Leading British independent school, Wellington College, is believed to be the first school in Britain to move towards a ‘cashless society’ by providing each of its pupils with a prepaid card that can be used to pay for student expenses over the school term.
The Freedom Eagle Cash Card from White Eagle (Europe) Plc, the multi award winning MasterCard® Prepaid Card and digital payments company, effectively acts as a ‘pay as you go’ bank account for pupils. It enables parents to manage their child’s finances and affords pupils the freedom to spend their pocket money in a safe and convenient way. Wellington College benefits as there will be a decreasing need to manage pupils’ personal finances.
Dr. Anthony Seldon, Master of Wellington College, commented: “With the introduction of the new Freedom prepaid card for our pupils, Wellington is moving with the times and, in doing so, relieving the administration that managing pupils’ spending money entails.
This is a fantastic solution for everyone involved and we are delighted at the work that White Eagle has put into creating this system of payments for us.”
The card effectively cuts the school out of the administration equation, giving full control of each pupil’s pocket money to their parents and empowering pupils with the increased convenience and freedom that prepaid cards afford. The cards provide a safe and secure alternative to cash and, additionally, they should also help pupils learn how to monitor and manage their money better as they can track their balances in real time.
The card is pre-loaded with funds by the pupil’s parents, either via their bank account or at any Post Office or PayPoint outlet, and the pupil can then use the card to make payments in the College Shop, and at the Cafe, for school trips as well as in the local village and, indeed, at any retailer displaying the MasterCard Acceptance Marks. The pupil can only spend the available balance on the card, meaning that there are no penalties or related interest charges, and parents can track all payment transactions online to ensure that they are being used sensibly.
The ‘Freedom4Schools’ Programme is launching ready for the start of the Michaelmas Term and a dedicated website for parents and students which can be found at www.freedom4schools.co.uk will go ‘live’ during early August.
Warren Hardy, CEO at White Eagle (Europe) Plc said: “Prepaid cards from White Eagle offer schools the opportunity to be free from the inconvenience and administrative burden of cheque and cash handling when managing students’ personal finances. Prepaid cards are now hitting the mainstream as people become further predisposed to making payments without using cash. The application of prepaid cards lends itself very well to the management of student finances and we anticipate that many other schools will follow Wellington College’s lead with this successful programme.”
For more information see www.freedom4schools.co.uk or www.white-eaglegroup.com