The verdict in three sentences
For a private or international school in Edinburgh, the right provider is chosen first on its ability to handle the admissions funnel, pupil data protection and photos of children, well before price. A local agency is the better fit if you expect regular campus photo shoots, in-person workshops with governors and support over several years. A remote studio is perfectly adequate for a clear, multilingual admissions site that your team can update, provided ownership of the domain and code is locked down in the contract.
Which criteria really matter for an Edinburgh school?
Edinburgh has one of the highest shares of pupils in independent education in the UK, with well-known day schools, boarding schools and a handful of international settings (IB, British curriculum, French or American streams). Since January 2025, school fees carry 20% VAT, which makes the fees page more scrutinised than ever. The site has to reassure local families, expatriate parents working in finance and families relocating from abroad.
| Criterion | Edinburgh local agency | Remote studio | Weight for a school |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time zone | Same | Varies: check at least 4 hours of overlap | Medium |
| On-site meetings (governors, head) | Easy, included | Video calls, travel rare and billed | High if governance is heavy |
| Campus photo and video | Often in-house or local network | Hire a local photographer separately | High |
| Native English copywriting | Yes | Yes if the team is native, check | High |
| Versions for non-English-speaking parents | Often outsourced | Often included (French, sometimes others) | Medium to high |
| Ownership of domain and code | Set out in the contract | Set out in the contract | Critical |
| Price of a full admissions site | Ballpark £8,000 to £30,000 | Fixed grid from £2,300 to £6,900 | Budget dependent |
The most common friction point is photography. Images of pupils need an up-to-date parental consent form, a way to exclude children whose image must not be published and a clear safeguarding policy. Whichever provider you pick, you will need a photographer used to working in schools and based in Edinburgh.
What a private school website must do in 2026
The site exists mainly to serve the admissions funnel: enquiry, booking a visit or open morning, then the application. Every step should be tracked.
- Curriculum pages: one page per programme (IB, British, French, American), with target qualifications and the bridges between streams.
- Fees page: VAT-inclusive amounts per year group, registration fees, boarding, bursaries and scholarships, payment terms. Families compare several Edinburgh schools side by side.
- Visit booking: an online calendar connected to the admissions team, with automatic reminders.
- News and events: a simple CMS so the communications team can publish without a developer.
- Accessibility: aim for WCAG 2.2 AA, with an accessibility statement. The Equality Act 2010 requires that disabled parents and pupils are not put at a disadvantage.
- Personal data: UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 apply to admissions forms, which often hold data about the child, their health or additional support needs. Named hosting, retention periods, restricted access. Non-essential cookies need prior consent (PECR).
References to inspections (Education Scotland for independent schools, the Care Inspectorate for boarding) and accreditations (IB, school associations) should link to the public reports rather than paraphrase them flatteringly. This is not legal advice.
Local agency or remote studio: three-year cost and when local wins
| Three-year line (2026 ballpark) | Edinburgh agency | Local freelancer | Kolonell (remote studio) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Design and build | £8,000 to £30,000 | £3,000 to £8,000 | £2,300, £3,900 or £6,900 |
| Copy for key pages | Often included or £1,500 to £4,000 | Rarely included | Included, native English or French |
| Campus shoot (twice a year) | £3,000 to £7,200 | Separate | Local photographer separate, same budget |
| Maintenance and hosting | £3,600 to £14,400 | £1,800 to £5,400 | 3 months included, then on quote |
| Time to launch | 10 to 20 weeks | 6 to 12 weeks | 3 to 4 weeks |
| Indicative total excluding photos | £12,000 to £48,000 | £5,000 to £14,000 | £2,300 to £6,900 plus chosen maintenance |
These ranges reflect typical UK agency and freelancer quotes, not a survey. To be honest: a local agency is the better choice if your school is planning a full rebrand, workshops with governors, a content strategy reviewed every term or a deep integration with an admissions management system. Proximity also speeds up sign-offs during the busy September and January periods.
A remote studio is enough if the goal is a fast, well-written admissions site your team can maintain. At Kolonell, the international offer includes a project manager reachable during your working hours (our team works on GMT, from Dakar), native copywriting and 3 months of support. Integrations with an admissions system are on quote.
Questions to ask both types of provider
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- Will the domain, hosting and code be in our name from day one?
- How do you keep photos of pupils without consent out of the media library?
- Where is form data hosted and how long is it kept?
- Which accessibility audit is delivered, and on which pages?
- Who publishes news after launch, and with what training?
- What happens if we change provider in two years?
Mini case study
Illustrative example: Fiona, director of admissions at a 450-pupil independent day school in Morningside, receives a local quote of £22,000, including two shoots a year, plus £250 a month for maintenance. Over three years that is £22,000 + £9,000 = £31,000. She compares it with the Kolonell Premium package at £6,900, a local photographer at £1,500 per session twice a year (£9,000 over three years) and maintenance budgeted at £150 a month after the 3 included months (about £5,000). Total: around £20,900, a £10,000 gap. If the new visit journey converts 6 more families a year on average fees of £18,000 including VAT, the stakes far exceed the price gap, whichever provider she picks. Fiona ends up deciding on one simple question: do her governors want two in-person meetings per term?
FAQ
Can a remote agency handle photo consent for pupils?
Yes, if the media library includes a consent field and filtering before publication. The consent itself stays with the school, often through a form signed each year. Allow 1 to 2 days of CMS setup.
Should fees be shown including VAT?
It is strongly advised since 20% VAT started applying to school fees in January 2025. Families compare annual amounts, and a clear page cuts calls to the admissions team. Plan an update at least once a year.
How long does a new school website take?
With a remote studio, allow 3 to 4 weeks once content and photos are ready. A local agency will typically quote 10 to 20 weeks, workshops included. Aim to launch before the autumn open-day season.
Does the site need to be multilingual?
For an international school, at least two languages help: English and the main language of your expatriate families. A French version often adds 20 to 30% to a local agency quote, while it can be included by a bilingual studio.
Which accessibility level should we require?
WCAG 2.2 AA is the sensible target in 2026, with a published accessibility statement. An audit of 10 to 15 template pages is enough for a mid-sized school site. Ask for it in writing in the quote.
Let's scope your project. A bilingual admissions site with curriculum pages, fees and visit booking starts at £2,300 and goes live in 3 to 4 weeks. See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.