Teacher Strike: It takes Twitch Gamers 5 Days To Earn Primary Teachers Yearly Salary (82x Better Paid)

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Top Twitch Gamers Earns 82x More In A Month Than Average Primary Teacher Monthly Salary

To put these figures into perspective, we’ve compared the top earning Twitch streamers to workers in three sectors that will be going on strike in the UK.

Primary Teachers earn about £2,978 per month (before tax) or 82x less than xQc, the top-earning Twitch gamer. 

Train Drivers earn £4,041 (before tax) or 60x less than xQc.

Things look even worse for NHS Nurses, who make on average £2,787 per month (before tax) or about 88x less than the top-earning Twitch gamer.

University lecturers earn £3,417 (before tax) or 71x less than xQc.

Ambulance Workers and Fire Fighters both earn £3,083 (before tax) or 79x less than xQc.

Civil Servants earn £2,167 (before tax) or 112x less than xQc.

Finally, Postal Workers earn £2,083 (before tax) or 117x less than xQc.

It Takes xQc 5 Days To Earn A Primary Teacher’s Yearly Salary

Twitch gamer xQc would need to work a little over 4 days to earn a NHS Nurse’s yearly salary. 

xQc would need to stream for 5 days to surpass a Primary Teacher’s yearly income.

xQc could reach a UK Train Driver’s yearly salary in a little over 8 days.

xQc would need to stream for just over 5 days to earn a University Lecturer’s yearly salary.

xQc could reach a Fire Fighter or Ambulance Worker’s yearly salary in a little over 4 days.

Twitch gamer xQc would need to work a little over 3 days to surpass a Civil Servant & Postal Worker’s yearly salary.

 

***

Using data compiled from Feedpixel’s Twitch money calculator, Fair Betting Sites reveals that top Twitch gamers earn 82x more than a UK Train Driver monthly salary.

xQc is the #1 gaming streamer on Twitch, making £243,747 in January.

The average Train Driver earners £48,500 per year. The average NHS nurse brings in around £33,384 a year with salaries ranging from £26,000 to £42,000 and the average Primary Teacher earns even less, bringing in an average of £35,745 per year.

For full data, visit: https://www.safebettingsites.com/2023/02/02/twitch-gamer-monthly-earnings/

 https://www.safebettingsites.com/

Children’s Mental Health Week: Movement for Good funding will help bring innovative mental health and wellbeing materials to life for primary schools

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Specialist education insurer Ecclesiastical has partnered with children’s mental health charity, Happy Space, to help equip children with the tools they need to manage their mental health.

 

The charity has been awarded a £10,000 Movement for Good Award by Ecclesiastical’s parent company, Benefact Group, to deliver interactive workshops at primary schools across the country.

 

The funding will enable Happy Space to bring innovative mental health and wellbeing materials to life outside of the classroom with interactive ‘tent events’.

 

Between January 2023 to March 2024, primary schools taking part in the pilot will benefit from the interactive workshops as well as activity packs and guidebooks for students, lesson plans and teaching guides, and regular check-ins.

 

The mental health of pupils is a huge challenge for teachers and staff to manage and Children’s Mental Health Week1 which takes place from 6-12 February 2023 is helping to shine a spotlight on the importance of supporting children’s wellbeing.

 

Previous research2 by Ecclesiastical has shown an increase in pupil mental health issues year on year and schools have witnessed an increase in pupil anxiety (56%), stress (54%) and depression (46%) since the pandemic.

 

The research also revealed that despite the majority of schools (97%) providing mental health support for pupils, one in eight (12%) teachers reported feeling poorly equipped to support pupils with mental health issues.

 

Faith Kitchen, Customer Segment Director at Ecclesiastical Insurance, said: “As one of the leading insurers of schools in the UK, Ecclesiastical is passionate about supporting the education sector. Schools are under huge pressures and the mental health of pupils is a key risk for teachers and staff to manage. We’re committed to supporting schools and through our recent Movement for Good Awards we’re delighted to be supporting Happy Space in providing innovative wellbeing education for primary school students and staff.”

 

Tegan Creedy, Co-Founder at Happy Space, said: “Happy Space is working hard to help prevent mental health problems from developing wherever we possibly can. The way that we do that currently is by providing the resources and training schools need to provide amazing wellbeing education. The Movement for Good grant will enable Happy Space to transform the educational landscape through bringing our innovative mental health and wellbeing materials to life in a 3D world involving magical learning in a physical happy space ‘tent event’! We think learning about wellbeing should be inspiring, joyful and memorable and the Movement for Good grant allows us to execute our vision.’’

 

Ecclesiastical Insurance offers a range of risk management support and guidance to help schools manage the risks they face. For more information, visit the Hub for Education.

 

HYUNDAI PLEDGES £1M FOR SCHOOL TRIPS TO REMEMBER

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  • Almost half of parents admit their fondest childhood memories include school trips
  • With over a third confessing these outings impacted their future career path  
  • Hyundai is investing £1 million in a programme of school trips in order to prevent children missing out on such experiences
  • Bookings are now open for the initiative, which has launched with Hyundai’s Educator in Residence, Tim Campbell MBE  

 

Nearly half of parents (46%) admit that their fondest childhood memories included school trips.  

A study of 1,600 parents of school aged children, commissioned by leading car manufacturer, Hyundai, has revealed that 44% feel nostalgic about their formative years and trips outside the classroom. Over a third (32%) also admit that school trips had such an impact that they shaped their future career path.   

 

Two thirds (65%) of those surveyed confess that they wish they had appreciated school trips and their benefits more when they were at school, with just under three quarters (72%) revealing that they want their children to have the opportunity to go on more school trips.  

 

Nearly two fifths (39%) also recognise there is a chance their youngster won’t be offered the opportunity to go on school trips during the 2022 to 2023 academic year due to lack of school funding and volunteers. 

 

This research has been commissioned by Hyundai to launch its ‘Great British School Trip’ programme. The ambitious initiative will provide 25,000 school children aged seven to 14 with free school trips in 2023. The automotive company will offer bursaries to help the schools most in need to fund their school trips, including booking fees and travel costs. 

 

Ashley Andrew, Managing Director, Hyundai Motor UK, said: “When you’re a child, it’s great to get out and about to bring your learning to life, so it’s no wonder it’s such a key memory for so many.  

 

“Getting out of the classroom not only creates memories but fundamentally also brings a sense of excitement to a particular school subject. Also, school trips are often the first opportunity for a child to gain a sense of independence so it’s no surprise that many people remember the small things like reserving the back of the bus and spending time with friends in a new environment. 

 

“We firmly believe that school trips are an essential part of our young people’s development and something that every child should have access to, creating the same memories as their parents.” 

 

Through the ambitious initiative, Hyundai is investing £1 million in the programme, which has been shaped around Hyundai’s vision for the future, Progress for Humanity. This vision focuses on how connections and collaboration can help accelerate progress and innovation. The programme will be centred around four themes: Imagination and Curiosity, People and the Planet, Journeys and Adventures and Breakthroughs and Discoveries.  

 

The research drew attention to the benefits of school outings, with the opportunity to visit places outside of the classroom cited as the main advantage, as well as being able to link topics and subjects in a more meaningful way and allowing children to contextualise their classroom learnings.   

 

Over 350 venues have shown their support for The Great British School Trip by signing up as trip locations already. Children will be able to explore locations including Peak Activity Centres, The YHA, Disney Theatrical and The V&A, amongst others. 

 

Working together on the initiative, Tim Campbell MBE is Hyundai’s Educator in Residence. Tim sits on the City of London Education board and is Chair of Governors at an outstanding London secondary school. Tim recently visited Ghyllgrove Primary School in Essex to discuss the importance of school trips and chat about his own memories from his school days. Speaking about the programme, Tim said: “School trips are an integral part of a child’s educations, and I remember my own outings with such fond memories, even all these years later! What’s more, being able to turn these trips into further learning within the classroom is such an important skill and something that should be available for everyone. This programme is extremely timely and will be crucial in putting school trips firmly back on the agenda.”  

 

Bookings for The Great British School Trip are now open where teachers can select a school trip location. To find out more visit: https://blog.hyundai.co.uk/experiences/hyundai-csv/hyundai-pledges-1m-for-school-trips-to-remember  

WESLEYAN FOUNDATION UNLOCKS £100,000 FOR CHARITIES

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The Wesleyan Foundation plans to donate more than £100,000 to hardworking charities as part of its Winter of Giving fund.

The fund is being shared among 48 charities and community groups, each receiving £2,200 to help with their essential work in communities across the UK.  The charities and community groups that received funding were selected by Wesleyan colleagues.

The Winter of Giving fund was set up in response to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis to help support organisations that play a vital role working to address issues around health and wellbeing, education, equality and sustainability.

One organisation that will get a boost is Whizz-Kidz, a charity aimed at reducing inequalities and building a more inclusive society for those who need mobility support. The charity will use the funding to help young people to access the mobility equipment they need to live as independently as possible.

Balvinder Thandi, a financial adviser from Wesleyan who nominated the charity, said: “Whizz- Kidz is an amazing charity that is doing incredible work to make society more inclusive. Not only that but it makes a huge difference to the confidence of its young users by helping with their physical and mental wellbeing.

“Being part of a mutual like Wesleyan is fantastic as it means we can give back to the causes that matter most to us and our members. I’m proud that were able to support an organisation that makes a difference to so many.”

Sarah Pugh, Chief Executive at Whizz-Kidz, said: “This funding from the Wesleyan Foundation will make a great difference to the young people we’re supporting. We know that this winter is particularly challenging for many and this is putting even more pressure on vital services. Every donation that we receive goes a long way and we’re looking forward to supporting our service users with this in coming weeks and months.”

The Wesleyan Foundation is the charitable arm of financial mutual Wesleyan, which specialises in providing financial support to doctors, dentists and teachers. It helps support great causes that are important to Wesleyan’s members and the communities in which they live and work.

Launched in 2017, the Foundation has since donated £4.3 million and has supported more than 100,000 people via 500 different charities, community groups and social enterprises.

Jacob Ayre, Community and Citizenship Officer at Wesleyan said: “As a mutual we can put our money where it’ll make the most difference to our members and society, and that’s what we wanted to do with this fund.

“Winter can be an incredibly difficult time for many, and we know this year is harder than most. We hope this funding goes some way to help the groups that play a vital role with families and communities across the country.”

The groups receiving funding through the Winter of Giving Fund include African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust, Alzheimers Society, Bassetlaw Citizens Advice Be Kind, Beis Brucha, Black Country Women’s Aid, Brightest Star, British Dietetic Association, British Heart Foundation, Campaign against living miserably, Clothing Coventry, Designs in Mind, Dystonia UK, Everyone needs a shed, Family Support Link, FareShare, Friendly Access, Great Barr Foodbank, Hagley Primary School PTA, Hope House, Inclusion Gloucestershire, Ladies Fighting Breast Cancer, Let’s Eat Project, Little Stars Baby Bank, Meriden Adventure Playground (MAPA), Midland Langar Seva Society (MLSS), NI Hospice, Oasis Community Housing, Parkinsons UK, Pendleside Hospice, Phoenix Rising, Primrose Hospice Sands, SIFA Fireside, Signpost Inclusion, Spinal Muscular Atrophy UK, St Oswalds Hospice, Teenage Cancer Trust, Telford Mind, The Evie Dove Foundation, The Lenches Preschool, The Lily Mae Foundation, The Moira Fund, The Veterans Hub Tommy’s, Whizz Kidz, Young Carers Team at Carers Trust Solihull.

Community groups and charities that are interested finding out more about funding available via the Wesleyan Foundation should visit www.wesleyan.co.uk/foundation/winter-of-giving.

Amazon UNIVERSITY Esports returns for spring split, offering career opportunities for students

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31st January 2023.- Amazon UNIVERSITY Esports, the biggest esports competition aimed at university students in the UK & Ireland, has returned for the spring split to provide university students with tournament and career opportunities.

 

The competition returns after an exciting winter split which featured over 1,000 university teams from more than 100 UK universities, alongside dozens of community gaming events and many students getting their first work experience in the industry.

 

This split will see students compete in League of Legends, VALORANT, Teamfight Tactics, CS:GO, Clash Royale, Rocket League, Overwatch 2, Apex Legends and Rainbow Six Siege.

 

Amazon UNIVERSITY Esports is present in more than 20 countries on 4 continents, and has a strong educational component, offering university students both training opportunities and their first professional experiences within the sector.

 

New to the Spring Split

 

A new addition for this academic year is the University Leaderboard, a ranking system where every team and player can contribute to their university’s points total by taking part and winning games. After the Winter split, the University of Warwick is currently comfortably in the lead, but with the leaderboard continuing into Spring it still remains all to play for.

 

The new split also brings a new game, for the first time, Apex Legends has been added as a regular season tournament.

 

All of the tournaments start afresh for the Spring season, with teams playing regularly over eight weeks and competing to feature in the Grand Finals in March and April.

 

Players of League of Legends, VALORANT, Rocket League, Teamfight Tactics, and Clash Royale will have the opportunity to compete to represent Great Britain at Amazon UNIVERSITY Esports Masters, the on-site competition that brings together the best teams from 16 countries, who will seek to be crowned European champions at university level.

 

David Jackson, Amazon UNIVERSITY Esports UK & Ireland Country Manager:

“Our core goals are to increase participation, create a positive and supportive environment for students, and help develop the grassroots of UK and Ireland esports. After a successful Winter split, I am delighted to begin a new phase of Amazon UNIVERSITY Esports in the UK and Ireland. This term we plan to step it up: with the launch of the brand-new University Tour on campuses around the UK, continued development of the university leaderboard, more support for student society events, more opportunities for students to get involved and (details soon to be revealed) an even bigger live finals event.”

 

Education & Esports                                                                                             

 

Amazon UNIVERSITY Esports’ mission is to bring awareness of the many employment opportunities emerging from the esports industry to students and contribute to their education. The first split of the competition included educational workshops and guest lectures with tools and training in some of these areas, which will continue in the second split. Workshop topics so far have included subjects such as marketing, branding, and community management, and will be built on in the Spring season with workshops and talks continuing these themes as well as discussing broadcast and events.

 

In addition to education and training, Amazon UNIVERSITY Esports will continue to offer dozens of paid roles for early-career esports broadcasters and league operations staff – helping support the pipeline of future esports professionals.

 

From virtual to on-site

 

In an environment that is mainly virtual, one of the objectives of Amazon UNIVERSITY Esports is to get closer to the student community through face-to-face events. That is why it is developing the UNIVERSITY Tour, a tour of multiple universities across the country, which aims to raise awareness of the competition, and provide students with a variety of experiences linked to the environment of esports and gaming.   

 

UNIVERSITY Tour is set to launch in the UK in Spring, visiting eight universities around the UK, to be announced soon.

 

Amazon UNIVERSITY Esports is made possible thanks to the support of top-level publishers such as Riot Games, HP Omen, and Prime Student.

 

Registration for the second split competitions are now open, and more information can be found on the Amazon UNIVERSITY Esports’ website.

 

 

Esh Group launches new careers programme to embed construction into the curriculum

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A brand-new school programme which aims to show young people how the curriculum directly links to careers within the construction industry has been launched by North of England contractor, Esh Group.

‘Construction in the Curriculum’ delivers a timetabled subject through a construction and built environment lens in a bid to inform students about careers in the industry and how their education applies to real life job roles.

The first workshop will see Esh staff take over a Maths lesson with students experiencing ‘a day in the life of a Quantity Surveyor’ to highlight the importance of maths skills in the surveying role. Students will apply the curriculum that they have previously learnt to a real-life scenario by calculating volume, length, square area and quantities from bespoke project drawings, as well as percentages and profit margins. 

The programme is now being rolled out to secondary schools nearby its construction sites across the North East, Tees Valley, Yorkshire and the Humber, with more than 130 students engaged so far.

Darush Dodds, Director of Corporate Affairs at Esh Group, said: “The launch of this new careers programme builds on our 11 years of experience delivering workshops within schools as we work hard to change outdated perceptions of the construction sector and encourage more young people to consider a career in the industry.

“Programmes which bring together business and education are integral in helping students make informed decisions about their future. With Construction in the Curriculum, we want to introduce students to relatable role models as well as help them understand how their day-to-day education can directly link to construction and the built environment careers.”

Esh has worked closely with a Tees Valley secondary school to align the programme to the curriculum and recently delivered sessions in five schools across the North East and Yorkshire. Sheralyn Cooper, maths teacher at Whickham High School, said: “The session was really engaging, it linked different topics of maths and applied real life experiences to bring the maths to life. The maths was perfectly pitched for the class it was delivered too. Overall, it was the best school engagement project I have ever been involved in.”

The programme launch follows Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s announcement that he plans to ensure all students continue studying maths until the age of 18. Dodds added: “The Prime Minister’s plans places emphasis on the role maths can play in preparing today’s young people for their future career. Many people may see construction as simply building and on-site trades, but the ability to calculate quantities, cost and dimensions, to name a few, is integral throughout the whole sector.

“While the first workshop is maths-based, our next steps will be to integrate construction into more subject areas, including, geography and design and technology.”

Last year, Queen’s Award-winning Esh Group engaged with more than 9,000 secondary school students through employability workshops and over 1,000 primary school students through its STEM-based careers programme.

Hands up class! Who’s got a question about mortgages?

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Sjaene Higgins Mortgage Operations Manager at Wesleyan, the specialist financial services mutual for teachers.

 

When I speak with teachers across the country, it’s clear they’ve got a lot on their plates. They love their work and want the best for their pupils, but many feel overworked, underpaid and unappreciated.

 

Outside of work, there are struggles too. We’re in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis, prices are rising and wages aren’t keeping pace.

 

What’s more, interest rates continue to climb. For almost two years, they languished at record lows, bringing relief to mortgage holders and offering hope to those with ambitions to get on the housing ladder for the first time. But

 

This should be good news for savers, but so far banks have dragged their feet when it comes to passing the Bank rate on to consumers, though we’ve seen variable rate mortgages go up almost instantly. And we can confidently imagine rates will rise further before the end of the year, with the Bank of England signalling they will hit 5% during 2023.

 

For many people, their mortgage is their biggest monthly outgoing, so that’s understandably causing concern. So, at a time like this, what are the key questions teachers should be asking about their mortgages

 

What is happening with interest rates and what does it mean for the short and long-term?

 

At the moment, interest rates are on the up. Even the best economic brains can’t predict exactly what will happen next with complete certainty, especially over the longer term. But at the time of writing, the prevailing view seems to be that the Bank of England base rate – which high street banks use to calculate their own lending interest rates – will keep rising into 2023.

 

Markets currently expect the Bank to set interest rates at slightly less than 5% next year, before falling back a bit during 2024, possibly to around 3.5% to 4%. But this should be taken with a pinch of salt; opinions vary and, as we’ve all seen, events like a change of government can have unforeseen implications.

 

Should I fix my mortgage deal and how long for?

 

With a fixed rate mortgage, the amount of interest you pay is set for a certain period, which may be fixed for up to ten years. That means that, whatever the Bank of England does to base rates, the amount of interest you pay doesn’t change during that period.

 

The idea is that fixing a mortgage can protect you against rates going up. Of course, the opposite is also true; if the Bank of England rate goes down, you could be stuck in a situation where you are paying over the odds.

 

A fixed rate mortgage will generally have a higher interest rate than a tracker or variable rate mortgage, where interest rates rise and fall with the Bank of England base rate, though not always by the same amount. Lenders tend to set their variable rates a little higher than the bank of England base rate, and this can vary a lot, so it’s worth shopping around.

 

A difference of 1% might not sound a lot, but over the lifetime of a mortgage, it can add up to many thousands of pounds.

 

Whether you’re a first-time buyer, looking to re-mortgage or investigating switching your mortgage to another lender, it’s a good idea to run through the numbers over the lifetime of the mortgage. Often this can be done with advice from experts who can help make sure you’re getting the best deal for your circumstances.

 

How do I get ready to remortgage?

 

There are a few reasons why you might want to remortgage. Maybe you want to try and get a lower interest rate. Or maybe you’ve already paid for your property and now want to borrow some cash, using your home as security. Perhaps your circumstances have changed and you can now afford to make overpayments, but your current deal doesn’t allow it.

 

Either way, lenders want to be confident you can pay back your mortgage loan and they can reject your remortgage application if they have any concerns. But there are things you can do to make yourself as attractive as possible to mortgage providers.

 

Generally, the more equity you have built up, the better deal you can demand. Currently, lenders are unlikely to take you on unless you have at least 5% equity, but if you’ve already paid for 40% of your home or more, you should be able to secure a better rate. If you’re getting ready to remortgage it may be worth considering putting a lumpsum into the mortgage to help secure a better rate, and reduce your overall debt. This can help to bring down monthly payments and reduce the length of your mortgage.

 

Lenders will also want to check your credit score too, so it’s worth looking at this well in advance. There are things you can do to improve your credit score – such as building up credit with small loans and credit cards and paying it off each month – but it can take time to demonstrate that you can manage debt. And lenders are also obliged to check that you can afford the remortgage repayments, not just now, but also if interest rates were to go up in the future.

 

Be aware that changing your mortgage provider may come with fees; there could be an exit fee or early repayment charge to end your current deal, and your new lender might have product or application fees, so include these in your calculations.

 

And before you make your mind up, it may well be worth giving your current lender an opportunity to offer you a better deal before you jump ship. Many will offer existing customers more preferable rates than new customers and there are deals to be had.

 

Should I add other debts to my mortgage?

 

Mortgages can have among the lowest interest rates of any debt, so it can be tempting to consolidate other debts into your mortgage. But this should only be done with much caution. After all, a mortgage is secured against a property, so if things go wrong, you could even lose your home.

 

And mortgages are long-term loans, typically repaid over 25 years or more. So, although the rate is low, it builds up over a longer time and ultimately can mean that debts end up costing more, despite being on a lower interest rate. In some cases it can actually be cheaper to borrow at a higher rate of interest and pay it off more quickly.

 

If you are able to keep up the same level of repayments, it can pay to shift an expensive credit card debt, for example, onto your mortgage. But it’s worth exploring all the options, like personal loans or balance transfers, too. And make sure you do your sums carefully.

 

I’m a first-time buyer, how do I get on the housing ladder?

 

The most common way to buy a house is to save up a deposit, then borrow the remainder of the cost in the form of a mortgage from a bank or building society. You’ll usually need at least a 10% deposit in order to buy your first home.

 

In most cases, the bigger your deposit, the better deal you can get on your mortgage, so you’ll pay less back to your lender in interest payments over the course of the mortgage term. If you borrow less, your monthly repayments can be lower too.

 

But we know that teachers can sometimes struggle to save, especially at times like this when the cost of living is so high, and there is the challenge of affordability too with properties closest to schools often costing more. But there are schemes to help. For example, there are shared ownership schemes, where you buy a share of a property, typically between 10% and 75%, and pay rent on the rest. This helps bring down the initial deposit required, and some schemes prioritise key workers, including teachers. You can increase your share of the property later, when you can afford it.

 

First time buyers in England may also qualify for the First Homes scheme, where they can get 30% to 50% discount on a new build home. You can look for new homes in your area that are advertised by developers as part of the First Homes scheme. Other government schemes come and go, like the Help to Buy scheme, which just ended on October 31. So, it’s worth keeping an eye out for any new help that becomes available.

 

How do I get the best deal I can?

 

The difference between a good mortgage deal and a bad one can cost you hundreds of pounds a month. But, as a busy teacher, you’re unlikely to have the time to trawl through the market.

 

Working with an adviser can help, but make sure they are fully qualified and regulated. This should mean you are getting quality advice and if you don’t, you can turn to the Financial Ombudsman Service to investigate if things go wrong. They should also be able to search the whole market to find you the best deal, but some advisers only work with a small selection of mortgage providers, so make sure you ask first.

 

Check how they get paid too. Some advisers will charge you a fee for their advice, but others will earn a commission from the mortgage provider that they recommend, which won’t cost you anything. Either way, they should be transparent. And don’t be tempted to pay any fees upfront; a mortgage adviser should only earn their money once the deal has been completed.

 

The housing market can be difficult to navigate, but you don’t have to go it alone. A specialist adviser can help you save and guide you through the mortgage minefield so you can achieve your long-term financial goals and make the dream of home ownership a reality.

 

For more information visit www.wesleyan.co.uk

 

 

 

CRB Cunninghams introduces Chip & Pin payments for flexible school transactions

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CRB Cunninghams, cashless catering, online payment and ID management software provider, has launched Chip & Pin transactions to enable UK schools to accept popular payment methods, including credit and debit cards, Google/Apple Play and contactless payments at the point of sale. Integrated into CRB Cunningham’s Fusion cashless catering solution, Chip & Pin is designed to offer pupils, staff, and visitors an additional contactless payment method in all areas of the school.

 

With multiple payment methods typically used for everyday purchases, such as debit/credit cards or smartwatches, Chip & Pin software is designed to enable pupils, staff, parents, and visitors to authorise school purchases using their chosen contactless payment method.

 

To use Chip & Pin for school transactions, users present their debit/credit card or mobile device for Google or Apple Pay. Chip & Pin automatically processes payments, with no manual input required from school staff at the point of sale. By enabling users to pay for school items with their chosen method, including in the dining hall, school shop, at events and more, school users can benefit from flexible payment choices without pre-registration or sign-up required. This flexibility means that schools can accept all major forms of payment for users and increase uptake in all areas of the school.

Stuart Brown, Head of Sales at CRB Cunninghams, adds:

“Offering flexible payment methods is crucial when looking at sustainable ways to increase school uptake and encourage pupils to continue using the dining hall.

We developed our Chip & Pin integration to enable all school users to benefit from an increased choice of transaction methods at the point of sale and to eliminate time spent by school staff counting manual transactions at the end of each day. So far, we’ve seen significant interest from schools looking to set up Chip & Pin, and I look forward to seeing the positive effects this will have on their transaction processes.”

Integrated with CRB Cunningham’s Fusion cashless catering system, the new Chip & Pin functionality combines cashless catering and contactless payments into one solution. For existing customers, by incorporating Chip & Pin into their cashless system, schools will benefit from a fully integrated cashless package from one provider.

 

Find out more or request a quote for Chip & Pin for your school.

Stonyhurst College partners with Dynabook to bolster digital learning experience

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Stonyhurst College is a co-educational Roman Catholic independent school in Lancashire, England. It is the largest Catholic boarding school in the UK, with 800 pupils ranging between the ages of 3 and 18 from over 40 countries.

Stonyhurst was looking for a new partner to equip students and teachers with laptops to bolster the everyday learning experience and empower students to work anywhere. Working with reseller AMC, the college was keen to trial high-spec touchscreen devices capable of managing heavy processing apps for in-class learning such as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign, and Sibelius. It also needed laptops with long lasting battery power, capable of powering these applications all day long. This was alongside withstanding every-day bumps and drops and being lightweight to carry for extended periods of time. Additionally, teachers found themselves spending large amounts of time marking work and hoped implementing school-wide laptop use would streamline this process and increase overall efficiency. On top of this criteria, the devices needed to be built and ready within just two months in time for the start of term in September.

Sourcing a large-scale order during a period where there were many constraints on components due to ongoing supply chain issues across the industry presented an extra challenge for Stonyhurst. Multiple providers were struggling to secure the required parts for the 750 units required by the desired deadline. Dynabook proved to be the perfect partner for Stonyhurst to appoint as its sole provider of devices through AMC, delivering the large order in time for the new school year thanks to Dynabook’s unique position of having its own factory. It was able to directly fulfil the demand for Stonyhurst on a ‘Build to Order’ (BTO) basis in just six weeks, critical to the success of the initial trial phase.

Together with AMC and Dynabook’s BTO service, Stonyhurst ordered 750 Portégé X30W-J units which were customised to meet each of its desired specifications. This differed for both students and staff, right down to the disc size, memory, and processor. On arrival, AMC oversaw the setup of the units ensuring all the devices were ready for use with the correct applications and security software straight out of the box.

One of the biggest priorities for the college was long lasting devices to support students constantly on the move with no charger in sight. The Portégé X30W-J has proved unbeatable in this area, with the battery life identified by students as a key benefit of the devices. Students can comfortably run heavy-duty applications all day without worrying about where the next charge point is. When they do need to charge-up, the ultra-fast charging capability means it’s back and ready for another day within one hour of plugging it in.

Dynabook’s hands-on approach alongside AMC throughout the entire process, including visits to the college, ensured that Stonyhurst was kept up to date with the progress of the devices and its requirements were perfectly met and implemented into everyday school life seamlessly. From specification, it took just six weeks for all units to be successfully delivered, each of which was set-up and ready for students to simply switch on and use. Every student that required a laptop had a device ready to go, right in time for the beginning of term. AMC also supplied suitable laptop lockers within the college, providing additional peace-of-mind around the security of the devices.

Following the success of the Portégé X30W-J, Stonyhurst has placed a further order for 300 additional Portégé and Tecra laptops to ensure the rest of its staff are using the very best devices and are empowered in their everyday work. Now every pupil and employee at Stonyhurst is using a Dynabook laptop across the college.

Gareth Entwhistle, Director of IT Operations at Stonyhurst, said “Technology has revolutionised the education sector, making it increasingly clear that we needed to empower students with their own devices. However, ensuring these delivered on our specific requirements in the time needed was critical. Dynabook was great from the off, able to balance all our specifications while also providing quick and considered customer service. A year since its implementation, the 1:1 device scheme has delivered impressive improvements to the in-class learning experience for both students and teachers. For example, teachers are now able to provide verbal feedback to every pupil via voice notes on the devices – a personalised and streamlined experience that would never have been possible before. With the strength and reliability of the technology we’ve seen first-hand, we can trust it to deliver for whatever our students and staff require.”

Dawn Henderson, Education Sales Lead at Dynabook Europe, said, “It’s been incredibly rewarding to see the success of Dynabook’s partnership with Stonyhurst College. Our BTO service gave us the flexibility and timelines we needed to provide Stonyhurst with the exact devices they needed and ensure both students and teacher had the right features to support and thrive day-to-day. We are delighted that Stonyhurst is extending its partnership with Dynabook and are looking forward to helping the college continue to benefit from technology in education in the future.”

Nick Bonnett, Technical Director at AMC, said, “The execution of this project with Dynabook and Stonyhurst College has exemplified the outstanding outcomes we can deliver when faced with close deadlines and supply chain issues. It’s been great to bring together our partnerships with both organisations to help Stonyhurst deliver a successful school-wide implementation of Dynabook’s market-leading devices.”

 

Cyber insurance provider Coalition urges schools to check internet security using free online scanning tool

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  • Call comes after 14 schools hacked and confidential documents leaked

 

Following cyber-attacks on 14 UK schools and colleges, cyber security and insurance provider Coalition is encouraging educational establishments to use a free online security scanning tool to check their internet security.

 

The tool, called Coalition Control, scans all the parts of an organisation that face the internet to give a ‘hacker’s eye view’ of security. It then provides a report listing any security vulnerabilities and their severity so that organisations can take active steps to fix them and mitigate risk.

 

The call comes after a hacking group named Vice Society stole confidential documents from schools and posted them online. According to the BBC, Vice Society is behind a recent string of high-profile attacks on schools across the UK and the US.

 

According to the UK Government’s Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2022, 41% of primary schools and 70% of secondary schools had suffered at least one cyber-attack during the previous year. Of the schools attacked, phishing was the most common form of incident, followed by impersonation attempts and viruses. The report noted that ‘schools do not necessarily stand apart from the typical business in terms of the kinds of breaches and attacks they are reporting.’

 

Tom Draper, Coalition’s Head of Insurance in the UK, said: “We know that most British schools and public sector entities can’t afford to buy cyber insurance or top-line cyber security. But by using Coalition Control, they can get an accurate picture of what security weaknesses a hacker can see in their system within a couple of minutes, and easily understand if any data, like passwords, may have leaked onto the web.”

 

Coalition Control is available online at https://control.coalitioninc.com/. Users input their email address, validate it, then provide basic information, including the organisation’s email domain, to begin the scan. The results are usually available within minutes and provide clear advice on resolving the identified issues.

 

Draper continued: “Coalition’s mission is to protect the unprotected, especially small businesses and the public sector. Having made this incredibly sophisticated scanning tool available in the UK, it seems a no-brainer for schools and colleges to check their security using it. It’s also useful for students studying computer sciences to see what a scan like this can detect.”

 

Coalition is the world’s first Active Insurance provider with a radical approach of combing sophisticated cyber security tools with cyber insurance. Founded in the US in 2017, the firm has since expanded to Canada and launched in the UK last September. Founder and CEO Joshua Motta was a former CIA operative and was invited to the White House to discuss cybersecurity with President Biden in 2021.