The problem
Fees paid by bank transfer arrive late, with the wrong reference or not at all, and the bursar finds out at the end of term. At a school with 80 families paying monthly installments, matching 80 payments at 3 minutes and chasing 8 late payers at 20 minutes is 400 minutes, about 6.7 hours a month, and a family that leaves owing a term's fees is a large loss.
What the AI does
GoCardless collects payments straight from parents' bank accounts. Its pricing page lists Standard at 1% + 20p per UK transaction, capped at $5£4€5A$8C$8 plus 0.3% on Direct Debits over $2,660£2,000€2,380A$3,840C$3,760 with prices excluding VAT. Offer families monthly installments of the termly fee, collected on a fixed date; a failed payment shows up straight away, so the bursar can talk to the family in week one rather than at term end. Advanced (1.25% + 20p, capped at $7£5€6A$10C$9) adds Success+, which the page says automatically recovers failed payments.
A worked example
A small independent prep school in Surrey has 80 fee-paying families. Fees are $7,182£5,400€6,426A$10,368C$10,152 a term including VAT, paid in 3 monthly installments of $2,394£1,800€2,142A$3,456C$3,384 by bank transfer.
Before
80 payments matched at 3 minutes and 8 late payers chased at 20 minutes: 400 minutes, about 6.7 hours a month
After
Collection automatic; about 1 hour a month on failed payments, which are known within days
What it's worth
About $750£564€671A$1,083C$1,060 a month, against about $426£320€381A$614C$602 in fees ($511£384€457A$737C$722 if the VAT can't be reclaimed). Time saved is 5.7 hours at an assumed $27£20€24A$38C$38 an hour, about $152£114€136A$219C$214 plus $599£450€536A$864C$846 a month if earlier warning stops one family a year leaving owing a term's $7,182£5,400€6,426A$10,368C$10,152 (an assumption). Each $2,394£1,800€2,142A$3,456C$3,384 installment hits Standard's $5£4€5A$8C$8 cap: 80 x $5£4€5A$8C$8 = $426£320€381A$614C$602.
How to set it up
- Agree the installment option and collection date with the head and governors, and put it in the parent contract.
- Open a GoCardless account and check the fee at your installment size; keep each collection under $2,660£2,000€2,380A$3,840C$3,760 to avoid the extra 0.3%.
- Send each family a link to set up the Direct Debit, using a family account reference rather than a pupil's name.
- Start with new families or a willing year group before moving everyone.
- Each month, review failed payments and contact the family the same week.
What goes wrong
- Direct Debit doesn't make a family able to pay; it only shows you sooner. Keep your arrears policy and act on it.
- Collections over $2,660£2,000€2,380A$3,840C$3,760 pay an extra 0.3%, so a termly fee taken in one go costs much more than 3 installments.
- Standard doesn't retry failed payments; Advanced does, capped at $7£5€6A$10C$9 a payment.
- Keep pupils' names and details out of payment references and GoCardless notes.