Schoolcomms case study
Phase: Primary
Local Authority: City of Bristol
Unique challenge: To make decisions with the aim of becoming a paperless school.
We know that budgets are always tight for schools. What savings (both in time and money) do you feel have made investing in Schoolcomms worthwhile?
The cost of Schoolcomms (which is by no means excessive) is vastly outweighed by the saving in time and resources and also, where payments are concerned, the risk of human error.
What day-to-day challenges has using Schoolcomms helped you to overcome?
The ease of setting up contact groups is fantastic, it enables us to target specific groups of parents without bothering irrelevant groups.
As a School Administrator, the online payments and consent modules are the highlight for me. I don’t have to spend hours processing cash and cheques and I can easily contact people who have not contributed to or consented for a trip.
There was always a slight issue with human error where cash/cheques were misplaced or incorrectly logged.
There are always distractions in the school office, which meant you could be interrupted in mid-flow, and online payments have completely eradicated this problem.
I don’t set up clubs, our Club Manager is responsible for that, but I know it’s an excellent system which she finds very easy to use.
The saving in paper use alone is also pretty substantial.
What has parent and staff reaction been to School Gateway?
It has been very well received.
Teachers only took a short time to adjust and get used to not sending paper letters and consent forms home in book bags.
Parents also get on fine with the system, although a few people still struggle with tech and would rather send cash in an envelope. But after being strict with it for a time, we no longer receive any questions or complaints.
What advice would you give to a school that is currently thinking about implementing Schoolcomms?
I would highly recommend Schoolcomms to any school considering it. It’s an excellent system on so many levels, and very easy and intuitive to use.
The other great plus is customer service. Access to support is pretty much instant and you always speak to a real person on a clear line if the query can’t be answered via email. Staff are extremely helpful and friendly and know their product inside out; they have endless patience and never make you feel stupid!