Recently, we hosted a professional development session for school administrators with a practical focus: learning how to use Canva templates to design custom graphics for both the website and print.

During the session, we walked through a simple, real-world project:

• Starting with a ready-made template
• Uploading a school logo and school photos
• Creating a flyer tailored to the school’s own community
• Resizing that flyer into an article image and a homepage gallery image

The response was fabulous — administrators loved how quickly they could take a generic design and make it feel like their school.

One design, many uses.

With Canva, staff don’t need to start from scratch or be graphic design experts. Templates provide structure, while customisation keeps the content personal.

Ongoing Support
To keep building on the momentum, we’ve published two video guides on using Canva on our website. These guides walk through the basics and provide step-by-step instructions for creating school-branded materials.

Custom graphics aren’t just about making things look good. They’re about telling your school’s story in a way that feels real, relatable and professional. A well-designed flyer or gallery image showcases not only events and announcements, but also the pride and personality of the school community.

With tools like Canva, every school has the power to create visuals that connect — no design degree required.

Join us for a live demo of the session at our PD in Term 4
Thursday 23rd October at 12.00pm (9.00am WST)

Register here


Sinead Bannon
Operations Manager

---

Your parent handbook has always been a PDF, time to go mobile friendly!

We know PDF’s were never meant to be read on a mobile phone. Sure, you can see the document but you’re stretching and pulling the text to make it legible.

We also know that everything we do these days in communications land is to make our content mobile friendly.

If you’re using our eNews, you can convert your handbook to a mobile friendly version. And if you’re not using eNews, read on, we have something for you too!

Check out these links of some schools that have converted.

• Caulfield Primary School Parent Handbook
• Glen Waverley Primary School Parent Handbook

There are many benefits to a digital handbook;

• You look like a tech savvy school
• Built in translator for schools with a multi-cultural community
• You can make edits without having to reissue the handbook
• Parents always have access to your content on their mobiles

For schools using eNews
Just convert your PDF content into chapters by using the Article feature; just the way you do to create articles for your eNews.

Once you have the articles written, then create an eNews edition but in this instance title it as Parent Handbook 2025.

Once published, just issue the link to your new parents (a link like those above).

If you’d like some help with this process, please contact our helpdesk.

For schools NOT using eNews

We can create the mobile friendly, digital version of your handbook for you. The cost for this service starts from $125 and is dependent on the size of your handbook. Contact our helpdesk for a firm price.

Time to go digital!


Sinead Bannon
Operations Manager

---

Tech Tuesday is back - but revamped!

We’re freshening up our approach to web training!

Welcome to Tech Tuesday: short, focused sessions designed to help you get the most out of our digital tools.

• 15–30 minutes each Tuesday at 11:30am
• Covering one key topic each week (based on our most popular cheat sheets)
• Open to anyone who wants to learn, refresh their skills, or pick up a new trick

These bite-sized sessions are practical, to the point, and easy to slot into your day. Whether it’s adding a PDF, creating engaging galleries, working with forms, or uploading videos — you’ll walk away each week with tips you can apply straight away.

No need to commit to the whole program — just join the sessions that interest you.

Mark your calendar: the first Tech Tuesday kicks off on Tuesday 26 August at 11:30am (9.30am WST)


All meetings will be in the same meeting link below.

Date	Topic Covered
Tue 26 Aug 2025	Adding PDFs to your website
Tue 2 Sep 2025	Adding images to your website - pages & articles
Tue 9 Sep 2025	Creating new pages and adding to website navigation
Tue 16 Sep 2025	Working with the homepage gallery
Tue 7 Oct 2025	Working with photo galleries
Tue 21 Oct 2025	Working with articles
Tue 28 Oct 2025	Working with the navigation
Tue 4 Nov 2025	No session - Melbourne Cup Day
Tue 11 Nov 2025	Working with the calendar
Tue 18 Nov 2025	Working with forms
Tue 25 Nov 2025	Working with tables
Tue 2 Dec 2025	Working with videos

Sinead Bannon
Operations Manager

---

Alongside our Tech Tuesday we will be running 2 PDs this term. Each will be conducted over zoom and are included in your annual fee.


Beginner Basics - This session will run you through the basics of maintaining your website including - loading pdfs, images, creating new pages and adding dates to your calendar. Suitable for users that have attended the initial Updat-ed training but need a refresher.  Running time: 45 minutes

Wednesday 22nd October at 1.00pm (10.00am WST)
Register here


Custom Graphics Using Canva - No previous experience with Canva needed.  We will walk you through how to create custom graphics for your website, including homepage gallery and recent news articles.  You need no design experience as canva is a simple tool that is free for schools.  Running time: 30 minutes

Thursday 23rd October at 12.00pm (9.00am WST)
Register here



Sinead Bannon
Operations Manager

---

Thinking about giving your school website a makeover? Now’s the perfect time! We’re offering half-price upgrades on our website themes – so instead of the usual $290, you’ll only pay $145.

We’ve got 10 professionally designed themes to choose from, each one created to give your school a clean, modern look. Whether you’re after something bold and vibrant, or simple and classic, there’s an option to match your school’s personality.

Upgrading your theme is the quickest way to refresh your site and show your community that your school is modern, dynamic, and up-to-date – without the time or cost of a full rebuild.

The deal won’t last forever – so if your site is ready for a fresh new look, now’s the time to make the move.

See the details here


Sinead Bannon
Operations Manager

---

We’d love to get a quick snapshot of which schools are currently using the Updat-ed app. If you could take a moment to let us know by filling out this short form, it would be a huge help.  Please only fill out the form if you are using the app.

---