# Parents and guardians

> Academium SMS Help › Parents
> For: School Owner, School Admin, Accountant, Receptionist
> Web page: https://helpcenter.academium.com.ng/academium-sms/article/sms-parents-and-guardians
> Last updated: 2026-10-06

A **parent record** brings a family together. Every child linked to the same parent is treated as a sibling, so the family can be billed, paid for and followed up together.

## Adding a parent

Parents are usually created when you admit their first child. You can also add one directly from **Parents → Add New Parent**.

- For the relation **Parent(s)**, enter the father's and mother's names.
- For any other relation, such as an aunt or a guardian, enter one name.
- Fill in any [custom fields](https://helpcenter.academium.com.ng/academium-sms/article/sms-custom-fields.md) your school uses for parents.

## The parent list

**Parents → Parents List** has tabs for **Enrolled**, **Prospective** and **Left** families, each with a count. A family's status comes from their children.

The list can show:

- the **total the family owes** (hidden unless your role can see fees);
- any custom fields you chose to show as columns.

From a family's row you can open the **family invoice**, to see and collect everything the family owes in one place. See [Collecting payment for a whole family](https://helpcenter.academium.com.ng/academium-sms/article/sms-collecting-for-a-family.md).

## The parent profile

The profile has two tabs: **details**, and **children**, with a count of the children. Each child shows their status: enrolled, not enrolled this session, prospective, left, transferred or graduated.

## When a whole family leaves

From the parent list, mark the family as left. Every child still at the school is marked as left together. Academium shows each child's unpaid balance first, including earlier sessions, and writes it off when you confirm.

## Removing a parent

Before a parent can be removed, their children must be moved to another guardian. If none of the children has any fee records, you can delete them along with the parent.

> **Note:** Parents do not sign in to Academium SMS. Families have a separate parent portal on plans that include online access.

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