.jpg)
How Colfe's School transformed offer season with
digital contracts
Welcome to our new Customer Spotlight series, where we shine a light on schools using Applicaa to revolutionise their admissions processes. As independent schools head into offer season, we're spotlighting Colfe's School and how they've streamlined one of the most crucial periods in the admissions calendar.
The Challenge: Complex offers at scale
For independent schools, offer season isn't simply about sending acceptance letters. At Colfe's School, the complexity multiplies significantly as students progress through the school:
- Multiple entry points from age 3 to 16+
- Academic scholarships
- Co-curricular scholarships across various disciplines
- Means-tested bursary programmes
- Occasional place applications throughout the year
"As families progress through our junior school to our senior school, or new families join us at 11+ or 16+, the range of offers becomes much more varied," explains Hayley Phipps, Admissions Manager at Colfe's School. "We start offering scholarships, whether that be academic or co-curricular. We also have a means-tested scholarship programme. So the number of offers that we are making increases for the senior school, both in terms of quantity, but also in terms of the type of offer."
Managing this variety whilst maintaining a personal touch for each family presented a significant challenge - until Colfe's implemented Applicaa's Admissions+ and offer contracts three years ago.
From paper to personal: the digital revolution
Time savings where it matters
The shift from paper-based processes to digital offer contracts has created substantial time efficiencies at Colfe's. "Instead of having to print out and send individual letters, we can now obviously do that all digitally," Hayley notes.
But the time saved isn't just about printing and posting. The real efficiency comes from integration with the school's existing systems. "It syncs with the SIMS database that the wider school uses," Hayley explains. "We have managed to cut back on a lot of manual inputting of data across the school."
This integration means data only needs to be entered once, eliminating the duplication of effort that often plagues school administration.
Sophisticated tracking for complex processes
For co-curricular scholarships, Colfe's runs a multi-stage process involving assessments, auditions and workshops. Applicaa's grouping and filtering capabilities allow the admissions team to track each applicant's journey seamlessly.
"It has the capabilities of being able to group applicants and offers into various groups and filters so that we can quite easily see which child is being offered what type of place," says Hayley. "And also track that journey using groups in terms of inviting children in for particular assessments, auditions or workshops."
The personal touch at scale
Perhaps the most impressive feature for independent schools is how Applicaa enables personalisation without sacrificing efficiency.
"We can easily bespoke offers to reflect a specific child, a specific offer, and to really make that child feel seen as part of the offer process," Hayley enthuses. "By including individual comments that the Headmaster may make following an interview with a child or ahHead of department following a child coming in for a co-curricular assessment."
Using Applicaa’s offer contract model helps ensure every family receives an offer that reflects their child's unique strengths and potential contribution to the school.
"We make the family feel that Colfe's has really got to know their child as an individual and their skills and what they can bring to the school and why we would very much like them to join us."
Benefits beyond offer season
Whilst offer contracts shine during the main admissions cycle, Colfe's uses Applicaa throughout the year for:
- Daily operations - Managing enquiries and applications across all year groups
- Open events - Families can book through the website via the events booking system
- Occasional places - Processing ad hoc applications throughout the year
- Pre-joining events - Sending information to accepted families ahead of their start date
- Rapid reporting - “We can very quickly run data reports from any element of Applicaa that we use or that staff need"
Support when you need it
For Hayley, knowing that support is available has been crucial: "We have the ongoing support of Applicaa and the team if we need their help as we develop the product for our needs further."
This combination of a robust, flexible system and responsive support gives schools the confidence to adapt their admissions processes as their needs evolve.
The family experience
The benefits extend beyond operational efficiency: "As well as having time efficiencies for us, it makes it a very sleek, efficient process for the families that are going through the journey with us."
In an increasingly competitive landscape, providing a modern, seamless experience for prospective families is essential. Digital offer contracts not only meet families' expectations for convenience but also demonstrate the school's commitment to innovation and efficiency.
The bottom line for independent schools
Colfe's School's three-year journey with Applicaa demonstrates that offer season doesn't have to be overwhelming:
- Streamlined processes free up time for relationship-building with families
- Sophisticated tracking manages complex scholarship and bursary programmes
- Personalisation at scale ensures every child feels valued
- System integration eliminates duplicate data entry
- Flexible reporting provides insights across the entire admissions funnel
- Year-round utility makes it a daily resource, not just an offer season tool
As Hayley summarises: "The impact that using Applicaa has had on Colfe's as a school has been significant."
Heading into offer season and want to streamline your admissions process? Discover how Applicaa's offer contracts can transform your school's approach. Visit applicaa.com or contact our team for a demo.
Comments