This article first appeared in Education Executive
Writing, drawing and hands-on learning are crucial for cognitive development. This means printing isn’t about to vanish from primary schools any time soon.
However, 2025 marks a pivotal year for cloud print management adoption in schools, driven by advancements in technology, cost reductions and growing security enhancements.
These rapid technological advancements are seeing print management follow the broader trend in cloud adoption, where schools are already hosting email, productivity systems, learning management systems and curriculum content.
What is cloud printing?
Cloud print management enables users to print from any device, anywhere, using a secure cloud-based service. All you need is an internet connection (and a compatible printer)!
In a primary school setting, staff and teachers on or off campus can hit “print” on their smartphones, tablets, or any other device, to send the print job to the closest printer. Once a print job is sent, the cloud system encrypts and stores the data in a secure queue before routing it to the nearest available printer.
This simple, streamlined process offers ease, flexibility and convenience to users, while delivering greater oversight and control to IT administrators. While cloud print management doesn’t eliminate paper from classrooms, it does seek to use print resources more responsibly by reducing waste and inefficiencies.
The case for cloud transition
Historically, primary schools have faced major hurdles in adopting cloud print management. The costs of investing in new technology were prohibitively high, and many schools lacked dedicated IT staff to manage new systems. IT administrators held concerns around the security of data sent through the cloud, given the importance of protecting student information. Some worried that cloud solutions wouldn’t match the reliability of on-premises print servers. In some cases, print management was overlooked altogether, as schools focused on other areas for their cloud transition.
But today, these challenges are being addressed through affordable, secure and user-friendly cloud print solutions tailored for educational environments. Traditionally, primary schools have relied on physical print servers which are expensive to install and manage, requiring ongoing maintenance and IT support. What’s more, any outage can cause disruption to school operations, often with considerable downtime.
With cloud-based print infrastructure, servers are hosted in the cloud and are managed by an external provider who also takes care of firmware updates and reporting. All print management is centralized in a single console, making it easy for IT teams to remotely manage users and devices. Global print queues remove the need for installing individual print drivers and coordinating multiple queues.
Many print management solutions offer advanced security features as well as mobile and BYOD printing capabilities out-of-the-box.
The benefits of cloud printing
Cost savings
Cloud print management allows primary schools to reduce costs associated with traditional printers, such as hardware and maintenance of on-site print servers. IT teams also have greater control over who can print what, how much and how often – reducing waste which helps minimize their print budgets.
Greater efficiency
With secure release printing, staff and teachers can print to a centralized queue from their own smartphone, tablet or device, and then pick up the print job from the most convenient printer. Gone are the days of wandering around looking for a lost print job!
Easy implementation and maintenance
Automation of manual tasks and centralized control eliminates complexities and streamlines operations, reducing the burden on IT teams so they are free to focus on other critical tasks.
Enhanced security
Modern cloud print management solutions provide additional layers of security including data encryption, user authentication, secure print release and detailed audit trails – ensuring the right person receives the correct print job every time.
Scalability and flexibility
Cloud-based systems can scale up and down, based on changing school sizes, student populations and educational needs. Printers can be added and removed automatically, without requiring additional IT resources or infrastructure. They are also adaptable to fluctuating numbers of users and print volumes throughout the academic year.
Sustainability
Cloud print solutions enable IT teams to track printing activity across the entire primary school environment, identifying inefficiencies and excessive printing. Schools can minimize waste and enforce sustainable print policies, such as printing quotas and double-sided printing – helping reduce their environmental impact.
A cloud printing success story
Primary schools that successfully transition to cloud print management reap significant benefits in cost savings, security, and operational efficiency. A great example is Diocese of Norwich Education and Academies Trust, (DNEAT) which operates 35 schools in the UK, serving over 10,000 students and staff. With the large printing volume of an entire school district, no dedicated IT team and a lack of on-site print infrastructure, DNEAT was spending far too much on print consumables and overfilling their paper waste baskets.
To address these challenges, DNEAT adopted PaperCut Hive, a cloud print management solution that eliminated the need for local print servers. The software enabled secure and convenient printing from any device and location, regardless of printer brands. As a result, schools of all sizes in the DNEAT trust were able to shrink their printing costs and paper waste and manage their print environment more effectively.
As 2025 shapes up to be a big year for cloud adoption in primary education, now is the time for schools to future-proof their print management systems. Modern cloud solutions eliminate past barriers, while improving efficiency, security and sustainability – leaving staff to focus on what matters most: student learning.
