Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) Provision and Support

Concepts

• virtual learning environment
• york
• educational software
• university students
• support of a vle
• vle
• year period
• software package
• 1st july

Location

York:

Description

Provision and support of a VLE for university students

Total Quantity or Scope

Provision and support of a VLE for university students for a five year period commencing 1st July 2022

Award Detail

CPV Codes

• 48190000 - Educational software package

Legal Justification

A previously published VEAT notice (2019-OJS 149-367112) stated an intention to enter an open procurement activity prior to the end of the current extended contract. The impact of the COVID pandemic has prevented the University from being able to undertake this activity with enough time remaining to complete a procurement and an implementation activity without significant risk of project delay. The University is currently undergoing an ambitious strategic change programme. This is affecting all staff involved in teaching and learning activities and any significant changes to the enabling VLE platform are considered too disruptive at this time. The University must have a solution to its current self-hosted BlackBoard infrastructure going out of support. It is therefore the intention to migrate to BlackBoard's cloud hosted infrastructure without undertaking a competitive tender. By not undertaking a competitive tender, the University will increase the lead time available to start implementation; thereby significantly reducing the risk of missing a critical summer migration deadline. Furthermore, there has been significant investment in process, staff skills and capabilities over the last 5 years that can be utilised, removing the need for organisation wide retraining and detailed process review. The strategic change activities currently underway at the University are expected to take between 3 and 5 years to deliver and become embedded within the University. The provision of a stable, well managed and understood VLE plays a significant role in enabling the success of these changes. The continuation of service throughout this 5 year period is therefore a critical success factor and any change to the VLE supplier during this period would neither be advantageous nor sustainable. As a consequence, the University will be seeking a 5 year commitment during which time we will consider competitive options for a new, longer-term solution.

Other Information

** PREVIEW NOTICE, please check Find a Tender for full details. **