For most activity providers, bookings are small and frequent – from weekly coaching sessions, before and after school wrap-around care, or school holiday sports clubs where parents typically pay as they book. It’s a simple, flexible system that keeps everything running smoothly and allows families to spread costs naturally over time.

But what happens when you launch a higher-value activity –  Maybe a Duke of Edinburgh award, a residential trip, or an external qualification / course — where asking for full payment upfront just isn’t realistic?

That’s where Hivelink gives you options.

Whether you need predictable income or flexible payments for families, there’s more than one way to structure your bookings — while still tracking every participant, payment, and deadline with ease.

For lower-value, high-frequency bookings, customers are used to paying immediately.

It’s quick, predictable and avoids carrying balances.

However, when an experience costs hundreds of pounds per participant, a single payment can be a barrier. Families might need to budget across several months, or coordinate payments from different sources. Meanwhile, you still need commitment early enough to plan transport, accommodation, and staffing for example.

Hivelink can help you to balance both sides – Get commitment from your customers whilst offering a degree of financial flexibilty  – by offering two main ways to manage higher-value bookings:

Both give you the same insight and control within your dashboard, but they suit slightly different circumstances.

Subscriptions are ideal when you need reliable, time-specific income — for example, if you must pay supplier deposits by set dates or need to forecast cashflow accurately.

You define the payment schedule, and customers subscribe to a set number of payments. For instance:

You can also offer the option to pay the total upfront for those who prefer simplicity.

Because every participant follows the same plan, subscriptions remove uncertainty — you know exactly when each payment will arrive, and parents don’t need to remember to pay manually.

This approach is particularly effective when:

If your customer base has a wide range of financial circumstances, then a “Pay via Instalments” approach is often a better fit.

Customers can book now to secure their place and choose how they settle the balance later. At checkout, you can offer:

Once booked, participants appear instantly on your registers, giving you full visibility for planning and safeguarding.

Customers can then make payments whenever it suits them — weekly, monthly, or in one go — using simple quick-select buttons for 25%, 50%, or 100% of the remaining balance.

In your Hivelink dashboard, you’ll see every booking’s payment status at a glance.

You can filter by programme and sort orders marked partially paid or unpaid, then send reminders directly through the platform.

To make life easier, you can save email templates for recurring updates — such as “balance due next month” or “final payment reminder” — so your team can stay consistent without starting from scratch each time.

This model is especially useful for activities like: Residential school trips, Award programmes (e.g. Duke of Edinburgh), Long-term qualifications, Conference tickets or training blocks

Families appreciate the freedom, and you still maintain full oversight of payment progress and participation numbers.

Use our simple tool below to see our recommendations based on your priorities.

In practice, many providers use both options within their Hivelink account.

For example, subscriptions for structured term-time programmes, and pay-by-instalment for annual trips or one-off events.

Whatever model you choose, Hivelink’s reporting tools make it easy to track progress:

Together, these tools mean you can commit to suppliers confidently, knowing exactly how much income is confirmed and when the rest will arrive.

Managing larger-value activities doesn’t have to mean endless spreadsheets or uncomfortable payment conversations and chasing.

By setting clear payment expectations and using Hivelink’s built-in tools, you can deliver premium experiences that work for everyone — families, staff and finance teams alike.

Whether you need predictable subscription income or flexible instalment plans, Hivelink provides the structure, visibility and communication tools to make managing high-value bookings straightforward.