Background

RAF Halton has been training Armed Forces personnel since 1918. Upon joining, new recruits must be tested and pass basic Maths and English tests to an agreed level for them to achieve their Level 1 Apprenticeship. After passing they then go to one of twelve RAF training schools to continue their specific trade training, such as catering, aircraft maintenance etc.

RAF Halton, with funding provided by 22TRG GP, has recently completed a major IT project in conjunction with Ergo and their exclusive finance partner, Bluestone Leasing.

Challenge

The project involved completely refurbishing and converting two old classrooms into stateof-the-art training facilities for the apprentices.

Our Solution

The funding of the project was critical to enable RAF Halton to make the investment in the new technology. Here at Bluestone Leasing, we applied our significant public sector funding expertise to structure a package which matched exactly the needs of the RAF. The leasing solution allowed the training centre to have a fully managed service with the costs spread over the useful life of the assets. Features included low fixed payments and the flexibility to accommodate any future upgrade requirements.

The RAF now only need to make one quarterly payment and everything is covered, including service and support for the entire period of the lease. Furthermore, this model ensures that when the technology is eventually replaced and refreshed, the station will not face large and often unbudgeted costs, allowing them to continue to offer cutting edge.

"Without the help and support of Bluestone Leasing it is unlikely that this project would have gone ahead at all. They listened to our needs and tailored a finance package to allow us to achieve everything we wanted."

"They made the whole process a simple one and they seemed to understand how organisations like the MOD and RAF work. They worked with Ergo to make sure everything happened on time and they managed the paperwork and payments extremely well."