School Overview
Based in the West Midlands in the middle of a council housing estate with high unemployment and deprivation, the school maintains a strong set of values and aims to help bring out the best in every student that passes through its doors.
Now part of the DRB Ignite Multi Academy Trust, Sue’s role now sees her working as the Business Manager across both Hob Green and Bromley Pensnett school.
Like all schools, Hob Green receives money from parents for a wide range of reasons – trips, dinner money, the tuck shop, school items and more.
The assignment: Hob Green Primary School
“Cash would come into school and into the classroom.” Explains Sue. “It would then be sent to the office where we would have to spend hours counting money – often an entire morning. Two of us would then have to check the money was all there and it would then have to be balanced and taken to the bank.” This proved incredibly restrictive for Sue and her admin staff. If the money was in the process of being counted, Sue couldn’t leave the office if she needed to for security reasons. They then had to pay a security company to make sure the money got to the bank with no issues. Searching for a better way, the school’s IT Technician and Head Teacher attended the Bett Show in 2015 to consider cashless payment solutions.
How did SchoolMoney fit in at the school?
Whilst working from home, Ramsden staff members were able to work with the School Money support team to credit parents and carers with the money from their pupil’s lunch cards. As a result of this, the team were able to spend their time on other issues amidst the uncertainty of coronavirus.
How did SchoolMoney fit in at the school?
The setup process for the school was simple, and Eduspot took care of it before they went live.
“It’s very easy to pick up” adds Sue. “It doesn’t take long after a new colleague begins before I feel like I can leave them alone with it”.
Staff too have been thrilled. They love not having to collect money themselves and find the app very easy to use. On the other side, parents also reported unexpected benefits like being able to see their children eating food at school they refused to eat at home!
