. • Ask what reporting you will receive over the contract lifecycle, not just at the end.


• Ask for education-relevant outcomes, including examples where sustainability has reduced cost or enabled redeployment at scale.


Tese questions are not about catching suppliers out. Tey are about ensuring you can stand behind the outcomes that you will ultimately be accountable for. Education procurement leaders are being asked to deliver sustainability, cost efficiency, and digital transformation in a way that is defensible, measurable, and aligned to public benefit. Te good news is that technology lifecycle management is one of


the few areas where sustainability can be engineered into everyday operations, with clear metrics, strong governance, and real impact. With an integrated approach that combines secure data sanitisation, refurbishment, remarketing, and transparent reporting, sustainability can become a lever for better value and better digital outcomes, rather than an additional pressure on already stretched teams.


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