John Cox, Deputy Head at Arthur Mellows Village College near Peterborough was taking in his annual visit to BETT at Olympia, London.
"The prospectus was not a high priority until by chance I strayed upon this company at the event. A ten minute chat and a look at the portfolio started the ball rolling," commented John.
The process was quite simple, a visit to Peterborough to discuss the project to find out what the school could expect, and for The Image Factory a first glimpse of the school and the ambitions the senior staff had for the publication.
Dates were set for photography - usually best between Easter Whitsun half term at the weather is good and the time table is not effected by exams.
A couple of days where set aside for Photography. Once the images have been taken, the designers can start to shape the look and feel of the prospectus. The treatment and emphasis of the images, the messages for parents and pupils and the elements that give the school the right impression.
Once the design treatment is submitted, the work to complete the design and layout only takes a week or so and the editing and checking processes can all be done via the email.
Then the artwork is sent for printing. For Arthur Mellows College the finished folder had a matt laminate to the outside which gave a crisp, smart finish.
View the portfolio >>
View our scheduling policy
Planning the Prospectus
The School Prospectus Company will carefully consider how best to present the school prospectus, its themes and devices and have prepared this document as an aid to the planning process and to demonstrate our creative thinking.
Specifying and implementing a communications strategy
Our approach is to establish, in collaboration with the School, an overall communications strategy. In order to achieve this and the element which forms part of that strategy, we work through a three stage process. Each stage has as its consequence, an agreement either to go forward on a transparent cost basis or to terminate the involvement without further expenditure of time or money.
Typically a communications strategy will be built as a series of modules, which are specified and costed separately so that the School may decide how deeply they want to implement the strategy, in accordance with:
• an understanding of your needs as they are clarified through
the process of specification, and
• your budget.
Tips for prospectus planning
- A picture is worth a thousand words
- April-June is the best times for photography
- Be innovative with the presentation not revolutionary
- Changes of idea or direction can be costly
- A prospectus could last 10 years - don't let it!
- Look for creativity and value
- Remember who will read your prospectus - prospective parents and children
