Can schools save money without sacrificing on performance? 

Running IT in a school right now often feels like juggling upgrades, outages, and security risks with one hand tied behind your back.

Schools are short on money, servers are ageing, backups are patchy, the Wi-Fi can be “temperamental” — but the people in charge are still expected to support cloud learning platforms, admin systems, and digital safeguarding tools with modest budgets.

The Department for Education’s own data backs this up. According to their 2022–23 Technology in Schools Survey, a huge 96% of school leaders say tight budgets are holding back their IT plans.

Many schools are looking at refurbished equipment as a way to upgrade without resorting to another round of “make do and mend.”

That doesn’t mean convincing SLT to sign off on a £10k server.

What’s Actually Going On in School IT Rooms

We didn’t need a government survey to tell us things are creaking — we have many customers in the education sector who tell us how things are, but the stats are worth a look:

• A lot of servers are getting on a bit. Plenty of schools are still running Windows Server 2016, and yes — even some 2012 R2 boxes are still loyally humming away under desks.

• Backups aren’t where they should be. Just 43% of primaries and 65% of secondaries have two or more backup copies with one offsite — which might make you wince if you’ve ever had to restore from a single USB drive.

• Network infrastructure is stuck in the past. More than half of secondary schools are still running Cat5E or older. Wi-Fi 6 adoption? Barely over 20%.

• Security incidents are creeping up. 62% of schools report staff being targeted with phishing emails, and nearly 1 in 5 have dealt with actual infections or malware in the past year.

But somehow — the expectation is to stay secure, support hybrid learning, and be “cloud-ready” without any meaningful increase in resources.

Refurbished: Powerful, affordable and sustainable.

For some the word “refurbished” will trigger flashbacks of flaky eBay laptops or mystery boxes from warehouse clearances. But that’s not what we’re talking about here.

We’re talking about enterprise-grade hardware from Dell, HP, Cisco - properly refurbished, tested, cleaned, updated, and guaranteed. The kind of kit that was built for 24/7 data centre workloads and still have years of life left in them.

Why it’s worth a look:

1. High-spec, low-drama performance

Whether it’s for virtual machines, cloud platforms, or just stopping SIMS from timing out every five minutes. Refurbished enterprise servers deliver serious specs — more cores, more RAM, more storage — at 40–60% less than new.

It’s not a compromise — you're just not paying for the R&D, the shiny packaging and the fancy marketing that all need to be paid for with new equipment.

2. Reliability that you can actually depend on

All our equipment goes through full testing, reconditioning, and firmware updates. And if anything does go wrong? We’ve got your back with an industry-leading 3-year warranty — not a “call them and speak to a bot” warranty, but actual people who are passionate about the tech, providing coverage that understands uptime matters in a school environment.

No fanfare. Just support that works.

3. Security that isn’t stuck in 2012

Refurbished doesn’t mean out-of-date. In fact, these systems are often better maintained than new ones that get installed and then forgotten. Ours are shipped with:

• Fully updated firmware to address known vulnerabilities
• Compatibility with modern security tools
• Support for newer standards like secure boot, virtualisation-based security, and encrypted storage

And because you're saving money on the hardware, you might actually have budget left to sort things like endpoint protection or network segmentation.

Where Refurbished Makes the Biggest Difference

Here’s where schools tend to see the most impact with refurbished enterprise hardware:

On-Prem or Hybrid Storage

If a school is still fully on-prem (like 52% of primaries and 71% of secondaries, according to the DfE), you need local storage that’s actually up to the task. Refurb enterprise storage gives you:

• More capacity per pound
• Features like redundant power supplies and hot-swap drives
• Room to implement proper backup and disaster recovery plans

Network Upgrades

With only 9% of primaries having a backup broadband connection, and 20% of all schools still wrestling with unreliable Wi-Fi, improving network infrastructure is overdue.

Refurbished switches, access points, and routers can give you:

• Higher throughput and stability
• Better security (think deep packet inspection, VLANs, firewalls)
• Support for Wi-Fi 6 without eye-watering pricing

Specialist Application Support

As schools add coding labs, creative suites, and more data-heavy platforms, demand on server resources rises. Refurbished enterprise servers can easily handle these loads — especially when you spec them with double the RAM you’d normally get on a new budget.

Crunching the Numbers: What You Really Save 

If you’re looking to see what you can get for your budget or configuring a server to run a new learning platform, boost your backup routines, or virtualise a few workloads.

New hardware route:

• Entry-level enterprise server: £5,000–£6,000
• Basic storage, moderate spec
• Standard 3-year warranty

Refurbished enterprise route:

• Like-for-like or higher spec server: £2,500–£3,000
• More memory, more storage, better overall performance
• Comprehensive 3-year warranty as standard

That’s potentially £2,000–£3,000 saved — enough to upgrade the Wi-Fi, improve security, or fund CPD for the IT team. Plus, a better-spec server means fewer future upgrades, and less chance of needing to Frankenstein your setup just to meet demand.

No Silver Bullets — Just Smarter Options (and Real Support)

Refurbished kit won’t solve every problem. You’ll still have to battle ageing laptops, make your case to SLT, and keep one eye on DfE compliance.

But if you’re looking for a way to extend your infrastructure’s life, shore up reliability, and modernise your setup without running out of money halfway through the academic year — it’s a smart, pragmatic option.

And you don’t have to figure it all out on your own.

We’re Here to Help You Validate the Plan (Not Just Sell You Gear)

At Intelligent Servers, we work with schools, MATs, colleges and local authorities across the UK — not just as a supplier, but as a sounding board. Whether you’re mid-refresh, just starting to plan, or still convincing senior leadership it’s needed at all, we’re here to help you think it through.

Our dedicated Professional Services team includes engineers and infrastructure specialists who can work with you to:

• Assess your current environment
• Recommend practical, cost-effective upgrade paths
• Sanity check your ideas before you commit budget
• Align your IT refresh strategy with DfE guidance and school realities

It’s not just technical support — it’s a second opinion from people who’ve been in your shoes.

In fact, our founder, Andy Hughes, started this business after working as an IT manager for a major UK bank. He saw how often IT teams were left to deal with outdated infrastructure and tight budgets — and he started Intelligent Servers to be the kind of partner he wished he’d had. Someone who gets it. Someone who listens. Someone who gives honest advice, even if it means not closing a sale that day.

Why We Put Long-Term Relationships First

We’re not here to push stock or hit sales targets, of course we want to make money, but we want to make money consistently. Our entire approach is built around helping customers make the right choice for their school or organisation — even if that means telling you to hold off, or buy less.

It’s a simple philosophy: if we do what’s right for you, the rest looks after itself. You’ll come back when you need more. You’ll refer us to other schools. And we’ll get to work with you long-term — not just once.

That’s how we’ve grown. Through trust, repeat business, and word-of-mouth.

Let’s Talk It Through

If you’re planning an upgrade — or even just thinking about it — we’re happy to have a conversation. No hard sell. Just a chance to talk through your options with someone who understands the pressures you’re under and knows how to make a budget go further.

[Book a quick chat with our team] (link to your contact or booking page)

Or just give us a call. We’re real people, and we actually pick up the phone.