SAMPLE LETTERS PACK
These letters are not prescriptive – you may not need to use all of them, or you may have different
means of communicating with your parents – they are simply there as a template and a timesaver
where needed.
If you feel that they could be improved on, do let us know, so that we can pass on your experience
and expertise to other schools.
SEND COPIES TO US FIRST!
Do remember though, that any material you send or present to parents regarding your eLearning scheme should be sent for review by your Schools Liaison Manager first, to doublecheck that it doesn’t compromise any future Gift Aid claims.
COHORT SURVEY LETTER
Designed to help schools research current home access, particularly in gathering data on your low
income families (you can bid for funding for this cohort from us), connectivity (to plan appropriate
solutions for the size of gap that exists), and estimating likely parent contribution levels.
INVITATION TO PARENTS EVENING LETTER
Designed to encourage all parents for the cohort to attend a parents evening to present the project,
answer one-on-one questions, and sign up to contribute.
PARENTS EVENING SIGN UP LETTER
Once the scheme has been presented (and Q&A sheets distributed), distribute these with direct debit
forms, and encourage parents to approach staff present individually to ask any further questions they
may have. Send an amended version of this letter to those parents who could not attend the launch
evening.
Remember:



You need to keep copies of all responses, as you will need evidence of parental contributions
in order to claim your grant.
You need to keep accurate records of your cohort, chasing any nil returns as you cannot
assume they have opted out just because they have not responded.
Encouraging your parents to contribute by direct debit is a great way to ensure regular
contributions, and reduce your administration burden. If you haven’t already signed up for our
Donation Management Service, you can ask the e-Learning Foundation to collect your
parents’ donations for you. As long as enough parents complete the Gift Aid declaration it
shouldn’t cost you a penny!
e-Learning Foundation
1
Registered Charity No. 1086306
COHORT SURVEY LETTER
Dear ………………………….,
As you may have heard, we are hoping to run an exciting e-learning project to give all our students in
year …… the opportunity to learn using the latest technology, both at home and at school. We as a
school are committed to giving our students the best possible opportunities to learn and grow, and
equip them for future employment in an increasingly digital age. One ideal way to do this would be to
provide a ………. device to each student, to provide access to resources to help them learn at home
as well as at school.
We get no extra government funding to do this, however there may be the possibility of some
charitable funding, specifically to help our families on lower incomes.
To help us plan the right kind of project for all our students, we want to understand what technology, if
any, the children have at home. If you could fill in this short survey, and send it back to school as
soon as possible (by ………… at the latest), it would help give us the best chance of gaining some
charitable support and establish if we are able to run this project.
Many thanks
…………………………………………..
e-Learning Foundation
2
Registered Charity No. 1086306
To be returned to …………………………………………….……….. by ………………………………..
Please answer the following questions to the best of your ability (tick one box):
1. I am interested in an opportunity for my child to have access to a school computer/learning
technology to support their learning at home and at school?
 Yes
 No
2. Please choose which option below best describes any internet connection you may have at
home:
 Wireless broadband
Non-wireless broadband
Dial-up internet
We do not have an internet connection (*please also answer q2a)
2a. Please choose which option below best describes your home;
 Sky/Cable TV
 Home land line
 We do not have sky/cable or a land line.
3. Please choose which option below best describes your child’s access to a computer:
PC shared with ……. many family members
PC for sole use
Laptop shared with ……. many family members
Laptop for sole use
We do not have a computer
4. Please state if you feel your child would benefit from the following Assistive Technology
software on your computer:
 Software to support literacy development, reading, writing and spelling
 Software to help learners with visual impairments access information
 Speech recognition software to control the computer and type text
 Large keyboard, special mouse or other device to help with a physical difficulty
Please specify:
..........................................................................................................................................
 Other software for disabilities or to help with special education needs: please specify:
..........................................................................................................................................
5. Please indicate which areas you would like to develop in your own ICT learning?
 e-safety training
 Parent portal training 


Internet training
other
□ Yes
We are eligible for Free School Meals

office applications
□ No
While we may be able to apply for grant funding to meet some of the costs, to make the project work,
we will need a large majority of our parents to contribute towards the cost, ideally around £{xxx} per
month for a {xxx} year project. Please indicate whether you feel you could donate monthly at this
level:
□
Could donate the suggested £…. per month
□
Could possibly donate the suggested £…. per month
□
Could donate a part of this per month – e.g. £ _____
□
Would not be able to donate
Signed: ____________________________________Date: _____________________
Parent/carer name: _____________________________________________________
Child’s name: _______________________________Form: _____________________
(Updated December2011)
e-Learning Foundation
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Registered Charity No. 1086306
INVITATION TO PARENTS EVENING LETTER
Dear ………………………….,
Thank you so much to everyone for their response to our recent survey.
[Insert name] School strives to support the needs of each of its students, and encourage the
development of individual skills and talents. The school’s approach aims to develop the whole person
and successfully equip each pupil for the challenges of life.
The way we teach at [Name of school] has changed dramatically over the past few years; the
introduction of computer technology into the classroom has allowed our teachers to develop new and
exciting ways of delivering their lessons, and tailor learning to meet individual student needs.
The school is currently at a very exciting stage of development and has recently partnered with the eLearning Foundation, a national education charity, to develop a project to support the wider learning
needs of our students and their families. It is a fact that children with good home access to IT and
learning resources are much more likely to gain higher grades.
As part of your child’s learning opportunities at our school we want to provide access to a mobile
device for your child that will enable them to enrich and extend their learning both in school and out of
school. We may also be able to come up with some ideas on how your child can gain access to the
Internet and the school learning platform if you do not currently have Broadband at home. This will
therefore mean that they have 24/7 access to a wide range of electronic learning materials.
We are holding an open evening for both students and parents/carers to share our plans for the future
and to gain your support for this vital project. We want to provide our students with the best
opportunities to reach their full potential. I would encourage you to join us to see how this project will
have a significant impact on you and your family.
We hope you’ll all be able to join us on
…………………………….. at ………………………………
There will be a presentation explaining how the scheme works, and what support we need from
parents to make it happen. We want to provide our students with the best opportunities to reach their
full potential, and encourage all parents to attend in order to find out more about how we can work
together to give all your children the best possible opportunity to succeed.
We look forward to seeing you.
Yours sincerely,
………………………………………………………………………………………
e-Learning Foundation
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Registered Charity No. 1086306
SIGN UP LETTER
Dear ………………………….,
Thank you for joining us at our information evening to introduce our e-Learning project. Do read
through all the information you’ve received, and talk to any of the staff here tonight if you have any
additional questions.
Once you feel you know enough about the scheme, please complete the slip below, and a direct debit
form to confirm your commitment to this exciting project.
Please give in your completed forms to the desk on your way out, or to
……………………………………….by ………………………………. at the latest.
We as a school need to make sure that this scheme has enough parental support to go forward. If, as
we hope, enough parents agree to contribute towards the programme, then we will let you know by
……………………………………. In the event that we do not receive enough support, we will not be
able to run the scheme, and will destroy all direct debit forms completed.
All best wishes,
…………………………………………..
E-Learning Project Launch
1. Opting in - please tick one of the following options:
□
I would like to opt in to the scheme, and will contribute £……… monthly/quarterly/annually
(please ring preferred payment period)
either
□
□
□ by direct debit – preferred method, please also complete direct debit mandate
□ by credit card
□ by cash or cheque
I would like to opt in to the scheme, but wish to discuss my situation
I would like to opt out of the scheme, and am aware that this means my child will not be given
a school portable computer to use for their learning at home and may need to share when in
the classroom.
2. Gift Aid?
□
I am a taxpayer and will complete a Gift Aid declaration to allow the e-Learning Foundation to
claim Gift Aid for the programme.
Signed: ____________________________________Date: _____________________
Parent/carer name: _____________________________________________________
Child’s name: _______________________________Form: _____________________
Give all your forms in as you leave tonight, or to ……………………before …………….
e-Learning Foundation
5
Registered Charity No. 1086306