Unity Schools Partnership

Unity Schools Partnership is a family of 39 secondary, primary, middle, and special schools located primarily in Suffolk, with additional schools on the Essex and Cambridgeshire borders, as well as in Romford, East London. The trust serves a diverse student population across East Anglia and North East London, providing education to thousands of students in the region.

Limited control and visibility of spend across the trust

Unity Schools Partnership faced several significant procurement-related challenges before implementing their new solution. The trust lacked a standardised purchasing process across its schools, which led to limited control and visibility of spending at the central trust level. There was an excessive reliance on corporate cards for purchases, making it difficult to ensure best value across all schools. The process of loading numerous purchase orders into their financial system each week was time-consuming and burdensome, often taking several hours across the Trust. Additionally, teachers and staff needed a quicker and easier method to purchase items they required for their classrooms and offices. The trust recognised the need to consolidate spending across numerous channels into a more efficient purchasing system, which would free up time for teachers to focus on education and allow the core team to concentrate on strategic tasks beyond finance and procurement.

Integrating with existing financial software was key to the success

To address these challenges, Unity Schools Partnership implemented Amazon Business, deploying several key features to streamline their procurement process. The most crucial component was the IRIS Punchout Integration, which allowed for seamless connection between Amazon Business and the trust's existing financial software. The trust set up a multi-legal entity structure with two entities to accommodate their organisational needs. They also implemented the Pay by Invoice feature and consolidated invoicing to simplify their payment processes.

During the pilot, Unity Schools Partnership onboard more than 100 users, ensuring wide access across the trust. They opted for Business Prime to take advantage of additional benefits including fast, free delivery and Spend Visibility to analyse spending on pre-built dashboards. To promote responsible purchasing, they implemented Guided Buying, which gives admins the opportunity to highlight local sellers and choose sustainable delivery options. Finally, they locked down school domains to prevent rogue spend outside of the centralised account.

Time savings enable teachers to focus on their primary responsibilities

The implementation of Amazon Business led to significant improvements in Unity Schools Partnership's procurement processes. The trust now enjoys standardised purchasing processes across all 39 schools, which has enhanced control and visibility of spending at the trust level. The reliance on corporate cards has been significantly reduced, improving financial oversight and security.

The new system has improved the trust's ability to ensure best value for purchases, leveraging Amazon Business's competitive pricing and wide product selection. One of the most notable benefits has been the substantial time savings in purchase order processing. The simplified purchasing process has made it easier for teachers and staff to acquire the resources they need, allowing them to focus more on their primary responsibilities.

"We use Amazon all the time…Whether it's stationery, cleaning equipment, safety equipment – you name it, if we can buy it from Amazon we will. As a result, it means we previously had lots of purchase orders to load into IRIS Financials each week, which, across the Trust, could take several hours. When IRIS contacted us about trialling the pilot, it seemed like an easy decision for us. It's an obvious time-saver and has simplified the process completely." Michelle Curtis, Senior Finance Officer at Unity School Partnership

Ultimately, these improvements in procurement efficiency have led to better support for students through more effective resource allocation. The time and cost savings achieved through the new system can be redirected towards educational initiatives and student support programs.

Positioned for future growth and optimisation

With the successful implementation of Amazon Business, Unity Schools Partnership is well-positioned for future growth and optimisation. The trust can now focus on further refining its procurement processes and expanding the use of data analytics for strategic purchasing decisions. The time and resources freed up by the new system can be redirected towards the trust's core educational mission, improving the quality of education provided to students.