Northern Ireland Education Authority and Fujitsu Mutually Terminate £500m Schools’ IT Contract

Northern Ireland’s Education Authority (EA) has opted not to move forward with a contract valued at nearly £500m that was awarded to Fujitsu. This agreement was intended to supply a new information technology system for every school across Northern Ireland. The Japanese corporation has drawn criticism due to its involvement in the Post Office scandal. Fujitsu developed the defective Horizon software, which erroneously indicated financial discrepancies in Post Office branches. The EA informed school principals via letter that both parties had reached a mutual agreement to discontinue the contract, though no specific rationale for its termination was provided. Among those whose wrongful convictions have been overturned are several sub-postmasters from Northern Ireland. The matter gained significant attention following the broadcast of the ITV drama “Mr Bates vs the Post Office” in January 2024. In December 2023, prior to the ITV drama’s broadcast, the EA had granted Fujitsu a £485m contract for IT services in schools. According to a letter to school principals obtained by BBC News NI, the EA stated that the contract had been awarded “following a robust procurement process”. However, the letter further stated that “after an extensive negotiation period between EA and Fujitsu, the parties have mutually agreed on a no-fault basis not to continue with this contract with immediate effect”. Nevertheless, the communication assured that schools would “not experience any disruption to services as a result of this decision”. It added that “All existing services delivered through the current managed service will continue to be delivered and supported.”