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The College believes that excellent IT facilities are important for the provision of all its courses, and allocates a large share of its funds to providing these and keeping them up to date.

Over 350 computers are available in classrooms throughout the College, including in our Outreach Centres. There is also a small Flexible Learning Centre where computers may be booked for private sessions. All these computers are loaded with a range of standard software, and have access to the Internet, email and file storage facilities, and very student can have a College email address. In addition, specialised software is provided where this is needed for particular courses.

All teaching in the College will take place using Microsoft Windows XP.

Regulations for the Use of ICT Facilities

These Regulations are intended to ensure the proper use of all College computer systems and network facilities, and the effective protection of individual users and the College. The Regulations apply in supplement to existing College regulations, and all relevant legislation.

Access to ICT facilities, (including e-mail and Internet access) is provided free of charge for all staff and students. The primary focus of providing access to these facilities is to support and enhance the educational and work activities of the College, and the following regulations are designed to ensure that these facilities are used in an appropriate and professional manner whilst undertaking tasks on behalf of the College.

Students and staff may use the facilities available to them for their own personal use in their own time without additional charge by the College, providing that such use does not in any way interfere with use for College activities. In using facilities in this way, users should note that they are agreeing to be bound by the following regulations to the same extent as they would be when undertaking College required activities. Where facilities are used for personal activities users should note that they are liable for any additional consumable costs which may be incurred.

Access to the College's computer systems and network facilities requires users to accept certain responsibilities and obligations. In particular users must accept their responsibility to use the facilities only for appropriate authorised purposes.

Use of the computer systems and networks should always be legal, ethical, reflect the standards of the College community, and accept the need to be restrained in the use of the available resources. Use should demonstrate respect for security mechanisms, and for each individual's rights to freedom from harassment, intimidation and annoyance.

Users must also observe the regulations of other networks, such as the JANET network, to which the College network may be connected.

Users should also be aware that the College reserves the right to intercept and examine all network communications where this is necessary to ensure the effective running of systems, and to ensure compliance with these regulations, subject to the provisions of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000, and other relevant statutory requirements as may apply within the specific circumstances. Staff users should be aware that the College reserves the right to access their College e-mail account in situations where a member of staff is absent from work for a prolonged period of time, or has left College employment. Where such action is taken, access will be subject to agreement by the member of staff's Team Leader and will be limited to access for work purposes only.

Angus College Policy on the use of IT Facilities

These regulations are for the benefit of students and staff and all other authorised users, and are designed to ensure the smooth running of College computer systems and network facilities.

1. Usernames and passwords are provided for the personal use of the individual user. They are not to be made available to anyone else, either inside or outside the College, and their security must be maintained at all times. Users should not leave computers logged in and unattended, and must always log out at the end of a session.
2. Users of College computer facilities are prohibited from:
   • attempting to gain unauthorised access to computer held information
   • attempting to decode passwords or bypass other security restrictions
   • degrading system performance by deliberately consuming excessive computer resources
   • deliberately storing, creating or propagating viruses, worms or similar types of software
   • using another user's password for any purpose
   • monitoring network communications
   • reading any other user's email without their permission
3. Users are prohibited from using the facilities to access the Internet or other resources for purposes reasonably considered by the College to be:
   • illegal
   • for personal financial gain
   • for political or other campaigning purposes
   • for the purposes of causing harassment
4. The College's computer systems are specifically not to be used to:
   send or store offensive or obscene material.
   • annoy, harass, intimidate, threaten, or offend others.
   • disrupt or damage the work of others.
   • invade the privacy of others.
   • send material which a recipient reasonably deems to be offensive, obscene or defamatory.
   • bring the College into disrepute.

   In some circumstances, automated systems (such as web content filtering) may be used to limit access to, or dissemination of, undesirable material. Users are specifically reminded that where this is the case, the primary responsibility still remains with them to ensure that they do not store or disseminate such material.

5. All use of computer systems must comply with:
   
   • all Copyright laws.
   • Computer Misuse Act 1990.
   • Data Protection Act 1998.
   • Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000.
   • the terms of any licence agreements.

   Apparently free software must not be downloaded from the internet, and/or installed on College computers without ensuring that this is genuinely free of charge and appropriate for downloading. Students must seek approval from their tutor prior to downloading or installing any software from the internet.

6. Users must conform to the JANET network acceptable use regulations which can be found at JAANET's Policies page
7. A breach of any of these regulations will be considered to be a breach of College
   regulations, and will be dealt with under the appropriate disciplinary code in force at the time.