Boost parent engagement: Club owners & teachers to parents
Written by The MagicBooking team | June 3, 2025
12 min read
In the world of education and childcare, one factor consistently separates thriving settings from struggling ones: parental engagement.
Whether you run a school, holiday club, breakfast club, wraparound care, or a nursery, the ability to engage parents and guardians isn’t a ‘nice to have’ - it’s essential. However, it’s often overlooked in favour of logistics, lesson planning, or last-minute admin.
But what if improving communication with parents could lead to higher bookings, more loyalty, fewer drop-offs, and even word-of-mouth growth?
At MagicBooking, we’ve seen this happen countless times. Claim our free parent engagement playbook in less than 2 minutes.
Or skip the reading a book a demo now to hear all about our parental engagement software.
Fancy skipping the read? Get in touch for tailored advice on how we can help you.
What is parental engagement?
Parental engagement refers to the active partnership between families and educational or childcare settings. Such as building meaningful relationships that connect the teacher with parents to support a child’s development in and out of the classroom.
Focusing on this can have a huge positive impact on your relationships with parents – important to building your brand and community!
Effective tools can simplify engagement parents struggle with daily. Check out MagicBooking’s communication, booking, payment & admin tools in a free demo!
Why is parental engagement important?
At Schools:Parental engagement in primary schools boosts early learning and home-schooling. Improving parental engagement in schools starts with consistent, personalised communication.
Strong parental engagement in education has been proven to increase student achievement, improve behaviour, and build trust. When teachers to parents' communication flows well, children thrive, and families become loyal advocates of your setting. FE News state similarly in their own article.
At Clubs:Parental engagement is crucial to businesses like clubs and childcare providers because it directly drives retention, repeat bookings, and referrals. When parents feel informed, supported, and connected, they’re more likely to stay loyal and promote your services to others - turning engagement into long-term growth.
Claim your free, zero-obligation guide now.
Or book your free demo for a tailored tour of our booking, payment, admin & parent engagement software.
Why parent engagement isn’t optional anymore
Parents are more than gatekeepers. They are influencers, decision-makers, and advocates. When you improve parent-teacher communication, you don’t just inform—you build trust.
In fact, 93% of schools and clubs using MagicBooking told us that our system helped improve accessibility for parents. This means more than a good user experience, but better outcomes.
When parents feel informed, included and appreciated, they’re more likely to:
- Rebook without prompting
- Recommend your setting to others
- Offer feedback that helps you grow
That’s why leading settings now invest in parent engagement best practices, whether through an all-in-one parent engagement platform, smart messaging, or more thoughtful events.
The bottom line is that strong parent engagement in schools and clubs leads to better outcomes for children and staff alike!
Even better, book your free, personalised demo to better understand what our parent engagement platform can do for you.
Common mistakes that undermine engagement
In honesty, a weekly newsletter buried in inboxes or archaic school communications like a noticeboard in reception aren’t enough anymore.
Many settings say they’re committed to building parental engagement in schools—but in practice, they’re overwhelmed by manual processes, inconsistent communication, and outdated systems.
Some red flags:
- One-size-fits-all emails with no personalisation
- No clear feedback loop with parents
- No use of a parent communication app or software to automate updates
- Important info shared via paper letters or forgotten texts
This lack of clarity leads to confusion, missed sessions, and unhappy parents. In contrast, using a parent engagement software like MagicBooking means sending automatic reminders, digital registration links, or feedback surveys—all in a few clicks.
Would you like to avoid these mistakes? Get your hands on our FREE parent playbook, covering top parent engagement strategies! Zero obligations are attached to claiming your copy.
The business case for better engagement
For club owners, school business managers and MATs, improving parental engagement is more than a feel-good initiative - it’s smart business.
Think about offering clear guidance parents can follow makes onboarding and engagement smoother.
When parents feel engaged, you get:
- More repeat bookings = stable revenue
- More repeat bookings = stable revenue
- Better feedback = faster improvements
- Higher satisfaction = less churn
- More referrals = free marketing
- Family engagement = invested young people
- Positive relationships = Better trust & loyalty
In short, parental involvement in education isn’t just a policy - it’s a growth strategy. And the right tools can help you deliver it at scale, with zero extra admin.
Ready to see these results? Implement the strategies from our expert parent engagement handbook.
How to engage parents effectively
That’s exactly what we answer in our Parent Engagement Playbook - a free, practical guide packed with real examples, strategies and templates that work.
The fact is that open communication with teachers and parents builds trust, boosts parental participation, and reduces admin stress. So, here’s how to improve involvement of parents.
We’ll cover:
- How to improve parent-teacher communication & build connection
- How to create engaging touchpoints by email, SMS & events
- The best ways to encourage repeat bookings & reduce no-shows
- Ways to build happy parents who become your advocates
- Parental engagement strategies & message templates
- Loyalty & referral scheme ideas
- How to offer parental support & build trust
We’ve already sent this resource to our clients—but now we’re sharing it with the wider community.
[Download the FREE Playbook here]
Discover smart ways to grow your setting with less effort - and happier families. This guide runs through all parent engagement best practices!
How to improve parental engagement with MagicBooking
The parental voice is essential in shaping responsive and inclusive services. MagicBooking, founded by parents in need of school & club management software connecting parents to childcare settings, understands that!
Whether you’re a teacher, sports club owner, childcare provider or part of a MAT, your success hinges on one thing: engaging parents.
Ensure you don’t overlook the importance and get started today! Claim your free parental engagement handbook in seconds.
MagicBooking is the UK’s leading admin, booking, and payment management platform for clubs and schools. Our features embrace the importance of happy parents with tools like...
- Automated Email & SMS Workflows: Send tailored, action-triggered comms - welcome emails, reminders, feedback requests - without lifting a finger.
- Mass Messaging in Seconds: Easily broadcast updates via email, SMS, or in-app notifications and reminders to keep every parent informed, included, and impressed.
- Accessible & Flexible for Parents: 93% of our schools and clubs say MagicBooking improved accessibility for parents - from mobile booking to real-time reminders. Parents are empowered to manage their bookings independently, anytime and anywhere! Similarly, they can access a help centre via the engage parent portal for any questions they may have or support required.
- Loved by Parents - Proven by Results
“The parents seem very happy with how easy the system is to use.” – Emmer Green Primary School
“Parents are delighted with the system as it allows them to book, amend, and cancel at ease.” – Inspired Learning Group
- Stress-Free Engagement at Scale: Use built-in feedback tools, referral incentives, and loyalty tracking – all integrated in one powerful platform. You can also set your own customised policies, offers, and discounts!
- Parent Communication App Coming: We’ve gone beyond making communication for parents clear, timely, and easy to access on mobile. We’ve got a market leading app for parent bookings & parent communication along the way! Our app has already won an award for great design and user experience.
Book a free demo with our friendly team to see what MagicBooking could change for you.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What does parent engagement look like?
Parent engagement can take many forms - daily updates, feedback surveys, event parent participation, or even using a dedicated parent engagement platform.
In a school setting, it could look like inviting parents to school events. At its core, it’s about creating consistent communication from teacher 2 parents and back again.
A nice first step for clubs could look like having a parent FAQ on your website.
What is the goal of parental engagement?
The ultimate goal is to foster a collaborative environment where engagement parents feel valued, informed, and empowered to participate. This builds long-term parental involvement and strengthens the bridge between home and learning.
Read Gov.Uk’s review of best practice in parent engagement.
What is the engagement model for parents and carers?
The engagement model for parents and carers focuses on structured collaboration between families and educational settings to enhance children’s learning. It involves consistent communication between teachers to parents, shared decision-making, and personalised strategies that support each child’s learning, ensuring stronger connections with the child’s school, their education, and home environment.
Could your primary school or secondary school be impacted by declining pupil numbers?
Yes, particularly if there is weak communication between teachers to parents. One way to learn how to improve parent teacher communication is through structured feedback loops. High parental involvement in education is linked to better outcomes in children’s learning, which in turn strengthens the school’s reputation and resilience against declining numbers by keeping families engaged in their child’s education and overall school experience.
Read Mesh Guides and Research Schools for further teacher support.
How can I go about supporting parents whilst supporting their children?
Build two-way communication - Parents 2 teachers and teachers 2 parents - to ensure families feel involved and informed. When parents with teachers collaborate effectively, everyone benefits. Support also includes training all school staff in effective engagement techniques and creating inclusive, responsive school communities that nurture both children and their families.
Go outside the box with our free parent engagement playbook or systems like Epraise.
What are the benefits of summer camps for 4-year-old kids?
They offer structure, along with chances to socialise and safely explore within a stimulating environment.
