By Local Democracy Reporter
Piers Meyler

ESSEX County Council is set to sell EES – a traded business operated by the council selling software and services to schools – after a buyer has been found.

Cabinet will be asked to agree to dispose of EES. including its assets, at a meeting this week.

EES is a traded business of the county council, with its own recognisable brand in the market place.

A key product, Target Tracker (TT) software, holds a 25 per cent market share in primary school assessment software, securing its place as the market’s largest single provider.

It has more than 4,500 customers nationally, with a limited additional customer base internationally – EES is a profitable business and it has grown steadily, developing both its product and customer bases.

However, in recent years, schools funding has become increasingly constrained and investment in Target Tracker has been limited.

This means that since 2017, sales have not experienced the same rate of growth experienced as in previous years.

It has now been decided that in order to continue to grow and meet the demands of its customers, significant investment would be required both in existing and new products – which the county council is not willing to carry out.

To determine the business direction for EES, a report was commissioned from CIL Management Consultants in Summer 2016 to review EES as a business.

The report concluded that ‘the most suitable strategic option for this business is selling TT and investing in EES’s professional and support services proposition via acquisitions, partnerships and through investment in organic growth’.

A report to the council said: “Despite significant restructuring EES was unlikely to recover to previous levels of profitability without additional significant investment to improve the products, marketing and routes to market.

“Accordingly, a proposal to sell 100 per cent or a majority of EES was developed.”

It added that the council should seek to dispose of EES “in its entirety”.

Categories: Education
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Authorities: Essex County Council
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