“Parentsportal.scot has transformed the way schools communicate with families. It reduces paperwork, saves valuable time for clerical staff, and cuts costs for schools. Most importantly, when we have accurate information, we can help keep children safer.”
- Catherine Roberts, Project Officer at West Dunbartonshire Council.
Background
West Dunbartonshire Council (WDC) launched parentsportal.scot to their full school estate of 32 primary schools, five secondary schools and three specialist schools in June 2024. Taking a bold ‘big bang’ approach and rolling it out to their full school estate, WDC transformed school operations and parental engagement through the introduction of parentsportal.scot. It has delivered wide-ranging benefits including streamlined communications, efficient administration and greater parental involvement.
Leadership and Implementation
The rollout of parentsportal.scot was led by Catherine Roberts, Project Officer at WDC, who brought a unique and invaluable perspective to the implementation process. Having worked in a school office for eight years, Catherine was able to directly empathise with staff and address their concerns with her own first-hand knowledge.
The hard work paid off. We’ve never been in a position where we could say we’ve got that much accurate data returned. I’ve been in education for almost a decade and that’s the first time we can say that.
Catherine said: “I remember the amount of time it would take to print forms and send them home to get signed – and then have to repeat the process if something went wrong. Sometimes it would take four or five attempts to complete the annual data check. Now with parentsportal.scot things couldn’t be easier. When I was doing the training, I was being asked, ‘is that it?’ because it’s so simple.
“Families lead busy lives, so if we can make things easier for parents then great. Parentsportal.scot has definitely done that. It has made contacting schools so much more accessible while lifting some of the burden from clerical staff.
“It gives families access to reports, school calendars, parents evening bookings and bus pass applications – to name a few. We launched before the summer, even though it was a lot of hard work, so we could get the benefit of the annual data check in the autumn.
“And the hard work paid off. We’ve never been in a position where we could say we’ve got that much accurate data returned. I’ve been in education for almost a decade and that’s the first time we can say that.”
The Challenge
Previously, communication between schools and families relied heavily on paper-based processes, phone calls, and manual data handling.
This resulted in:
- Inefficient administrative processes during peak times like annual data checks and enrolment.
- Lost or damaged paperwork, illegible handwriting, and delays in returning forms.
- High clerical workload managing calls, absences, consents, and appointments.
- Multiple disconnected systems for tasks like parents’ evenings and bus pass applications.
- Limited parental oversight and engagement.
The Solution
By launching parentsportal.scot in June 2024, WDC was able to take full advantage of its services for the beginning of the new academic year. This also gave parents time to register before the school term began, positioning the council for a strong start in August 2024.
This is not just a system upgrade – it’s a cultural shift toward smarter, more connected education. It has made life easier for staff, for families – and most importantly, it has made it safer for our children.
The Results
The impact was immediate and significant:
- Over 90% of annual data checks were completed by the end of October, with some schools reaching 95% completion – a first for WDC.
- 7,367 linked parents and 9,861 approved linked children as of April 2025.
- Significant reduction in administrative workload for school office staff.
- Huge environmental impact by cutting down on paper usage – especially in large schools with over 1,000 pupils.
- 1,400 bus pass users as of October 2025.
Looking Ahead
WDC is planning to expand functionality further and this year will be launching consent forms on the platform. Catherine said: “We’ve already done the hard work, so rolling out new features will be much easier. We’re looking to build on what we’ve done.
"That will change the communication again because the biggest things for some of our schools is getting medical consents. If we have that online it reduces pressure on staff. This is another area where we will be helping school budgets and the environment by cutting down on the amount of paper being used.”
Conclusion
Parentsportal.scot has fundamentally changed the way West Dunbartonshire Council schools communicate and operate. With benefits spanning efficiency, engagement, sustainability and safety, the platform is delivering lasting improvements to how schools serve families.
Catherine said: “This is not just a system upgrade – it’s a cultural shift toward smarter, more connected education. It has made life easier for staff, for families – and most importantly, it has made it safer for our children.”