ShoreTel has noted a growing adoption of Unified Communications by schools and colleges in the United Kingdom as they look to transform communications by making staff more accessible to colleagues and parents, while also under pressure to reduce costs.

As a result, ShoreTel has found that new UC alternatives are being considered, adopted and rolled-out at a rapid pace throughout the education sector. Colleges spread across multiple campuses are seeing significant cost-saving and efficiency gains by transforming their communications networks.

Mark Swendsen, managing director, EMEA, ShoreTel: "Unified Communications is no longer the reserve of large enterprises powerful way to help teachers become more accessible, while enabling them to maintain control of how they manage their communications, and allowing them to focus on the most important thing - teaching."

ShoreTel cites three colleges deploying UC systems are Richard Huish, a sixth form college in Taunton Somerset, Coleg Glan Hafren, Cardiff's largest further education college, and Trafford College with five sites across Manchester, the result of a merger between North and South Trafford Colleges.