Caedmon College Whitby
Education IT specialist Leverstock has transformed Caedmon College Whitby’s communication through Ultra VoIP. Limited call capacity, line rental costs and charges for internal calls have been eliminated, while the overall call management has been both enhanced and streamlined.
Caedmon College Whitby’s View
Andrew Whelan, Head of IT at Caedmon College Whitby said, “Leverstock’s reputation preceded itself, as the company came recommended by one of our partners. A highly responsive organisation, the team listened intently to our challenges and designed a solution that fulfilled our core requirements, and delivered additional benefits that far exceeded our expectations.
“Leverstock came to the project with a ‘can-do’ attitude. Given their extensive experience within the education sector, the team was not fazed by our requirements, and throughout the project, the team have been flexible to accommodate our needs. Leverstock’s technical support has been excellent and always immediate. The Ultra VoIP solution has delivered significant savings, which at a time when budgets are under increasing pressure, is greatly appreciated.”
Transforming Communication
With over 20 years’ experience, Leverstock excels in providing quality IT solutions to the education sector. Caedmon College Whitby benefitted in two main ways:
Saved Money
As a multi-site college, calls made between the two separate sites were classed as ‘external’, which meant the phone lines were often engaged. Furthermore, these cross-site calls were charged a 5p set-up, on top of standard call charges, which proved very expensive. Through Leverstock’s Ultra VoIP solution, line rental costs and charges for internal calls have been eliminated and now staff can talk for free. Connectivity and collaboration between the College’s two sites is greatly improved.
Boosted Call Capacity
Relying on a traditional phone system was hindering the College’s communications. With limited trunks, the College suffered from restricted call capacity; if the lines were in use, including any internal cross-site calls, it prevented other calls from getting through. With Ultra VoIP now utilising the College’s powerful, dedicated Internet connection, rather than individual trunks, the problem with limited call capacity has been eliminated.
Beyond Expectation
A more comprehensive solution, Ultra VoIP has boosted communication and delivered huge savings. But besides the huge cost savings and increasing the College’s call capacity, Ultra VoIP has delivered several additional benefits:
More Effective Call Handling
Using the ‘presence’ feature, users can now publish their status, for example, in a meeting, busy or out to lunch, which enables the reception team to make informed decisions on how to best handle a call. Furthermore, the addition of instant messaging allows the receptionists to communicate with staff more effectively, even when they’re on a call, so they can pass on information quicker.
Greater Mobility
Staff are no longer bound by their location, which for a multi-site College is important. Users can have both a desk and mobile phone, which can be called at the same time. Now the reception team simply transfers an incoming call to the user’s extension, and they answer in the most convenient way.
Simple Management
With greater connectivity, both sites can now be managed by one reception team, so during peak times call overflow can be managed through the alternative site. In addition, the highly scalable and flexible solution means reconfiguring, adding or moving phones couldn’t be simpler; using the existing network cabling, handsets can be easily added.
Public Tannoy
The tannoy feature is a public address facility for the phone system. Allowing a user to broadcast a message to all the chosen extensions simultaneously, and without the recipient having to answer their phone. It provides an effective solution during an emergency, for example, in case of an invacuation, where the School is locked down from the inside.
Comprehensive Support
All handsets come with a lifetime warranty and support is provided courtesy of Leverstock’s online Self-help Centre, which includes a knowledgebase of ‘how to’ guides, videos and the ability to raise a ticket for a fault or move/change.
Leverstock’s View
Richard Clarke, Managing Director at Leverstock commented, “Ultra VoIP is such a powerful solution, easy to implement in just a few days with minimal disruption to a school or college’s IT systems, and it can have the greatest impact to their operations. There are huge financial savings and efficiency gains to be had, as well as enhancing overall communications.
“At a time when education budgets are being squeezed more than ever, Ultra VoIP really is the best solution to free up much needed funding that can be re-invested to enhance the student learning experience.”
