Fifty staff at the UK’s leading online payment service for schools have moved to new offices at the Ricoh Arena.
ParentPay was founded in 2002 to enable parents to pay schools securely online for items such as school meals, trips and clubs using credit and debit card or to pay cash at 23,000 PayPoint stores across the UK.
The system is now used in over 4,000 schools and one million parents throughout the UK. This year ParentPay will collect £400 million on behalf of schools, dramatically reducing the administration burden in school offices whilst offering parents peace of mind.
Over 70 staff are employed by the company across the UK with 50 of those previously located over two sites at the University of Warwick Science Park’s Business Innovation Centre in Binley and the Middlemarch Business Park in Siskin Drive, Baginton.
The company has now moved all its technical operations, customer service, marketing and software development teams in Coventry into 6,500 sq ft of office space at the Ricoh Arena to facilitate its continued expansion.
Finance and administration teams will continue to be based in the South West at new offices in Bridgwater, Somerset.
The company has recruited a dozen new staff in Coventry this year, including a team dedicated to developing a new product for parents and children due to launch in 2015. More staff are expected to be employed within the next 12 months.
Clint Wilson, Chief Executive of ParentPay, said: “
ParentPay is growing quickly, so it was very important for us to ensure we had the right facilities to meet the ever increasing demand from schools and parents. The Ricoh is a perfect central base, it has great transport links and gives us the room to expand.”
Liz Cooper, Marketing Director at the Ricoh Arena, said she was delighted to welcome ParentPay to the venue as its latest tenant.
She said: “
The Ricoh Arena has always been a multi-purpose venue and we are looking forward to being part of ParentPay’s continuing success story.
“ParentPay offers peace of mind to parents and helps create safe environments for students and staff with their financial transactions.
“The business is increasing its client base continually and has recently secured a number of valuable contracts with large local authorities and leading school caterers including a contract with BT Lancashire Services to provide online payments facilities to over 600 schools in the North West.
“Their staff numbers are rising annually and it made sense to bring their entire Coventry workforce to one flagship building and we are pleased the Ricoh Arena is going to be their new home.”