How to grow your payments app with forest schools
By SendPay Business · · 2 min read
Forest schools run outdoor sessions in woodland for toddlers, school-age children, home-educated families and school groups. Parents often pay for a block of weeks or a whole term, while holiday sessions and birthday parties are booked one at a time. Many forest schools are small, run by one or two leaders who also chase payments by bank transfer. A payments app that sends a link for a term or a block, collects regular payments and takes bookings for one-off sessions can win these forest schools, and every parent who pays sees your app.
Talk to forest schools
Ask local forest school leaders:
- How do parents pay you today, and how often do you chase payments?
- Do parents pay by the term, the block or the session?
- Do you run holiday sessions or birthday parties?
- Do you work with schools or home-education groups?
Take term and block payments by link
A payment link for a term or a block of sessions means places are paid before the first session, and the leader knows exactly who is coming.
Book one-off sessions and parties
Holiday sessions and birthday parties can be booked and paid in one step, so the forest school fills its spare days without extra admin.
Grow through parents and groups
Parents at forest schools often also use holiday clubs, nurseries and party entertainers. One forest school on your app can bring others in the same area.
Build it
Create your own financial platform.
Pick a template, name it, brand it, preview every page before you pay. Your brand, your users, your fees.
Build my platform →Questions people ask
What about holiday clubs and summer camps?
The holiday clubs and summer camps guide covers day places and weekly bookings in school holidays.
Holiday clubs and summer camps →What about nurseries and after-school clubs?
The nurseries and after-school clubs guide covers regular fees from parents and chasing late payments.
Nurseries and after-school clubs →Can I call it a bank?
In most countries "bank" is a protected word you can only use with a banking licence. Call it an account, a wallet, an app or a platform. The accounts and payments behind a SendPay Business platform are powered by licensed partners.
Is there a step-by-step plan I can follow?
Yes. The free launch checklist takes you from picking your people and naming your app to setting fees, going live and winning your first ten customers.
Digital bank app launch checklist →How do I start?
Pick a template, name it and preview every page before you pay. Your platform can be live on your own domain within 24 hours of confirmation.
Build my platform →Read next
This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. SendPay Business is a technology company, not a bank, and does not take deposits; regulated services on the platforms are provided by licensed partners. PayPal, Patreon and Substack are named as reference points only and are not affiliated with SendPay Business.