A modern School Management System for multi-campus schools. Fees, attendance, reports, stock, and parent communication — all connected, all auditable, all in one place.
One platform. Every campus. Every parent informed.
Most Ugandan schools still run on spreadsheets, paper registers, and memory. It works — until it doesn't. And when it breaks, it's always fees, reports, or parent trust that suffers.
Student files in cabinets, fees in Excel, attendance in books — nothing talks to each other.
Without deadline tracking and reminders, schools lose 5–15% of expected fee income each year.
No portal, no SMS — parents only find out when there's a problem.
We build a secure, modern platform tailored to how Ugandan schools actually work — mixed payments, three terms, boarding and day, UNEB grading reforms, and SMS parents actually read.
Admins upload and target documents. Parents and students access everything through one family portal — including homework during holidays.
Every school starts with Core Foundation (registration, org structure, staff & parent accounts). Then enable the modules you need — sold as add-ons, switched on without rebuilding the system.
Full bio data, photos, guardians, documents, admission numbers. Health questionnaire at registration when health module is enabled. Handles transfers between campuses and mid-term joiners.
Solves: lost files, duplicate entriesKnow who paid, who paid half, who is overdue — with deadlines you set per term. Sibling discounts and bursaries built in.
Solves: fee confusion, revenue leakProfessional PDF invoices and numbered receipts. Cash, MTN, Airtel, bank — all supported. Parents download from portal.
Solves: receipt disputesDaily register per class. Auto SMS to parents when a child is absent. Term attendance on every report card.
Solves: late interventionIncome statement, balance sheet, expense tracking, bank reconciliation. Fee payments post to the ledger automatically.
Solves: accountant's Excel nightmareMarks from term start to end. Uganda CBC grades A–E for secondary, competency checklists for lower primary. Bulk PDF report cards.
Solves: weeks of report writingTrack supplies — chalk, paper, food, assets. Low-stock alerts. Goods in, goods out, stock take.
Solves: surprise stockoutsPer class, per term: who brought the broom, ream of paper, mattress? Parents see what's outstanding on the portal.
Solves: "who brought what?" chaosStock by size, issue to student, track who hasn't received uniform yet. Link payment to fee account.
Solves: uniform stock messSchool-wide or class-specific notices. SMS for urgent alerts. Email for full detail. WhatsApp-ready for later.
Solves: parents not informedFamily account for all children. Download receipts, reports, homework & any school file. Students use the same login during holidays.
Solves: lost homework, missing receiptsParents submit allergies, medications & conditions at registration — confirm on dashboard with doctor's note. Only school nurse & top admin can view full records.
Solves: emergency care gaps, wrong student infoOptional add-ons for boarding schools, richer parent communication, HR, and learning. Each works on its own with Core or connects to modules you already use.
Routes, stops, buses, student assignments, bus register. Optional transport fees on invoice.
Bed allocation, visitor log, weekend exit passes, night roll call.
Waivers, staff-child rules, sponsor tracking — applies to fee invoices.
Incidents, sanctions, parent summons — official record, not WhatsApp.
Class timetable, rooms, substitutions, weekly lesson plans.
Parent–teacher direct chat, class groups, broadcasts — audited, in-system.
Sports day, PTA, visitation, term calendar — SMS and portal alerts.
Contracts, leave, payslips, NSSF/PAYE fields for Uganda payroll.
Courses, video lessons, quizzes, progress — beyond homework files.
Book catalog, issue/return, overdue reminders, optional fines on fees.
Parents don't need multiple apps or WhatsApp groups. Students access homework and school updates through the parent account — perfect for shared family phones and holiday learning.
Upload once → target the right parents → they receive an alert and download from their account. Students see homework under their child's profile.
One account links all children at the school. Switch between profiles easily.
On a family phone or tablet, the student opens homework and holiday packs — no separate signup.
School communications and assignments stay available when term is out — no more lost WhatsApp files.
Schools need to know about allergies, medications, and chronic conditions — but health data is sensitive. Parents submit and confirm records on their dashboard; a doctor's note is required when conditions are declared. Only the school nurse and top leadership (Health Records Access group) can view full clinical details.
Allergies, medications, emergency contacts — at admission or via portal.
Required proof when medical conditions or regular medication are declared.
Only authorised staff in the Health Records Access group — not teachers or bursars.
When a student is admitted, the system sets up everything else. No re-typing the same information across departments.
One approval triggers fees, requirements, and parent notification — automatically. Receipts appear in the family's downloadable document library.
Reception captures student, guardians, photo, documents
System invoices by class, boarding type, and term
Bursar records payment → receipt + SMS to parent
Teachers enter marks → report cards to parent portal
Prices are benchmarked against Ugandan school systems (e.g. cloud SaaS from UGX 110k–2M/year, per-student models from UGX 1,800/term, modular platforms from UGX 900k/term). ToughBlue offers a full custom multi-campus system — priced fairly by school size. All figures in UGX (≈ 3,800 UGX = $1 USD).
Full platform: all 12 modules, parent portal, health records, multi-campus, SMS/email integration. Pay per term or annually (save ~8%). Health module can also be purchased as an add-on — see module catalog.
| School size | Per term | Per year (recommended) | What's included |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 500 students | 380,000 | 1,050,000 | 1 campus, hosting, backups, email support, term training |
| 501 – 1,000 students ★ | 580,000 | 1,600,000 | Up to 2 campuses, priority support, SMS budget dashboard |
| 1,001 – 2,500 students | 950,000 | 2,625,000 | Up to 3 campuses, quarterly health report, unlimited minor fixes |
| 2,501 – 5,000 students | 1,450,000 | 4,000,000 | Multi-campus, dedicated support contact, custom report requests |
| 5,001 – 10,000 students | 2,200,000 | 6,100,000 | Large group, on-site visit once per year, 99.5% uptime SLA |
| 10,000+ students | Custom quote — typically from 2,800,000/term or 7,800,000/year | Enterprise: dedicated account manager, WhatsApp rollout, API integrations | |
Reference: Digital Schools charges UGX 250k–2M/year by size; PSM charges from UGX 1,800/student/term. Our flat tier pricing is simpler and competitive for schools above 500 students.
Custom development, server setup, data migration from spreadsheets, staff training, and phased rollout. Billed in milestones.
| School size | Implementation fee (UGX) | Typical timeline | Go-live scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 500 students | 10,000,000 – 14,000,000 | 28–32 weeks | Full system; 1 campus |
| 501 – 1,000 students | 14,000,000 – 22,000,000 | 32–38 weeks | Full system; 1–2 campuses |
| 1,001 – 2,500 students | 22,000,000 – 35,000,000 | 38–44 weeks | Full system + multi-campus analytics |
| 2,501 – 5,000 students | 35,000,000 – 52,000,000 | 44–48 weeks | Enterprise rollout, Android app option |
| 5,001 – 10,000 students | 52,000,000 – 72,000,000 | 48–52 weeks | Phased deployment per campus |
| 10,000+ students | 72,000,000 – 95,000,000+ | By agreement | Enterprise programme, dedicated team |
Reference: Custom school system builds in Uganda typically range UGX 3M–35M+ depending on scope (Desishub, local vendors). Our microservices architecture is priced for long-term scale.
Up to 500 students · 1 campus
501 – 1,000 students
1,001 – 2,500 students
School pays these directly — Africa's Talking, ISP, domain registrar, hardware suppliers. We assist with setup.
| School size | Server & internet (annual) | SMS (annual est.) | Hardware setup (one-time) | Other annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 students | 2,400,000 – 3,600,000 | ~400,000 (~16k SMS) | 1,500,000 – 3,000,000 | 400,000 – 1,000,000 (domain, backup, email) |
| 1,000 students | 3,000,000 – 4,500,000 | ~770,000 (~32k SMS) | 1,800,000 – 4,000,000 | 500,000 – 1,200,000 |
| 2,500 students | 4,000,000 – 6,000,000 | ~1,920,000 (~80k SMS) | 2,500,000 – 5,000,000 | 700,000 – 1,500,000 |
| 5,000 students | 5,500,000 – 8,500,000 | ~3,840,000 (~160k SMS) | 3,500,000 – 7,000,000 | 1,000,000 – 2,000,000 |
| 10,000+ students | 8,000,000 – 14,000,000 | ~7,700,000+ (~320k SMS) | 5,000,000 – 12,000,000 | 1,500,000 – 3,000,000 |
SMS at ~UGX 24–25/message (Africa's Talking Uganda, MTN/Airtel). Sender ID registration: free–300k UGX one-time. Schools can cap SMS spend in the admin dashboard.
| School size | Implementation | Subscription (yr 1) | Operations & SMS | Hardware (one-time) | Year 1 total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 students | 10M – 14M | 1.05M | 2.8M – 4.6M | 1.5M – 3M | 15.4M – 22.7M |
| 1,000 students | 14M – 22M | 1.6M | 4.3M – 6.5M | 1.8M – 4M | 21.7M – 34.1M |
| 2,500 students | 22M – 35M | 2.6M | 6.6M – 9.4M | 2.5M – 5M | 33.7M – 52M |
| 5,000 students | 35M – 52M | 4M | 10.3M – 14.3M | 3.5M – 7M | 52.8M – 77.3M |
| 10,000+ students | 72M – 95M+ | 6.1M+ | 17M – 24M+ | 5M – 12M | 100M – 137M+ |
Year 2 onwards (no implementation): subscription + operations only — e.g. 1,000-student school ≈ 5.9M – 8.1M UGX/year.
You don't wait a year to see value. Fees and registration go live first. Academics and uniforms follow. Each phase is usable on its own.
Student registration, guardians, photos, multi-campus setup, parent portal, health questionnaire (when enabled), staff logins.
Fee structures, invoicing, receipts, defaulter dashboards, SMS/email reminders. School can start using the system for fees.
Attendance with absence SMS, notice board, student requirements checklist, general stock, student health records (parent confirm + nurse access).
Marks entry, Uganda CBC grading (A–E), bulk report card PDFs, parent report download.
Balance sheet, bank reconciliation, uniform catalog and issuance by size.
Teacher attendance offline sync, parent fee lookup, notices — works when internet is slow.
Scholarships, events, chat, discipline, timetable, library, transport, boarding, HR, e-learning — enabled per contract after core go-live.
Three terms, boarding/day, MTN & Airtel MoMo, UNEB grading reforms, Africa's Talking SMS with Sender ID.
Every fee change, mark edit, and receipt void is logged. Role-based access — bursar can't edit marks. Health records restricted to nurse & leadership only.
Parents don't need an app to start — responsive portal on any browser. Android app comes later.
One director dashboard across all branches. Each campus keeps its own fees, stock, and classes.
Built to grow — microservices, SMS today, WhatsApp tomorrow, without starting over.
Termly training, support subscription, and a team that understands school operations in Uganda.
Let's start with a conversation about your campuses, student numbers, and priorities. We'll tailor the package and timeline to your budget.
Schedule a Discovery CallDownload PDF version · m.kabengwa@toughblue.com
Proposal prepared June 2026 · Prices benchmarked to Uganda market · Final quote on request
Technical documentation: Requirements & developer docs