A handbook for admissions and marketing teams
Practical guides on open days, websites, listings, international recruitment and the rules on photos, claims and reviews. Each guide is short, practical and written for small teams.
Chapters by audience
How schools can plan an open day or open morning that answers parents' real questions: timing, tours, talks and follow-up.
The pages and details parents look for first on a school website, and common gaps that send them elsewhere.
Why school directory listings matter, what to check in each one and how to keep fees, curricula and contact details consistent.
How schools and universities can track and follow up enquiries so fewer families drop out between first contact and enrolment.
A simple approach to school social media: what to post, how often, who approves posts and how to handle comments.
How to plan and write a school prospectus, printed or online: structure, plain language, photos and the facts to include.
How universities reach international students: where students research, what they compare and what content helps them decide.
How schools and universities can work with student recruitment agents ethically: contracts, training, monitoring and transparency.
What schools need to think about before using pupils' photos, names and work in marketing, with notes on UK GDPR, FERPA and COPPA.
How advertising rules apply to education marketing, with a focus on the UK CAP Code: rankings, results and 'best' claims.
How schools and universities can ask for online reviews without breaking platform rules or consumer law, and how to respond to them.
A family's route to your door
Age range, curriculum, fees, transport, admissions and term dates, where parents can find them.
The same current facts in each directory, owned by one person.
A sensible time, pupil-led tours, a short talk and the practical papers ready.
Short and specific, with fees on an insert you can update each year.
A named person, a reply the same working day and a next step for every family.
Templates
Each list comes straight from a chapter. Copy it into a document, a shared drive or a staff email.
[ ] Signs from the gate to the reception area, and staff to meet people at the door. [ ] Printed fee sheets and term dates. [ ] Bus routes and pick-up times. [ ] Application forms, or a short link to the online form. [ ] Name badges for staff, so families know who to ask. [ ] A way to record who came and what they asked about, with their consent.
[ ] The school's name, written exactly as on its website. [ ] Curriculum and age range. [ ] Current fees, or a fee range. [ ] Address and a link to the official website. [ ] Photos, if the directory allows them.
[ ] A short introduction from the head. [ ] What and how the school teaches. [ ] A typical day. [ ] Pastoral care and wellbeing. [ ] Activities beyond lessons. [ ] Admissions, fees and contact details, on a separate insert so they can be updated each year.
[ ] "Best", "top" or "leading": is there evidence, and is the basis of comparison clear? [ ] Rankings: have we named the ranking, its year and what it measures? [ ] Exam results: have we said which year, which pupils and how the figure was calculated? [ ] Graduate jobs and salaries: have we stated the source and the time period? [ ] Could we show the evidence to a sceptical parent?
From Advertising claims
Listings drift out of date because nobody owns them.
A quiet account is better than one that posts daily for a month and then stops.
Before publishing a claim, ask if you could show the evidence to a sceptical parent.
Common mistakes
Each one is covered in a chapter of the handbook.
It is a common reason parents give up on a school website. Publish fees, including what they do and do not include.
Google does not allow it. Remind every family in the same way, and never offer anything in return for a review.
Old fees or a wrong curriculum can lose an enquiry before it starts. Keep one source of facts and update every listing when fees change.
Check the consent list before every photo is published, avoid full names next to photos of children and remove photos when consent is withdrawn.
Families drift away when nobody follows up. Reply promptly, ideally the same working day, and record a next step and a date for every enquiry.
An objective claim needs evidence. The UK Advertising Standards Authority has ruled against schools and universities over rankings, satisfaction and results claims.
Train agents every year, check what they say in their marketing and tell students when an agent is paid by the institution.
Planning an open day?
The open day checklist is ready to copy, along with the listing check and the prospectus outline.
Get the checklistLocal Marketing Muscle publishes guides. It is not an agency and does not sell marketing services.