IT
Soft landings
Software for specific requirements can be difficult to source. Here, Paul Sypko reveals the results of our survey of IT software suppliers to the independent schools sector, and charts the functionality of products and services
Getting the right management software for your school can be the difference between spending late nights in the school office and frantic attempts to stay on top of an ever-increasing workload, versus having the information you need, when you need it, with minimal stress and effort involved.
With an average spend of £69,100 at senior level and £18,900 at preparatory level (source: BESA, 2008), independent schools are serious users of ICT. School management software packages can be a major investment, with systems often expected to last upwards of five years. Before acquiring any new software, it is vital to make sure that the school’s investment in administrative and management systems will be money well spent, and that you will have systems that genuinely help you work in a way that supports your particular needs and objectives.
Survey results
This survey covers a range of administrative and management software systems for independent schools. It was carried out with the intention of providing readers with key information into what is available. The details provided in the tables are as predominantly submitted by the suppliers and we have made every effort to ensure that the information is as accurate as possible: however, as always, we urge readers to carry out their own research when drawing up any shortlists. There is also a table to allow you to compare relative functionality between products.
The survey is not comprehensive but we may add to the results in the future depending on the demand for this type of information.
Beaver Software Systems Ltd
Contact: Alex Vymeris, managing director, 020 8566 7131, info@beaver-software.co.uk www.beaver-software.com
Product: OASIS
Description: Administration and accounting software for independent schools. OASIS has been specifically designed to provide an accounting system geared towards the needs of independent schools. It is also designed to ensure easy integration with a wide variety of other products, ensuring the user has maximum flexibility. It allows web access to budget information by heads of departments.
Why choose this product: It is easy to use, using standard Windows conventions, and has evolved using 26 years of
input from independent schools. The aim is to provide a cost-effective solution for schools, regardless of size, along
with maximum functionality in the software and best possible support.
Helpdesk: 9am-5pm, Monday to Friday.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 4
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
Examples of customers: Include Harrow School; The Cheltenham Ladies College; Tonbridge School; Reigate Grammar School; The Perse School for Girls.
BragAbout – School Management Software
Contact: Dale Bragg, business manager, 0845 0945 098, dale@schoolmanagementsoftware.org.uk
www.schoolmanagementsoftware.org.uk
Product: The Timetabler
Description: Timetabling software for the construction, management and publishing of school timetables. Developed and supported by professional timetablers. Available in modular format to enable schools to tailor installation to suit their needs.
Why choose this product: “It’s the easiest program I have ever used,” Oona Carlin, The Royal Masonic School
for Girls.
Product: DayMap
Description: Classroom management software: a web-based system of class registration, assessment and learning.
Caters for teacher, student and parent access and email and SMS communication. Integrates with Outlook and Moodle.
Why choose this product: “..rapid uptake of digital teaching and learning opportunities,” Geoffrey Flett, Mooroolbark College.
Helpdesk: 24 hrs, Monday to Friday.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 4
Examples of customers: Ibstock Place School; St Aloysius’ College; The Royal Masonic School for Girls; Haberdashers’ Aske’s School for Girls; Keswick School.
Business Insights Group
Contact: Steve Barker, managing director, 01277 355755, Steve.Barker@bigroup.co.uk www.i4E.co.uk
Product: i4E Financials
Description: A complete accounting solution tailored specifically for education including ERP, student billing, EPOS, purchase control, HR and payroll. Developed in conjunction with Microsoft.
Why choose this product: i4E Financials is a system tailored specifically to the needs of educational establishments.
Product: i4E Educational Relationship Management
Description: A comprehensive system to manage all relationships including student recruitment, admissions,
student records, alumni, fundraising, staff, parents and commercial organisations. The system can be linked to
third-party systems.
Why choose this product: i4E ERM, developed in conjunction with Microsoft, provides a central data store, integrating all aspects of administration into a single solution. It also enables significant cost-savings in operations and software costs.
Product: i4E Learning Gateway
Description: A digital learning space for students to learn, complete assignments and communicate; shared interactive workspace with teaching staff; executive reporting and parental access to results progress and engagement.
Why choose this product: i4E Learning Gateway is based on Microsoft SharePoint and provides an enriched and
stimulating student-centric learning environment.
Helpdesk: 9am-6pm, Monday to Friday.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 8
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
Examples of customers: Available on application.
Capita
Contact: Amanda Durston, sales administrator, 01285 647459, amanda.durston@capita.co.uk
www.capitaes.co.uk/SIMS/index
Product: SIMS Management Information System for Schools
Description: SIMS is an MIS system that provides the full range of functionality to manage pupil and staff data including attendance, assessment and financial management. Schools can choose to use the whole system or only parts of it.
Why choose this product: SIMS is an integrated system: data is entered once and then can be used by all other
processes; this saves time, improves data accuracy and ensures that changes to records are consistent and visible
across the whole system. SIMS also holds historic (multi-year) data in a single database which means that schools
can produce trends of information over multiple years.
Product: FMS (Financial Management System) + SAGE 200 Financial System
Description: FMS is a financial management system designed for schools. It provides a full range of functionality. FMS incorporates a sales ledger, purchase ledger, nominal ledger and equipment register. Sage 200 is a well known
and extensively used business financial system.
Why choose this product: FMS is a financial system designed specifically for schools and is fully integrated with
the SIMS MIS system. Its simple and intuitive routines and its own report-writing engine allow flexibility of reporting
for bursars.
Product: Earnie Payroll Manager
Description: Earnie Payroll Manager is a payroll package that is used by independent schools for payment of
teaching and non teaching staff.
Helpdesk: Monday to Thursday 8am-5:30pm,
Friday 8am-5pm, plus 24/7 online knowledgebase.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 40 (part of larger support organisation)
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
Examples of customers: Has several partnership schools, including Loughborough Grammar and Stamford Endowed
schools. References on request.
ClarionCall Ltd
Contact: Peter May, managing director, 0870 4465000, peter.may@clarioncall.co.uk www.clarioncall.co.uk
Product: Parent Group Alert Service
Description: ClarionCall enables schools to better manage the flow of urgent or time-sensitive information to parents
via text email or voice in an easy to use, integrated, secure and consistent manner.
Why choose this product: ClarionCall delivers a combination of text, voice and email services exclusively to
independent schools. ClarionCall is integrated to all leading MIS systems, making it very easy to use and manage.
Helpdesk: 8am-6pm, Monday to Friday, with help via alert messaging at weekends.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 5
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
Examples of customers: Cheltenham College Junior School; Ranby House; Queens College Taunton; The Leys
School.
Furlong Solutions
Contact: Anna Harkness, marketing manager, 01264 354 111, anna.harkness@furlongsolutions.com www.schoolbase.biz, www.schoolbaseonline.biz
Product: SchoolBase
Description: A user-friendly MIS specifically designed for independent schools. It has teacher, parent and pupil
elements online and is backed up with a comprehensive set of tools for administrative and senior staff.
Why choose this product: SchoolBase is designed for the differences in types of independent schools. It offers
the flexibility to be tailored to fit schools’ needs. It has teacher, parent and pupil elements online and supports the
school from the first enquiry throughout the lifecycle of a pupil and beyond. It is designed to integrate easily with
the other systems in the Academic Software Alliance for comprehensive management software.
Helpdesk: 8.30am-5.30pm, Monday to Friday.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 6
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
Examples of customers: St Mary’s School, Shaftesbury; Stonar School; Rookwood School; Pangbourne College; St
Mary’s School Ascot; Bedales; The Pilgrims School.
Gladstone Education
Contact: Martin Fallows, sales manager, 01491 201010, info@gladstone-education.com
www.gladstone-education.com
Product: Gladstone OnRecord Cashless
Description: Gladstone OnRecord Cashless is a cashless catering system for any educational facility with a catering
function. It is designed specifically for the education market to improve meal-time administration and operational
efficiency. It also removes free meal stigma and improves security.
Why choose this product: Gladstone OnRecord Cashless can be used with either biometric or smartcard readers.
Real-time online reporting enables parents or guardians to access their child’s account to evaluate meal choices.
Product: Gladstone OnRecord E-registration
Description: Gladstone OnRecord E-registration provides electronic registration for schools. It empowers the office
and teaching staff with real-time and historical attendance information. Classroom electronic registration is made
simple with on-screen, smartcard or biometric (fingerprint) recognition to provide accurate and immediate attendance figures.
Why choose this product: Classroom electronic registration is made simple with on-screen, smartcard or biometric
(fingerprint) recognition to provide accurate and immediate attendance figures.
Product: Gladstone OnRecord Access
Description: Gladstone OnRecord Access provides a secure and safe access control environment for students, staff and school property, with the use of user-defined time rules and permissions. The educational facility can identify potential security breaches and record all movements throughout the controlled environment.
Why choose this product: Gladstone OnRecord Access allows the control of movements of pupils, staff and visitors
by zoning and controlling accessibility to specific areas and classrooms.
Helpdesk: 7am-7pm, Monday to Friday.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 10
Types of schools using this product: Junior and senior schools
Examples of customers: St Clare’s Independent 6th Form, Oxford; Petchey Academy; Bristol Brunel Academy; Bristol Metropolitan College; St.John’s of Essington.
Hebron UK Ltd
Contact: Lynne Butcher, sales administrator, 01935 40 30 20, sales@hebron.co.uk www.hebron.co.uk
Product: Hebron Engage
Description: A school-wide and comprehensive MIS. Hebron Engage keeps all the school’s data and information
within a single database, making it usable by every member of staff.
Why choose this product: Hebron Engage is an advanced and comprehensive MIS for schools. It is an intuitive system that keeps all the school’s data and information within a single database, making it usable by every member of staff, whether at the school or at home.
Product: Double First
Why choose this product: The Double First School Fees and Accounting Suite has been specifically designed for
schools. It combines the power and sophistication of the best commercial accounting systems with the specific
requirements of independent schools.
Product: Payroll
Description: An HMRC-compliant payroll system with school-specific additional functionality, including termly pay,
multiple contracts and Teachers Pension Agency return. Why choose this product: Hebron’s payroll software has
been completely revised and updated. It is a self-contained, stand-alone product, tested to Inland Revenue standards, and approved by the DCFS.
Helpdesk: 8.30am-5pm, Monday to Friday.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 15
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
Examples of customers: St Joseph’s College, Ipswich; St John’s on the Hill, Chepstow; United Church Schools Trust;
James Allen’s Girls’ School; Brooklands School.
HomeContact
Contact: Martin Suzan, director, 020 8099 8271, info@homecontact.co.uk www.homecontact.co.uk
Product: HomeContact
Description: HomeContact allows schools to communicate with parents and students electronically by sending
information, letters and reminders via email and text message from our easy-to-use, web-based service.
Why choose this product: HomeContact is not only significantly more cost-effective than other similar services,
but it also has many additional features, allowing greater flexibility for schools. Messages can be sent to parents and
students alike, and it includes features such as reply-online, where parents can reply to letters electronically, rather than having to fill in reply slips.
Helpdesk: 8.30am-5.30pm, Monday to Friday.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 5
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
i-Schools
Contact: Robert Owen, project manager, 020 8995 3258, robert.owen@ischools.org.uk www.ischools.org.uk
Product: i-Schools Admin and Financial Software
Description: i-Schools consists of eight modules for pupil management, staff control, admin, fees, supplies, nominal
ledger, assets and payroll.
Why choose this product: Ease of use (Windows-compliant) and a competitive pricing policy based on size of school, number of modules and number of PCs the system is installed on (not the number of users).
Helpdesk: 9am-4.30pm, Monday to Friday.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 3
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
Examples of customers: Brackenfield School; Gemini College; Hopelands Prep School; L’Ecole Bilingue; The Mount
School; Heath House Prep School.
Parago Software
Contact: Elaine McKay, customer relations manager, 0118 9572957, elaine.mckay@parago.co.uk
www.parago.co.uk
Product: Parago PC Discovery
Description: Parago PC Discovery is an agent that enables schools to discover and manage PCs via the school network and internet.
Why choose this product: Through the development of a wholly web-based system, schools can track their computers and software both on the school site and at home. This allows schools to report on the assets they own and on their location.
Product: Parago Software Asset Management
Description: Parago Software Asset Management enables schools to manage all software titles with a daily alert
system.
Why choose this product: Parago allows schools to manage their software with licence compliance and e-safety.
This is a highly cost-effective method of ensuring that licences are used correctly.
Product: Parago Mobile barcoding system
Description: ParagoMobile enables schools to manage all other school assets (eg kettles to whiteboards) within the
same database.
Why choose this product: Each school asset can be identified with a barcode or radio-frequency identification RFID tag, making the audit process more straightforward. Details of all the assets are uploaded in real-time via a
wireless connection.
Helpdesk: 9am-5pm, Monday to Friday.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 4
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
Examples of customers: Badminton School; The Arnewood School; Millais School; Torquay Boys Grammar School;
Millbrook Community School.
Pearson Phoenix
Contact: Doug Bickerton, business development manager, 01722 344800, doug.bickerton@pearson.com
www.pearsonphoenix.com
Product: e1
Description: Secure, centrally hosted, web-based MIS system delivering anytime, anywhere access to school data
to anyone with an authorised log-in.
Why choose this product: Centrally hosted, web-based MIS system. Secure log-in provides access from any location
at any time including handheld mobile internet devices such as iPhones. One price is for unlimited user access,
automates data mining and sharing.
Product: Phoenix Finance for Schools (PfS) Description: Financial accounting for schools to manage budgets, invoices and purchase orders at the click of a button, can handle data transfer from excel into PfS without loss of formulae integrity.
Why choose this product: Log-in enables users to set up multiple accounts to generate and manage a school’s
finances with ease. Along with the usual accounting functions, PfS enables copy-and-paste mode with Excel without losing the integrity of formulae.
RM
Contact: 08450 700300 www.rm.com
Product: IntegrisG2
Description: IntegrisG2 is centrally hosted and entirely web-delivered, IntegrisG2 offers secure access to school
information for teachers, pupils and their parents (as well as the local authority) from the classroom, office or home.
Users are able to manage: school administration, attendance, assessment, behaviour, reporting, parental reporting, SEN, timetabling, examinations and statutory DCSF requirements.
Why choose this product: It can be securely accessed from any PC with a web browser and internet access, at anytime, from anywhere. Remote hosting allows routine tasks such as data backup and software upgrades to take place centrally, without depending on school administration staff, upgrades are simply applied once, centrally, and all schools are able to use a new release of the software immediately.
Product: Kaleidos Learning Platform
Description: The Kaleidos Learning Platform provides access to a wide range of tools and resources. It is designed
to support personalisation, parental reporting, assessment for learning and collaboration.
Why choose this product: Currently offers extensive integration with MIS to support parental supporting, and offers great opportunities for personalisation and exciting learning with customisable avatars, single click webcam capture for use in discussions, blogging, and page creation.
Helpdesk: 8am-6pm, Monday to Friday.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 100
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
Examples of customers: Farmor’s School, Gloucestershire; Ashford Rural Cluster (primary schools), Kent
RSAdmissions Ltd
Contact: Jan Evans, managing director, 01420 563547, jan@rsadmissions.co.uk www.rsadmissions.co.uk
Product: RSAdmissions
Description: RSAdmissions is an admissions and marketing database that provides admissions personnel with the
appropriate user-friendly interface for recording and tracking enquiries from initial contact to joining the school, with built-in reporting at every stage. Uniquely, the product provides an entrance examination procedure, an overseas agents and a feeder school contact data management facility and a large number of management statistical reports based on sound marketing theory. The product also uses Microsoft Word and Excel in much of its reporting.
Why choose this product: RSAdmissions is the only admissions and marketing database designed and supported by people who have done the job themselves. We have an unrivalled reputation for our customer service.
Helpdesk: 8am-9pm, Monday to Friday; 9am-5pm, Saturday: plus mobile at other times.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 4
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
Examples of customers: Stowe School; Bromsgrove School; Guildford High School; Latymer Upper and Latymer Prep
Schools; Royal Hospital School.
WCBS
Contact: Peter Heginbotham, sales director, 01458 833344, sales@wcbs.co.uk www.wcbs.co.uk
Product: PASS School Management System and PASS.web Portals
Description: PASS software provides a fully integrated school-wide MIS system covering all the administration,
marketing, academic, development and financial requirements for independent fee-paying schools.
Why choose this product: PASS provides a single pupil, school-wide MIS system addressing all administration,
academic and accounting needs. The flexibility within PASS allows user configuration to address school-specific
requirements.
Product: webALUMNUS
Description: webALUMNUS provides a hosted, friend and fundraising system for educational establishments to help
manage the former pupils and other contacts associated with development/alumni offices.
Why choose this product: webALUMNUS is the specialist alumni management and fundraising product, developed
and supported specifically for educational establishments, rather than charities in general.
Helpdesk: 8am-5pm, Monday to Friday.
Number of UK helpdesk staff: 4 from a broader general support team of 14 people
Types of schools using this product: Schools at all levels/age ranges
Examples of customers: Tonbridge School; Repton School; Uppingham School; Kent College, Pembury; Holmewood
House School; The Abbey School, Reading.
Paul Sypko is a consultant with BlueSpark Consulting. He specialises in assisting not-for-profit organisations in the strategic and operational use of ICT and can be contacted at paul.sypko@bluesparkconsulting.com
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