IRIS ParentMail: five features that will transform parent engagement
Updated 2nd November 2023 | 5 min read Published 27th October 2023
Building a strong network with parents and carers is vital for student success.
However, with soaring absence rates, ongoing recruitment struggles and tight budgets, schools have so much to worry about, resulting in parent engagement often being left on the back burner.
Well, what if you could make parent engagement quick and easy?
Meet IRIS ParentMail, our powerful, cloud-based parent communications tool, trusted by over 4,000 UK schools!
From automation and flexibility to efficiency and cost-savings, here are five ways IRIS ParentMail can transform the way you work.
1) Features tailored to you, in one convenient place
IRIS ParentMail’s interface is entirely customisable to your needs.
Its rich features are also accessible in one central location, helping parents keep up to date with the latest news, payments, one-to-one meetings, school trips and more at the touch of a button.
Additionally, so you can rest assured knowing parents will never miss a thing, IRIS ParentMail uses push notifications, emails and SMS to ensure messages get through.
2) Breathe easy with Economy Mode
A turbulent few years have seen everyone tighten their purse strings – saving SMS credits is a quick and easy way for schools to cut costs.
IRIS ParentMail’s handy Economy Mode automatically sends texts as push notifications or emails to any parents who have them enabled, protecting your SMS credit balance from unnecessary expenditures.
What’s more, IRIS ParentMail enables you to easily create online forms and digital newsletters so you can bid farewell to paper and printing costs!
3) Seamless integration
We know onboarding can cause headaches.
Designed to seamlessly integrate with a number of leading MIS providers, IRIS ParentMail helps you deliver a smooth parent onboarding experience and target communications to desired groups.
Parents can also rest easy with the integrated cashless catering system.
Forget the days of lost dinner money; it’s easy to make payments and manage food preferences all from within the app.
These features also stretch far beyond regular school hours – from attendance registers and breakfast to holiday and after-school clubs, they can all be managed in IRIS ParentMail.
4) Good data = great outcomes
Schools thrive with good data.
IRIS ParentMail can generate a clear overview of the things that matter, including who has read certain messages, submitted payments, completed online forms and booked parents’ evening appointments.
Easy-to-digest, visual reports help you understand school-wide patterns and trends in parent engagement.
With IRIS ParentMail, reporting becomes effortless and optimised to highlight what’s going well, and what isn’t.
5) Automate the admin
There’s nothing worse than a day full of long-winded admin, so why not automate it?
With IRIS ParentMail, time-consuming tasks such as manually collecting payments and sending out reminders become a thing of the past!
It’s easy to set up automated alerts so you can focus on the important stuff while not missing a thing.
IRIS ParentMail also enables you to create standardised messaging and build templates for previously laborious tasks, saving you even more time.