ParentPay

What ParentPay does

ParentPay Group (legal entity ParentPay Limited) is a UK-based private education technology company founded in 1984 and headquartered in Coventry. The company provides a comprehensive cloud-enabled software suite for schools, multi-academy trusts (MATs), local authorities, post-16 institutions, caterers, and libraries, serving more than 20,000 schools and 9 million+ users across the UK and selectively in international markets. Its core product, SIMS (and the cloud-native SIMS Next Gen successor), is a Management Information System with over 40 years of heritage and dominant installed base in UK schools; this is augmented by payments (ParentPay), parental and student engagement (Schoolcomms), catering management (BlueRunner/Cypad with Kitchen Manager), library management (Reading Cloud, Library Management Cloud), finance (FMS, Finance New Generation), data protection (GDPRiS), timetabling, facility lettings (SchoolHire), and post-16 student records (UNIT-e).

The platform is delivered via subscription-based SaaS (annual billing, quote-based custom packages) with additional professional services revenue from training and consultancy. GTM is sales-led and direct, targeting schools through enterprise sales, tailored quoting for MATs and groups, BESA channel partnerships, content marketing (whitepapers, webinars, the annual LACA-co-produced School Meals Report based on 236,000 parent surveys), and an extensive library of case studies. Customer segments span primary schools, secondary schools, MATs and groups, local authorities, independent schools, international schools, post-16 colleges, caterers, and libraries. The company is private, owned by Montagu Private Equity since December 2020, and has executed five acquisitions since 2017 (Schoolcomms, Cypad, WIS Services, ESS, BlueRunner) to broaden its product surface and enter adjacent verticals such as hospitality and corporate catering.

Name

ParentPay

Legal name

ParentPay Group

Website

https://parentpay.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

ParentPay Group is a UK-based private EdTech company providing an integrated software suite — anchored by the 40-year-old SIMS management information system — for payments, MIS, parental engagement, catering, library, finance, and compliance across 20,000+ schools and 9M+ users.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Education Management Software

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Services (611), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Child Day Care Services (8351), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) in Education (EDADALAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Co-Parenting, Father Engagement & Caregiver Inclusion Programs (EDACALAI), Parent Support Groups & Peer Networks (EDACALAG)

Keywords

• School management software
• Education payment systems
• Management information systems
• Parental engagement platforms
• School catering software

Headquarters

HQ city

Coventry

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. School Management Software Subscriptions: Subscription-based SaaS model providing schools with access to MIS, payment processing, parental engagement, catering management, and other education management tools. Pricing appears tailored to school size and requirements.
2. Catering Management Solutions: Revenue from meal ordering platforms (BlueRunner/Cypad) serving primary/secondary schools and expanding into hospitality and corporate catering markets.
3. Professional Services and Training: Training and consultancy services for implementation and ongoing support of education management systems.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

ParentPay Group provides a cloud-based education management software suite for UK schools, multi-academy trusts, local authorities and caterers, built around the SIMS management information system and the ParentPay payment platform. The suite covers MIS, parental and student engagement, payments, finance, catering, library management, timetabling, school facilities hire, and GDPR/data protection compliance, sold as integrated packages or standalone modules with annual subscription billing and supporting professional services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SIMS: Management information systems (MIS) for schools, MATs, and post-16 education
• SIMS Next Gen
• BlueRunner
• Cypad
• Schoolcomms
• GDPRiS
• Reading Cloud
• UNIT-e
• SchoolHire
• FMS
• Finance New Generation

Products and services

• SIMS MIS for Schools

Quantifiable outcome

• School debt reduced from thousands to less than a hundred pounds per week
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments9 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• LACA – The School Food PeoplecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParentPay Group partnered with LACA to produce the annual 2025 School Meals Report, surveying 236,000 parents on FSM eligibility and uptake. This partnership positions ParentPay as a thought leader in school nutrition and catering management.
• BESAminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorParentPay Group is a BESA (British Educational Suppliers Association) partner, indicating membership in the prominent UK education technology trade association.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• RM plc: RM plc is a long-standing UK education technology company providing hardware, software, and services to schools. It directly competes with ParentPay in UK school MIS, infrastructure, and edtech procurement.
• Bromcom: Bromcom is a UK MIS vendor serving primary, secondary, and MAT customers. It competes head-to-head with ParentPay's SIMS product in the UK state school MIS category.
• Arbor Education: Arbor Education is a UK-based MIS provider for schools and MATs, offering a cloud-native student information system. It is one of the most prominent direct competitors to SIMS/ParentPay Group in the UK K-12 MIS market.
• Satchel One: Satchel One (formerly Show My Homework) is a UK school engagement, homework, and behaviour platform. It directly overlaps with ParentPay's Schoolcomms engagement and parental communication products for UK schools.

Broad incumbents

• Tribal Group: Tribal Group is a UK-listed education software and services provider serving schools, further education, and government. It is a broad incumbent with overlapping EdTech capabilities, but covers a wider portfolio beyond K-12 administration.
• IRIS Software Group: IRIS Software Group provides HR, payroll, and finance software to UK schools and academies. It is a broad incumbent in UK school back-office software, overlapping with ParentPay's FMS/Finance and HR-adjacent capabilities.

Emerging players

• Wonde: Wonde is a UK school data integration platform that connects MIS data to third-party apps. It is an emerging player whose data layer sits adjacent to ParentPay's SIMS MIS, with partial overlap in school data services.
• Groupcall: Groupcall provides UK school messaging, parental communication, and data solutions. It is an emerging player with direct overlap in parental engagement alongside ParentPay's Schoolcomms and ParentPay products.

Regional players

• ClassDojo: ClassDojo is a US-origin classroom and parent communication platform with global reach. It is comparable to ParentPay's parental engagement and Schoolcomms offerings in functionality, but is primarily US-based and serves a different primary geography.
• Clever: Clever is a US-based K-12 identity and data platform that integrates with school rosters and apps. It is comparable in school data infrastructure but operates primarily in the US market, not directly competing with ParentPay in the UK.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@parentpaygroupltd
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/parentpay-ltd
• Xx.com/parentpay
• Facebookfacebook.com/parentpay

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A5 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ParentPay