In search of the perfect school management system for Queenwood.
The decision-making process at Queenwood involved a thorough evaluation of multiple systems and focussed on addressing the school's pain points effectively. They considered complexity, cost, security, and user experience. The school emphasised the importance of prioritising the needs of teachers and students, stating, "We wanted a modern experience for our teaching staff who had been struggling with legacy systems." - Rohan Noyes - Information System Architect.
After reviewing various options and consulting with stakeholders, Queenwood identified Sentral as the ideal solution that met their requirements and provided robust security measures.
“We looked at about a dozen systems so we got everybody back in a room and we surveyed them all… we looked at the different modules so we separated them into reporting and markbook, well-being, and staff management… we looked at each module for each product [system] and we gave them a rating out of three so either it was acceptable, it was an unacceptable risk, or it was best of breed from a user experience.” - Emma Macey - Director Of Strategy.
Meticulous planning, implementation and data migration execution
The implementation of Sentral at Queenwood involved meticulous planning, execution and data migration. The school was migrating from two legacy student information systems, which posed data accuracy and compatibility challenges. To ensure a smooth transition, Queenwood leveraged Sentral's API and a sandpit environment for thorough testing and validation of data migration.
“...we were migrating from two legacy Student Information Systems each being a source of truth depending on the age of the data and the type of the data leveraging. Sentral's API was essential for Queenwood to ensure we could get our student staff and parent information to those systems that needed it…” - Rohan Noyes - Information System Architect.
"[Sentral were] very receptive to finding out what the needs are of the school and they genuinely want to create solutions for that school and …when you're working in a partnership like that you're going to build a good product." - Sharanya Banerj - Risk and Compliance Manager.
Making school life much easier
Once implemented, Queenwood started to see a positive impact on their day-to-day process, the Sentral platform addressed Queenwood's key requirements, offering a user-friendly interface, and configurable modules.
"I think Sentral is easy to use… and access different areas and for an HoD (Head of Department)it can cut down your workload if you use it in the right way so you can use the incidents to sort of create instead of emails, you can create a detailed profile of a student and therefore every time I access it as an HoD or a teach…. they can get this complete picture of the student all in one place that can allow them to make an informed decision...” - Amie Clark - Head of Department, Social Science.
It automated manual tasks like attendance tracking and excursion management, reducing workload and improving efficiency. Its secure platform eased concerns about data management.
‘...you can also look at their [students] recent attendance …and really within a couple of minutes have a good idea of how that student is travelling, academically and pastorally and have all the information at hand.’ - Simon Townley, Year Coordinator and Data Analytics Manager
‘"..in selecting Sentral as our school management system we wanted to ensure that our data would be secure um in today's threat landscape security is Paramount we need to ensure that staff have the correct level of access and that the companies comply with industry-leading standards and Sentral meets all of those." - Rohan Noyes - Information System Architect.
Teachers were pleased with its accessibility and seamless integration with other systems.
"I love the way it links into other modules as well as other pieces of software… [all data is linked from] Sentral in a couple of clicks and that just makes my life particularly much easier.’"- Simon Townley, Year Coordinator and Data Analytics Manager.
A key highlight for the school was how Sentral guided and managed the migration process.
“Sentral brilliantly helped us do an entire live data migration into the sandpit because you don't know how that data is going to behave, not just within Sentral but how it interacts with the APIs and the other systems…" - Emma Macey - Director Of Strategy
Overall, Queenwood believed Sentral provided a comprehensive solution tailored to their needs.
Embraced enthusiastically
Both parents and teachers at Queenwood have embraced Sentral enthusiastically, appreciating its ease of use and effectiveness in communication. Sharon Strachan, Assistant to the Deputy Principal noted, "[Initially], some parents were resistant to using the portal, but once they experienced it, they loved it. It has significantly reduced the number of calls we receive, making communication more efficient."
Teachers also lauded Sentral for its intuitive interface and comprehensive features.
“[Sentral] It’s …more intuitive, it's easier to find what you need when you need it and the navigation bar up the top just takes all the clicking away. I was very very happy when I heard we were getting it and I'm still really happy that we've got it." - Amie Clark - Head of Department, Social Science.
After adopting the Sentral platform, Queenwood School for Girls has observed improved administrative efficiency, data security, and communication. Sentral’s robust features have garnered widespread stakeholder satisfaction and transformed school management practices.
"I love it, I think it's great, it's quite a fun system to use and it just makes things a lot easier ... compared to the system we used to run with... it's made the things that we do day-to-day a lot easier."
Want to learn more about Queenwood's journey? Watch the full set of videos:
