Can our child's school force us to buy a device through their scheme?

janemcs1973

Child 2 is about to start school in September at the same school as child 1. During lockdown the school changed its policy to require every child to have their own chromebook.  They had a purchase scheme available but we chose to buy an identical chromebook ourselves elsewhere, saving around £150 .
Now child 2 is starting,  we also purchased a chromebook for them to use, but the school have told us that we cannot supply our own device (even though it is identical) and we have to purchase the chromebook through their scheme. Can they force us to do that?

theoretica

State or private school?

Grumpy_chap

Does the product provided through the school-linked scheme include additional features / security that make sit appropriate to link to the school network?  Does the system need specific software to be compatible with delivering educational content?

Neil_Jones

I bet it'll be because the school provided Chromebook will be set up to connect to the school network.  You'd just connect it to your Wifi and its ready to go.  They can't do that with a personal device.  Or rather they probably could, but since it's far quicker just to apply a custom image to hardware they already have, for auditing/tracking.

https://edu.google.com/intl/en_uk/products/chromebooks/ suggests they may come pre-configured with the needs of the school already.  Some Maurice Moss style person somewhere in school IT can log into a website somewhere, change somethign and it affects all of them.

I don't know enough about ChromeOS but I presume it has features similar to Windows 10 Pro/Education/Enterprise for networking/domains/whatever else built-in already without the need to pay extra?

MattMattMattUK

Neil_Jones said:

I bet it'll be because the school provided Chromebook will be set up to connect to the school network.  

I bet it will be because the school is getting a hefty kickback. Anything required could just be run through the browser, no reason for it not to be a Windows laptop or Macbook, someone at the school has just decided to extort parents.

pbartlett

Nobody can 'force' anyone to buy anything!

However, if a private school, check the contract you signed with them when you enrolled your child. If you violate that contract, they may have the option to ask your child to leave.

neilmcl

MattMattMattUK said:

Neil_Jones said:

I bet it'll be because the school provided Chromebook will be set up to connect to the school network.  

I bet it will be because the school is getting a hefty kickback. Anything required could just be run through the browser, no reason for it not to be a Windows laptop or Macbook, someone at the school has just decided to extort parents.

Schools don't get "kickbacks", they may get a bulk order discount but it's not going to be that much per unit. The reason they want to supply there own is because they'll be adding the necessary DfE settings and software, including the necessary Chromebook Education licenses as well as any other safeguarding and security settings.

neilmcl

janemcs1973 said:

Child 2 is about to start school in September at the same school as child 1. During lockdown the school changed its policy to require every child to have their own chromebook.  They had a purchase scheme available but we chose to buy an identical chromebook ourselves elsewhere, saving around £150 .
Now child 2 is starting,  we also purchased a chromebook for them to use, but the school have told us that we cannot supply our own device (even though it is identical) and we have to purchase the chromebook through their scheme. Can they force us to do that?

The only thing you'll be able to do is plead poverty and explain the situation with them. They will no doubt have contingencies in place to supply the necessary equipment to pupils who can't afford them.

prowla

Probably the school has done a deal based on a number of items sold.

Given that many manufacturers offer special cut-price deals to schools it is (ahem) "interesting" that the identical product can be acquired elsewhere for less.

Of course, the computer system is not just the thing you can touch; it comprises:

• The physical laptop computer itself.
• The installed applications & licenses thereof (who buys anything required).
• The configuration of the system (who has to set it up).
• The support & warranty (whose job is it to sort it out if it has an issue).
• The security of the system.
• Insurance (if included).
  

So, buying a barebones system elsewhere may not be a like-for-like comparison.

fiendishlyclever

neilmcl said:

MattMattMattUK said:

Neil_Jones said:

I bet it'll be because the school provided Chromebook will be set up to connect to the school network.  

I bet it will be because the school is getting a hefty kickback. Anything required could just be run through the browser, no reason for it not to be a Windows laptop or Macbook, someone at the school has just decided to extort parents.

Schools don't get "kickbacks", they may get a bulk order discount but it's not going to be that much per unit. The reason they want to supply there own is because they'll be adding the necessary DfE settings and software, including the necessary Chromebook Education licenses as well as any other safeguarding and security settings.

When my niece joined a school with similar scheme, the school purchase price included insurance and a contribution towards those who couldn't pay for their own Chromebook. Perhaps this is what the poster above referred to. Needless to say we decided to chance having to replace it rather than pay the (very) inflated price. Four years on the refurbished Chromebook is still going strong and got heavy use over lockdown 😀

letsbehonest

I can't see how a school can make you buy from them the same product you can buy elsewhere cheaper. No one can make you buy what you don't want.