How iSAMS supports complex family structures in Independent schools

The reality of modern family structures is complex. Families can be blended, with parents separated or even multiple guardians taking on the care of one student. It’s vital that today’s schools, and their software, keep up with these changing needs.

See how our school system understands your school's unique requirements below.

At iSAMS, we have always adapted to the needs of our schools as they grow. The core system was built with the needs of blended or unique family structures in mind. Learn more about how we can support your school and its community below.  

• Challenges of complex family structures
• Student records with family tree management in iSAMS
• Flexible parent/guardian access and communication
• Streamlined processes for diverse family needs
• Why does it matter?
• iSAMS' customisable management system designed for Independent schools

Challenges of complex family structures  

Many of today’s schools face difficulties when managing student and family data in non-traditional family units. Some of these common challenges include: 

• Multiple guardians: Each guardian may have different access requirements. Ensuring each parent/guardian receives the appropriate information without breaching confidentiality can be a challenge when managing unique family trees. 
• Blended families: Recording and maintaining accurate relationships between siblings, step-parents, guardians, and more can be particularly difficult with such a wide range of potential set ups for each student record.  
• Separated parents: Staff need to manage sensitive situations, where access to information may be restricted by court orders, etc – so they must be supported by a robust system. 
• Fee management and split bills: Each family unit might need to approach fee management differently, including dividing them fairly between multiple payers. Catering for these scenarios is also vital where parents aren’t the primary fee payers, for example. 
• Communication: Your school needs to avoid confusion where multiple parents or guardians are contacted for school events, student updates, or emergencies. It is challenging to keep record of who needs to be contacted on what occasions, without overloading comms. 
• Transparency and accountability: Keeping an audit trail of who accessed or updated student information, which is often vital in disputes, can be time consuming. 
• Administrative workload: Many traditional school management systems can require workarounds, leading to inefficiencies and frustration for school staff.

The right software provider should recognise each of these difficulties as unique requirements for Independent school SIS functionality. While some of these challenges can be overcome by more rigid administrative processes, your software should support you every step of the way.  

Student records with family tree management in iSAMS 

The iSAMS student data management offering is built upon the Student Manager module, which serves as a central hub for detailed student and family records. It allows you to store detailed information for each student, including admissions information and census data. 

Family trees and relationships sits on top of this, which allows you to accurately record blended families, siblings, and guardians. This also supports linking siblings and managing blended families within the admissions process, as well as student management. 

The practical impact of this functionality ensures that no student falls through the cracks. All relationships are innately visible and manageable within iSAMS.  

Flexible parent/guardian access and communication 

iSAMS functionality to support complex family structures also extends beyond simple student and family data management. The need for flexible and user-friendly communication and access is arguably even more vital for unique family units, and iSAMS has systems that enable customisable communication settings.  

• Individual parent portals or iParent app: Offer secure, personalised accounts for each parent/guardian. 
• Controlled information sharing: Functionality for tailored access depending on legal rights, court orders, or parental agreements. 
• Multi-party communication: Systems make it easy for schools to keep all relevant parties updated - whether by email, SMS, or in the cloud portal. 
• Split billing functionality: Both the Fee Billing module and iFinance offer flexible fee billing for families where costs are shared between different parents/guardians. 

Streamlined processes for diverse family needs 

It can be easy to get bogged down in unnecessary admin within any school process. This is even more prevalent when managing more challenging family structures. Your school systems should always aim to eliminate the most time-consuming components of admin and data management, particularly focusing on simplifying processes for diverse families. 

Here are just a few key features built into the iSAMS SIS:  

• Online forms and document repository: The system allows for electronic forms (for example; permission slips) to be completed online by parents, and a document repository ensures that key information is easily accessible. This helps streamline administrative tasks, regardless of how many parents are involved or where they are located. 
• Automatic notifications and alerts: iSAMS can send automated notifications and alerts to parents regarding rewards, detentions, key updates, or changes in school activities. This ensures that all relevant parties are promptly informed without requiring manual intervention from school staff. 
• Audit capabilities: The system logs all actions, providing a full audit history of changes made to a student's record. This can be important for transparency and accountability in complex family situations. 

Why does it matter? 

Supporting complex family structures isn’t just about convenience for your admin staff. Improper management directly impacts the quality of relationships between schools, parents, and students.  

When schools can accurately capture and manage different family dynamics, they ensure that no parent or guardian feels excluded, and that every child receives consistent support from all sides. This inclusivity fosters stronger home-school partnerships, which ultimately results in better student outcomes.  

From an operational perspective, having the right systems in place saves staff valuable time by eliminating manual workarounds, reducing errors, and simplifying everyday processes like billing and communication. It also provides schools with greater accountability and compliance, particularly in situations when managing legal considerations, like family court requirements. 

Ultimately, by implementing a platform like iSAMS, schools can create the fair and consistent experience that every student deserves - regardless of the complexity of their family background. 

iSAMS' customisable management system designed for Independent schools 

iSAMS was purpose built for the needs of Independent schools. Our priority is evolving the system to meet the evolving needs of the education landscape. This means handling the complexity of modern family structures. 

iSAMS functionality empowers schools to communicate, manage data, and engage all family members in the right way – at the right time. 

Interested in exploring how iSAMS can simplify your family data management and home-school communication? You can watch a system demo and chat to a member of the team about your unique needs below: