Changing your school’s website provider can feel like a daunting task, but with a clear plan and understanding of the key considerations, it can be a smooth and highly rewarding process. A new school website offers a chance to refresh your content, improve user experience, and ensure compliance with the latest DFE regulations. Your school website is the public facing image of your school, you want to set a positive first impression.
Here is a step by step guide and a list of crucial points to be aware of during the transition.
The Transition Process: A Step by Step Approach
1. Initial Assessment and Planning
Before engaging a new provider, thoroughly assess your current website’s performance, what you like and dislike, and what features you want to see in the new website.
- Define Your Goals: What do you want the new website to achieve? (e.g., better communication, increased enrollment inquiries, improved accessibility).
- Establish Key Stakeholders: Identify who needs to be involved in the decision making and content creation process (e.g., Headteacher, Governors, IT lead, administrative staff).
- Set a Realistic Timeline: Work backward from your desired launch date or end of current contract, allocating time for planning, content migration, design iteration, and testing.
2. Provider Selection
Research and select a provider that specializes in school websites and understands the unique requirements of the education sector. Take advantage of bespoke functionality that is aimed at schools.
- Review Portfolios: Look at examples of other schools they have worked with.
- Request a Demo: Ensure the Content Management System (CMS) is intuitive and easy for staff to use.
- Check Support and Training: Understand what support is offered post launch and whether there are any additional costs. We have no additional costs for support or training.
- Planning for the future: Investigate how easy it is to change providers in the future, can you export your content and how easy is it to work with?
3. Design and Branding
The new website is the perfect opportunity to implement any new brand guidelines or simply give your school a visual refresh. Whether you decide to change the font you use, tweak your brand colours or even change your logo, this is the ideal stage to implement change.
- Apply New Brand Guidelines: Ensure your new website accurately reflects your school’s ethos, colors, and logo.
- Focus on User Experience (UX): Prioritize clear navigation and mobile responsiveness. Most users will access your site on a phone or tablet.
4. Content Strategy and Creation
This is the most time consuming step but is essential for a successful launch.
- Start Fresh with Content: Resist the urge to simply copy and paste old, outdated material. Use this as a chance to audit, update, and rewrite content to be concise, engaging, and relevant.
- Identify Mandatory Content: Ensure all legally required documents and information are accounted for. We have a handy checklist to ensure your school website is DFE compliant.
5. Development and Testing
The provider will build the site, but your input and rigorous testing are vital before launch.
- Regular Check-ins: Maintain open communication with the provider throughout the build process. Be open with them if you feel like a tweak is needed to the design.
- Thorough Testing: Test on multiple devices (desktop, tablet, mobile) and browsers. Check all links, forms, and interactive elements.
6. Launch and Post Launch
Plan the migration of your domain name and be ready for immediate feedback.
- Domain Migration: Work with your IT team and the new provider to ensure a seamless switch, minimizing downtime.
- Staff Training: Ensure all relevant staff are trained on how to update and manage the new CMS.
Key Points to Be Aware Of
| Consideration | Action Point |
|---|---|
| DFE Compliance | MUST ensure the website is DfE compliant. This includes mandatory information like financial reports, curriculum details, and contact information. Use the DfE checklist as your guide. |
| Data Migration | Clearly define what data, if any, needs to be migrated (e.g., news archives, forms data). Be cautious—it is often better to manually move only essential data. |
| Accessibility (WCAG 2.1 AA) | The website must adhere to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 at the AA level to ensure it is usable by people with disabilities. |
| Search Engine Optimization (SEO) | Plan for 301 redirects to ensure old page links don’t break and that your search engine rankings are maintained or improved. Leverage plugins such as Yoast to help improve your performance. |
| GDPR and Privacy | Allocate time and resources for comprehensive training for anyone who will be managing the site content. |
| Image Permisions | Only use images that your school has permission to use, either through internal photography, stock photo licenses, or creative commons. |
*For a full list of required content, please refer to the latest DfE guidelines available here:
Conclusion
This transition, while requiring effort, is an excellent investment in your school’s future, ensuring a modern, compliant, and effective digital platform for the entire school community. If you are interested in changing your school website provider to realsmart then just drop us an email, we look forward to partnering with you.