We currently have more than 210 schools and colleges which are members of the British Boarding Schools' Network. Our market-leading services enable them to benefit from being part of a Network which drives and enables success in international marketing and student recruitment.
Our membership services for schools can be grouped under three core headings:
- MARKET INTELLIGENCE
- CONTACTS
- NETWORKING
MARKET INTELLIGENCE
- Regular Email Updates: Regular updates from our team ensures you keep up to date with what is happening across the sector and provides valuable advice on how to navigate the challenges we encounter in changing times.
- Members' Portal: Our online portal provides schools with the tools they need to succeed. The system has been developed by a team of staff who have worked in boarding schools and understand what senior leaders and admissions and marketing staff need to develop an effective, targeted strategy. The Knowledge Zone section of the portal gives you access to latest information, international strategy documents, market intelligence, city guides and country reports produced specifically for UK boarding schools by our team of experts. A live feed shows the Top 30 Markets table based on the school members' international pupils data. This ensures you know where the key boarding recuitment markets are so you don't waste resources on markets which don't yield results.
- International Market Updates: Via Zoom we run frequent market updates which are delivered by experienced agents and who have on the ground knowledge of what is happening in key recruitment markets at any given time. In November 2020 we ran five different sessions, covering 27 different international markets and 7 hours of the recorded sessions were loaded onto the portal for members to view if they could not attend the live events.
- Discussion Forums - regular discussion forums on topics such as Covid-19 and the new immigration routes enable our community to navigate these issues together in a suppotive, collaborative way. The Zoom events are open to all member schools and agents so that we can discuss issues across the community and hear view from different markets and members.
- Training Schools - In January/February 2021 we are running a series of Zoom sessions for member schools to train them on how to market their schools and colleges in different countries. Each session will look at a particular country so that school staff have an in-depth knoweldge of the reasons why families choose British boarding schools and how to tailor-make marketing communications for each. This will enable schools to enhance the quality and effectiveness of their international marketing in an increasingly sophisticated and competitive environment.
- Training Agents - In Autumn 2020 we ran a series of Zoom sessions to introduce New Heads in member schools to our network of agents. This enhanced the agents' knowledge of key new staff and helped them to engage with our members schools and to use the sessions to train staff. Additional sessions are planned for 2021.
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Access to such powerful resources allows you to keep Senior Leaders and Governors well-informed, enabling them to fully grasp the significant value of agents to boarding recruitment and to understand the changes in markets and how it affects your recruitment strategy.
CONTACTS
- Via the members' portal schools can search a unique database of 550+ trusted and triple-reference checked agents who recruit thousands of pupils for boarding schools each year. To be approved members, agents are carefully selected, interviewed and reference-checked by our experienced team, so you can have confidence in the agents you find and contact via our portal.
- As a member, your school has a profile which is visible to 550+ boarding-focused agencies who can quickly and easily search for schools using detailed criteria such as course subjects, activities, facilities, type of school, educational programmes, specialisms, fees, facilities, location and much more. Agents can view your profile, testimonials, videos and photos, then download a short profile with all of the key facts and figures they need to consider schools for families. Members can provide vital documents such as prospectuses, GCSE and A level option blocks, curriculum guides and inspection reports - all in one place. Agents value the ease of the site and it saves them valuable time and resources when searching for the right school for their client families.
- In minutes you can send news and vacancy information via the Announcement facility to all member agents, or targeted emails to select groups such as by country, or to your own pre-defined groups of agents. This is even more essential when you can't visit agents due to budget restrictions or when it is not safe to travel to the country.
- You can post details of your news and events including open days and virtual events so agents can access the school news and events in one central area.
NETWORKING
Networking is at the core of what BBSN does. Our business started in 2006 when we set up the British Boarding Schools' Workshop as a networking event for schools and agents, and the company has grown since. In 2019 we added the Networking Days for members and they have been a huge success. Since COVID-19 we have added in Zoom Forums which have enabled our community to connect during challenging times.
- Zoom Events - during COVID-19 we set up a whole range of Zoom Events to keep our community engaged and connected. These have been so well received we will continue them to support members.
- Networking days exclusively for members. The networking days enhance the meetings that take place at the British Boarding Schools' Workshops as they provide plenty of time over refreshments and lunch to network, make new contacts and build on existing partnerships with agents. It also provides a valuable chance to meet colleagues from other schools and to learn from each other. Seminar sessions on relevant topics by knowledgeable speakers enhance the events, making it a really worthwhile day out of the office. The events are held at member schools around the UK and participation is charged at a low fee to cover lunch and refreshments.
- Member discounts at the British Boarding Schools' Workshops: At our renowned school and agent networking events, our school members benefit from 15% off the stand package (for events in 2020 onwards) saving more than £500 depending on the package they have booked. For the BBSW Virtual Event in March 2021 members save £300 + vat on the participation fee for one Zoom room.
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