The verdict in three sentences
For a girls' or boys' independent school in St Peter Port, the website has to explain the single-sex choice accurately, reassure parents about pastoral care and show school life without exposing pupils. A Guernsey agency is the right choice if you want a regular presence on site and a partner who also handles prospectuses and events. A remote studio fits if the contract guarantees ownership of everything delivered, your photos already exist and the budget has to stay fixed.
What should the contract require, whoever the provider?
Many schools discover when switching provider that the domain, hosting or CMS belongs to the previous agency. This grid applies to a local agency and a remote studio alike.
| Item | What to require | Question to ask | Red flag |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domain name | Registered in the school's name | Who is the registrant at the registrar? | The agency is registrant 'to keep things simple' |
| Hosting | Account in the school's name or a planned transfer | What does leaving cost? | Unpriced exit fees |
| Code and theme | Ownership or a perpetual licence for the school | Is the CMS standard or in-house? | Proprietary CMS with no export |
| Content and photos | Owned by the school, consents archived | Where are the original files? | Photos licensed to the agency only |
| Form data | Hosting, retention and access documented | Who receives admissions enquiries? | Data copied into a third-party tool without agreement |
| Acceptance | Written sign-off criteria, mobile and accessibility tests | What happens if a criterion fails? | Final payment before testing |
| End of engagement | Handover of access, files and documentation | Within what timeframe? | No exit clause |
Island agency, UK agency or remote studio: what budget?
A 2026 ballpark from typical quotes and public rate pages.
| Option | Build | Usually included | After launch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guernsey agency | £6,000 to £18,000 | On-site workshops, often photography | Monthly retainer, £100 to £300 (market) |
| UK specialist agency | £10,000 to £25,000 | Independent school expertise, travel billed on top | Monthly retainer (market) |
| Freelancer | £2,000 to £6,000 | Build, copywriting rarely | Case by case |
| Kolonell Starter | £2,300 | Project manager in your time zone, native English or French copywriting, delivery in 3 to 4 weeks | 3 months of support included, then on quote |
| Kolonell Growth | £3,900 | Same, for a fuller site | 3 months included, then on quote |
| Kolonell Premium | £6,900 | Same, multilingual tier, number of languages set in the quote | 3 months included, then on quote |
Links to the school management system, an admissions tool or a parent portal are integrations on quote. The tiers are detailed on the international offer page. On time zones, Guernsey follows UK time: a team on GMT shares the full working day in winter and 7 of 8 hours in summer.
When is the Guernsey agency preferable?
To be frank, an island agency is often the better choice if you publish fixtures, concerts and trips every week, if you want a photographer who already knows your consent rules, or if your governors expect in-person workshops for a rebrand. Just check that it does not work for a competing school on the island.
A remote studio is enough when the brand is stable, the photo library is current and the goal is to clarify the admissions journey: enquiry, visit or open morning, assessment, application, re-enrolment.
What a single-sex school website must get right
Need a professional website?
Kolonell builds websites that attract clients, optimized for the Sénégalese market. Free quote in 2 minutes.
- The single-sex message: rely on your educational philosophy and your own data, not on sweeping claims you cannot verify.
- Images: a per-family consent register, no full name next to a photo, a removal procedure within 48 hours.
- Pastoral care and safeguarding: the designated lead's name, a published policy, a clear contact.
- Data: in Guernsey, the Data Protection (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2017 applies, overseen by the Office of the Data Protection Authority. Forms limited to what is needed, a cookie banner, an up-to-date privacy notice.
- Accessibility: target WCAG 2.2 AA and publish an accessibility statement.
This is not legal advice.
Mini case study
Illustrative example: Helen Ogier runs marketing at a 3 to 18 girls' independent school in St Peter Port. The previous agency held the domain and an in-house CMS with no export.
- Recovering the domain took 5 weeks. The 180 news stories had to be copied by hand at 10 minutes each: 30 hours, or £1,050 at an internal cost of £35 an hour.
- New quote from the island agency: £12,000. Remote studio on Growth: £3,900, plus £1,600 for 2 days of a local photographer, so £5,500. Gap: £6,500.
- Either way, Helen had the contract state the domain in the school's name, a standard exportable CMS and a clause on handing over access within 10 working days.
She chose the remote studio for the website and keeps the island agency for the printed prospectus.
FAQ
How do we avoid losing access to the domain? Register it in the school's name with 2 internal administrators and a generic email address. Check the renewal date once a year.
Should we publish fees? A fee table per section, as a ballpark, cuts pointless enquiries from families comparing 2 or 3 schools on the island. Update it once a year.
How long does a new site take? With Kolonell, 3 to 4 weeks from approved content; with an agency running workshops, often 10 to 14 weeks. Add 2 weeks to gather text and photos.
Do we need several languages? Only if 15% or more of your families justify it. Premium at £6,900 is the multilingual tier, and the number of languages is set in the quote.
What does acceptance involve? A written list of criteria, for example 20 to 30 checks (forms, mobile, accessibility, speed), tested before the final payment. Any failed criterion is fixed before sign-off.
Let's scope your project. Admissions journey, pastoral pages, a clear ownership contract, a budget of £2,300 to £6,900 and launch 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.