Admissions steps, fees, pages that work on a phone, an easy way to get in touch and news that is current. What parents check first, and how to get each one right.
How to apply, in plain steps
The first thing most parents want to know is how to get their child in. They want the steps, the documents, the key dates and the name of someone to talk to.
Put admissions one click from the home page. Write the steps as a short numbered list, say which year groups have places if you can, and link straight to the enquiry or application form.
Fees parents can find
Hiding fees does not stop parents asking about them. It only means they ask another school first.
A good fees page shows:
Tuition by grade in a simple table that reads well on a phone
One-off costs such as registration, deposits and uniforms
Payment options including instalments and sibling discounts if you offer them
The school year the fees apply to, so nobody reads an old table
When fees change, the page should change the same day, and staff should be able to do that themselves.
Built for phones first
Many parents read your site on a phone, often in a spare minute between other things. Pages need to load fast and be easy to read with one thumb.
Check your key pages on a real phone: home, admissions, fees and contact. Text should be big enough to read, buttons big enough to tap, and tables should not run off the side of the screen.
Large images are the usual reason a school site feels slow.
Resizing them is the quickest fix.
Make contact easy
A parent who is ready to talk should not have to search for a phone number.
Put it where they will see it.
Every page should have:
A phone number that can be tapped to call
WhatsApp if your admissions team uses it
A short enquiry form that asks only what you need
Your address and map with times for school visits
Then reply quickly. The website brings the parent to you, and a fast answer keeps them.
News that is current
A news page whose latest post is a year old makes parents wonder whether anyone is looking after the site.
You do not need to post every day. A short update after events, trips and the start of term is enough to show school life as it is now.
The easiest way to keep news current is to let the staff who run events post it themselves, without waiting for a developer.
Answer their questions first
Parents are making a big decision for their child. A school website earns their trust with straight answers, kept up to date, on whatever screen they use.
Every page should help a parent say:
I know what to do next.
