As you know, we will be launching our new ParentPay system for paying for school meals and trips at the start of the Autumn term. By now you should have received a post advising you of the details and also a letter sent home with your child advising you how to activate your account.
Pasted below is the original post about ParentPay and if you need another copy of your letter with your activation details, please contact Mrs Bacon in the office as soon as possible.
It would be very much appreciated if you could try and activate your account before the end of this term – it doesn’t take long – so that we can deal with any problems before we finish for the summer break. Even if your child doesn’t have school meals or is entitled to free school meals, it would be helpful if you could set-up your account so that you are ready to make payments for trips, as and when required.
We will be holding a drop-in session at school next Monday 17th July from 2.45pm, where Mrs Bacon can help you activate your account – a laptop will be available. If you are going to attend this session, please remember to bring your activation letter with you.
Once you have activated your account, you will be ready to start making payments for school dinners, etc from the start of the Autumn Term.
Thank you in advance for your co-operation with helping us set-up this new system.
ORIGINAL POST:
Over the coming weeks we will be introducing a more convenient way to pay for school meals and trips online, using a secure service called ParentPay.
ParentPay will be live at school from from 4th September; from this date we will be working towards no longer accepting cash and cheque payments, making the school a cash-free environment. Parents who need to continue making payments by cash may do so using the PayPoint network at local convenience stores.
Making secure payments online using your credit or debit card
ParentPay offers you the freedom to make payments whenever and wherever you like, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – safe in the knowledge that the technology used is of the highest internet security available.
You will have a secure online account, activated using a unique username and password; you will be prompted to change these, and to keep them safe and secure. If you have more than one child at our school, or children at other ParentPay schools, you can create a single account login for all your children.
Making a payment is straightforward and ParentPay holds a payment history for you to view at a later date; no card details are stored in any part of the system. Once you have activated your account you can make online payments straight away.
Using PayPoint (only if you want to pay with cash)
PayPoint payments are recorded by ParentPay and can be seen by logging into your ParentPay account and viewing your payment history online. The nearest PayPoint stores to school are in Easingwold at the Costcutter and the Co-op on Long Street and the Co-op in the Market Place.
School Meal and Trip information letters will carry a unique barcode which will allow you to make cash payments at your local PayPoint store.
We hope you will support us in achieving our goal to become a cashless school. Your support in using ParentPay will help the school enormously, thank you.
Your unique ParentPay Account activation details have been sent home with your child today, so please look out for a brown envelope in their book bag (these letters have been automatically generated by the ParentPay system, so apologies that they do not have our letterhead on them).
Even though we will not be taking payments through ParentPay until September, we recommend that you try and activate your account before the end of term, so that you are ready to start using ParentPay next term. This will also give us time to ‘iron-out’ any problems and we will be holding a couple of ‘drop in’ sessions at school, for those parents who need assistance setting up their account.
For further information on ParentPay please see the FAQs below or visit www.parentpay.com
PARENTPAY FAQs
- When can I log in to my account?
Once you have received your activation letter from school with your activation login details you will be able to activate your account and start making payments. This letter will be sent to you soon by your school.
- Which cards can I use?
ParentPay accepts MasterCard, Visa and American Express credit cards, and Maestro, Switch, Delta, Electron, Solo and Visa debit cards. Some schools may limit the use of credit cards for some transactions; you will be informed by the school directly of any such restrictions.
- Is it safe to make payments on the internet?
Yes. ParentPay uses leading technology to process your card transactions securely. All communication with the bank is encrypted and neither ParentPay nor the school have access to your card details.
- How can I check that it’s secure?
Standard website addresses begin with http: the address for a secure site will always begin with https. You will also see a padlock at the bottom/top right of the screen on our login page and after you have logged into your account; never enter your card details or personal data on any web page whose address does not start https.
- What about our personal information?
ParentPay holds a very limited amount of information about you and your child solely for the purpose of administering your account however; ParentPay does not use your personal information other than for supporting the school. We do not share or give information to any other organisations. We operate under strict guidelines set out by the Data Protection Act 1998.
ParentPay will NEVER contact you by phone, email or mail and ask you to divulge confidential information like passwords or card numbers. If you are ever contacted by someone claiming to be from ParentPay, please contact us immediately on 02476 994 820.
- I do not have a home PC so how can I use ParentPay?
Why not visit your local library, internet café or see if you can get access to a computer at work. Alternatively ask if you can use your school’s computers. Many schools have computers available for parents and will be happy to show you how to use them.
For more information please visit www.parentpay.com
