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CONNECTING THE FUTURE
Gary Roche, Education BDM at TP-Link UK&I, discusses network technology for education.
R
obust connectivity in schools and universities is a fundamental resource for modern education. Just as pen
and paper were once essential tools, today’s learning environments depend on robust, secure networks to support digital learning, collaboration, and development. Yet, we recognise the persistent challenge: educational institutions are oſten expected to deliver consistent connectivity on constrained budgets. Research conducted in 2023 found that just 63% of schools reported having a fully functional Wi-Fi signal throughout the whole school. To improve this, the Department for
Education has recently announced a £45 million investment in school connectivity. Tis includes £25 million to upgrade wireless networks and £20 million to complete the delivery of fibre upgrades to 833 schools. Despite this extra investment, the challenge remains: how can educational institutions implement robust, future-proof solutions within tight budget constraints?
22 | September/October 2025
Designing networks for high-density learning environments Reliability is the first key criterion that any networking solution for education needs to meet. Downtime means teachers are unable to access critical lesson plans, content and resources, and leaves students with no access to the digital services required in the modern education setting. Disruption to students’ concentration can be hard to resolve, especially within a relatively short 50-minute lesson. Any solution that cannot deliver constant uptime during teaching hours is unsuitable for the education environment. With high-performance access points, switches, gateways and controllers, schools can provide network architecture that supports users, including provided and bring- your-own devices. Additionally, network infrastructure must be
built to handle high-density traffic across the whole campus, with the volume and complexity of traffic scaling from primary to secondary schools. Educational institutions also face the
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