Axis and Siemens support Greenwood schools technology upgrade

Greenwood Academies Trust has completed a major technology upgrade programme across its network of schools after securing specialist asset finance to fund the replacement of interactive classroom screens.

The East Midlands-based trust, which operates 38 primary, secondary and special academies serving more than 19,000 pupils, partnered with Axis Leasing and Siemens Financial Services (SFS) to finance the rollout of new touch-enabled interactive displays across more than 30 schools.

The project forms part of Greenwood’s ongoing commitment to providing a high-quality digital infrastructure and supporting the development of digital skills among both students and staff.

Interactive screens have become an increasingly important part of modern classrooms, enabling greater student participation, supporting diverse learning needs and helping schools deliver engaging digital learning experiences. However, maintaining up-to-date technology across large academy trusts can present significant budget challenges.

To support the investment, the supplier introduced Greenwood to Axis Leasing, a specialist provider of IT leasing and asset funding solutions for businesses and educational organisations. Axis subsequently worked with long-standing funding partner Siemens Financial Services to provide a fixed-term leasing facility over five years, enabling the trust to spread the cost of the upgrade and manage cash flow more effectively.

The new displays are expected to deliver both educational and operational benefits, including lower energy consumption and reduced maintenance requirements, while offering a manufacturer warranty of five years.

“With IT, there’s the added challenge of frequent upgrades. This is what makes leasing so well suited to technology purchases – both for suppliers and schools. There’s no large upfront payment and the costs are predictable over time.”

The positive experience has encouraged Greenwood Academies Trust to explore further technology investments through flexible financing arrangements.

Graham Feek, Deputy Chief Executive of Greenwood Academies Trust, said: “Recognising that budgets are tight, the rationale for a five-year finance plan is clear; the savings from reduced screen costs and lower power consumption significantly outweigh the cost of finance. This package is both straightforward and highly cost-effective.

“Today’s schools want to stay on top of EdTech innovation, but investment is not always feasible. This experience has shown us what we can achieve with financing. The alternative would have been to continue to operate on a break-fix basis that offered only a sticking plaster to what was becoming a large financial headache.

“As well as addressing previous underinvestment in this area, being able to renew a large proportion of our estate has had an incredibly positive impact on teachers and students.

“Through financing, our students can access higher-quality technology and improve their learning experience, while our staff can teach with the confidence that their technology is not only reliable but leading edge.”

The trust is also pursuing wider sustainability initiatives, including measures to improve energy efficiency across its estate as part of its long-term environmental objectives.

Axis Leasing said specialist finance can help educational institutions modernise their technology infrastructure without placing undue strain on annual budgets, allowing schools to focus on educational outcomes while maintaining access to the latest digital tools.

Chick added: “Empathy is at the heart of our approach at Axis. Schools and academies are highly pressurised and may not have in-house experience with this type of financing. It is important that our partners understand and share our sensitive approach to managing customers in this field.

“Along with sharing our principles, SFS brings extensive experience and the whole financing process is very slick. With SieSmart, SFS’s digital platform, applications are processed quickly and immediately approved.”

The project highlights the growing role that specialist asset finance is playing in enabling schools and academy trusts to invest in educational technology while managing financial pressures and long-term budget planning.