Grandparents – a school’s real customer

As stated in various media outlets, a survey conducted by REST several years ago indicated a growing trend for Australian retirees using their superannuation to fund their grandchildren’s private school education.

The report cited that 29% are considering or are paying the tuition fees at many of Australia’s private schools. A private poll I undertook with friends surprised me greatly, as the result was much higher. Out of the ten families asked, seven admitted to receiving financial support from their parents towards their child’s private education.

So while your school provides education services for children and regular performance reports to parents, this growing trend of grandparents funding education means that your real customer (who pays the bill) is the grandparent.

While Australia’s response to COVID-19 has been breathtaking as it has been unprecedented, one of the results has been the social distancing of grandchildren from their grandparents.

Technologies like FaceTime and Skype can help with video communication bringing much joy. Regrettably, the attention span of Australia’s youth can mean a short 5 to 10 minute online chat now replaces family events.

SchoolBench’s Parent Portal helps to bridge the gap between grandparents and grandchildren. SchoolBench provides schools with the ability to share a constant feed of images of the children enjoying the facilities of your school. These pictures can be simple happy snaps taken of everyday moments. As the saying goes, a picture tells a thousand words.

SchoolBench’s Parent Portal is designed to integrate with your infrastructure, so images can be served in same place that parents already frequent. Perusing photos is easy, with a simple and intuitive panel, organised by child and by year. Schools can also make images available for download if desired.

To see a practical demonstration of SchoolBench in action, contact Parashift by telephone on 1300 769 809 or by email to contact@parashift.com.au

References:
Survey of 4,565 QSuper members carried out by Colmar Brunton on behalf of QSuper, June 2017
https://www.equipsuper.com.au/blog/managing-your-children-s-education-costs
https://www.smh.com.au/education/grandparents-stumping-up-for-private-school-fees-20160225-gn3hst.html