Arbor School Clubs: How to Sign Up Before Spaces Go

How Arbor club bookings work

Arbor is a school management information system (MIS) that combines staff admin tools with a parent-facing portal and app. When a school opens club spaces in Arbor, it notifies parents in one (or both) of two ways:

• Email notification — sent to the email address registered in the Arbor parent portal, typically from a school-specific Arbor address like noreply@arbor.sc or directly from the school's domain
• In-app notification — a push notification via the Arbor Parent Portal app (available on iOS and Android), directing you to the booking screen inside the app

Booking is first-come, first-served. When the club is published, the race begins.

Email vs. app: which notification should you rely on?

Many parents wonder whether to rely on the Arbor app notifications or email notifications. The honest answer is: both, where possible.

Some schools configure Arbor to send emails; others exclusively use the in-app notification. Some use both. Ask your school office which channel they use for club booking notifications so you know what to set up.

If your school sends email notifications, Parent Push can monitor those emails and alert you via WhatsApp instantly — giving you a second, faster channel on top of whatever your email app provides.

Step 1: Set up the Arbor Parent Portal app

If your school uses Arbor's app-based notifications:

• Download the Arbor Parent Portal app from the App Store or Google Play
• Log in with the same email address the school has on record for you (check with the school office if you're unsure)
• Go to the app's notification settings and ensure push notifications are enabled
• On your phone's settings, make sure the Arbor app is allowed to send notifications — and consider enabling "Critical Alerts" or similar if your phone offers it, so club notifications break through Do Not Disturb mode

Step 2: Ensure Arbor emails don't land in spam

If your school sends email notifications from Arbor, whitelist the sender address now — before the next club opens. Look for a past Arbor email in your inbox (or spam folder) and mark it as "not spam" or add it to your safe-senders list.

Arbor emails may come from your school's own domain (e.g. noreply@stmarys.sch.uk) rather than a generic Arbor address, so check past messages to confirm the exact sender.

Step 3: Keep your Arbor account details up to date

Arbor sends notifications to the email address and phone number registered in your child's school record. If you've changed email or phone since your child started at the school, contact the school office to update your details — otherwise you may not receive any notification at all when clubs open.

Step 4: Log in to Arbor before booking opens

When a club notification arrives — whether by app or email — you'll need to book through the Arbor Parent Portal (either the app or the web version at parentportal.sch.uk). Stay logged in so you can go straight to the booking screen without wasting time on authentication.

Step 5: Monitor Arbor emails automatically

If your school uses Arbor email notifications, Parent Push can watch your Gmail, Outlook or Hotmail inbox for those emails and send you an instant WhatsApp alert the second one arrives — even if you're in a meeting, your phone is on silent, or it's the middle of the night.

Set keywords like "After School Club", "Breakfast Club", "Swimming", or any specific activity your child is interested in. Parent Push scans the email subject, body, and any PDF attachments — so even if the club details are buried in a newsletter attachment, you'll still get the alert.

Quick checklist for Arbor club bookings

• Install the Arbor Parent Portal app and enable push notifications
• Confirm which channel your school uses for club notifications (email, app, or both)
• Whitelist Arbor email senders in your inbox
• Keep your contact details up to date at the school office
• Stay logged in to the Arbor portal on your phone
• Use Parent Push for fast WhatsApp alerts after matching messages are detected; timing varies