Inspired Learning Group (ILG) currently operates in 32 settings, from mainstream independent schools to nurseries and special educational needs’ units and continues to expand through acquisition.
ILG’s Group Operations Manager Garth Wray has drawn on his background in the hospitality sector to achieve substantial savings for the group across a broad range of products and services. Working with purchasing specialist Lynx Purchasing, Garth has systematically audited buying costs across the group.
“I’d worked very successfully with Lynx Purchasing when I was in the hotel sector,” he says. “When I moved into education it was clear that I was dealing with many of the same suppliers as I had previously, and looking at the contracts and pricing that were in place, I knew that there were better terms that could be negotiated.
“Like all independent schools, we’ve faced the triple whammy of the increased minimum wage, higher employer NI contributions, and the addition of VAT on fees; and also like everyone, our three biggest costs are our people, followed by food and drink, and then utilities.”
As ILG has expanded, it has ‘inherited’ a range of different contracts and agreements. Lynx’s purchasing specialists have audited ILG site by site, and by changing the main food supplier to the group, have achieved average savings of 10% with no impact on food quality.
“In addition, we were paying a percentage fee on every invoice to our previous procurement company. With Lynx’s no-contract, no-fee model, that amounts to additional very significant savings for us,” says Garth. “The no-contract model also means that we’re free to switch suppliers if we need to. We’d previously found ourselves tied into contracts with food suppliers who couldn’t always meet our needs.”
On utilities, Lynx Purchasing has been able to negotiate new agreements at a number of ILG’s locations, achieving average savings of 30%, with plans to continue putting new utilities deals in place as existing contracts expire.
ILG is also seeing savings in a range of other purchasing areas though its partnership with Lynx. The group will achieve savings amounting to hundreds of thousands of pounds on printing and copying costs through a new five-year agreement, with the savings increasing as more sites switch.
Additionally, savings on stationery and education supplies are averaging 12% per site, while significant savings are also being achieved in areas such as chemicals, disposables, lighting, and even mattresses.
“We’re also seeing improvements in compliance and sustainability in some of these areas,” says Garth, “and crucially this is all being achieved without any compromise on product quality or standards.
“It’s not so much that the education sector has been complacent about purchasing in the past, but perhaps more that our priorities now need to change. For example, in hospitality, the first thing a chef does when planning a menu is work out what their gross margin is going to be and so they are very cost sensitive. As there is less price sensitivity in education, chefs have been less reactive to cost changes, but things have changed and we all need to get much better at it.”
He adds: “Implementing changes in so many purchasing areas is a complex process, and not necessarily something I’d have time to do myself. Lynx brings purchasing experience and expertise to the process, and understands the specific needs of our business rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach to purchasing.
“We’re already achieving significant savings across the group, and we expect that to continue as we expand, as more existing contracts end, and as we work with Lynx to identify more areas where we can make purchasing savings,”