With strong values at its heart and a passion for education, iCT4 has seen exceptional growth since it was established nearly 15 years ago. It is now one of the biggest education providers in the South West and its progress looks set to continue.
Preparing UK Schools for a New Digital Era
As specialists in providing technology support to the education sector, iCT4 helps schools make the most of their technology. The company enables education providers to stay on top of their technical challenges, invest in solutions that deliver impact in the classroom and stay secure and compliant when it comes to their data and systems.
When council funding ran out in 2008, Managing Director Glyn Pascoe and director Josh Hosking formed iCT4, which became a limited company in 2012.
From its Redruth headquarters, the company provides the full service of ICT support to schools, including hardware and software solutions that enable cost efficiencies as well as solutions for the classroom. Their team of digital transformation experts design bespoke pathways that meet the unique circumstances and budget of each school. The team of iCT4 engineers provide help and support to schools both in-person and through a remote helpdesk. The company has a proven track record of saving money for schools and empowering children through the many benefits of well-implemented ICT. Close relationships are formed with the schools in which it operates, with team members responsible for their own school, rather than sending a different engineer each time.
Starting work with 28 schools in Cornwall, iCT4 has grown to support almost 300 schools and establish bases in Gloucestershire and Worcestershire. As the company has grown, the quality of advice and service delivery remains paramount as well as the purpose, values and vision that drive the brand. The consistently high quality of the service has meant that most of its new contracts and expansion has been won thanks to word-of-mouth recommendations.
Joining Forces with Praestantia
Praestantia Technology is a leading technology company based in Taunton, providing managed IT and Audio Visual solutions and services throughout the UK. It is known for its customer-centric approach, understanding customer needs and value-added ICT solutions for schools and businesses.
Glyn and the iCT4 team had been working with Praestantia for a number of years, collaborating with the company’s directors, Rhys and Ali, and working on joint projects. There was overlap between the two organisations and their values aligned so it made sense to join forces, enabling further expansion of iCT4.
Having previously worked with Gavin Poole, partner in Stephen Scown’s Corporate team, when he helped the iCT4 team with their initial articles of association and shareholder agreements, Glyn again turned to Gavin for help in joining up with Praestantia.
Stronger Together
The deal was for iCT4 to purchase the entire issued share capital of Praestantia, meaning a combined team of 50-plus staff would support over 450 schools, expanding and developing iCT4’s services into related areas of education technology.
With the deal taking place over the summer, it became clear during a meeting in mid-July that the summer holidays would impact the timing of the acquisition. Key individuals were going to be absent, which meant that if the sale was not completed by mid-July, it would not be finalised until September. Given the companies’ roles in the education sector, a September start would be unworkable for iCT4. That meant a vastly compressed timescale for delivery and the need to prepare, negotiate, finalise, and arrange a significant number of documents, some of which were outside of the control of Stephens Scown.
A combined effort from within the firm’s Corporate team, Tamsin Mann, senior associate in Stephens Scown’s Real Estate team and Chris Morse, partner in Stephens Scown’s Employment team, the work was concluded in short order.
As both businesses become stronger together, Ali remains with the company, with Rhys acting as a consultant for one day a week. The newly expanded iCT4 will maintain Praestantia’s Taunton office, giving it a bridging location between the South West and those remote staff based in the Midlands, and beyond.
Gavin said about the schedule and work done, “We were able to deliver on time and saved both buyer and seller from a real headache in September. It was a great collaboration from all stakeholders to identify common goals and achieve everything in such short order.”
Speaking about Gavin’s help with the deal, Glyn said he was, “Great at explaining everything in plain English. Any questions I had, Gavin was there to talk through and give me straight answers, which I found valuable. He also explained both sides of the deal and what was happening at each stage, which meant I could understand what was happening throughout.”
Having finalised the deal, thoughts turn to what lies ahead for iCT4. Working towards B Corp™ accreditation, the gold standard for ethical business, Glyn is looking to further expand the company’s offer. Establishing a model for growth and joining with Praestantia, they have set a model, and as Glyn says, with that benchmark in place, it’s very much, “on to the next one!”
