BASINGSTOKE College of Technology has staked its claim to being at the forefront of e-learning.

And it is working hard to deliver on its pledge to employers to educate and train all age groups to produce a skilled workforce for continued economic success.

Taking a leaf from common business practice of outsourcing, BCOT has invested £2million over the next three years for its IT system to be managed by RM, a Didcot-based specialist for education services and solutions.

The contract, worth more than £500,000 a year, was launched last week in front of business and civic leaders, together with governors of the college.

RM has also based four full-time staff in the college to manage an IT system of 1,000 computers, and the company's solutions director, Dave Horney, described BCOT's outsourcing contract as the "tip of the iceberg" in further education.

He said: "It is still uncommon in this sector to outsource. I'm pleased a beacon college like BCOT is going down the route of us looking after the nuts and bolts while they get on with learning.

"It's right for a successful college as IT is so important to the success of a college. BCOT is at the forefront of thinking of using e-learning."

BCOT is one of only five further education contracts held by RM, and Mr Horney estimated there were probably less than a dozen colleges in the country that had taken the route of outsourcing IT.

College principal Judith Armstrong said they had started looking at outsourcing some 18 months ago, and the move was taking BCOT another step further in its work with some 400 employers to deliver e-learning within the college and in the workplace with remote learning.

She said: "We want to raise the profile of further education colleges to give 21st century training in Basingstoke."

The launch of the RM contract saw BCOT welcome Peter Lauener, director of learning delivery and standards in the Department for Education and Skills (DfES).

He said the RM contract gave "enormous potential" for the college to improve lives, skills and job prospects for individuals, employers and the economy.

With virtual learning an integral part of BCOT's philosophy, it has also this autumn taken a new satellite van out on the roads to rural areas.

The van is equipped with 20 laptops and is able to give learning support to small businesses and doctors' surgeries.

The new technology now up and running at BCOT includes an interactive white board, date projectors, an electronic registration PC in every classroom, a refurbished Learning Resources Centre and two wireless hotspots for those with intranet and internet access with wireless-enabled laptops.

There is also a cyber zone, with three desktop machines and one at wheelchair level, for student use, and a CAD facility is being introduced in the construction department which has a drop-down screen specially suited to workshop areas.

The result is a state-of-the-art IT system which will develop further over the life of the contract with RM and by next summer will see the multimedia kit being replaced.