Open evening video ideas: what to film, how long it should be and when to post it

A good open evening video shows families an ordinary day at your school, is short enough to watch on a phone, and goes out in the weeks before your open evening so parents book a visit. Film it early, start posting about three weeks before the event, and keep sharing it until applications close: 31 October 2026 for Year 7 and 15 January 2027 for Reception.

Here is what to film, how long each version should be and how to time it, with the film we made for The Coleshill School as a worked example.

What should go in an open evening video?

Parents are trying to picture their own child at your school. So show them a normal day, not a showcase. A simple checklist:

• Arriving. The gates, the welcome, pupils coming in. It answers the question “what will the first morning feel like?”
• Lessons. A mix of subjects, with real teaching and real concentration.
• Practical subjects. Science, art, music and PE look good on film and show off your facilities.
• Break and lunch. Friendships and space matter a great deal to a nervous Year 6 pupil, and to their parents.
• Pupils in their own words. A few short lines from pupils say more than any script.
• Staff. Friendly faces, including the people families will meet first.
• A short welcome from the head. Twenty seconds is plenty.
• A clear ending. The date and time of the open evening, how to book, and when applications close.

What to leave out

• Long speeches. If the head’s welcome runs past half a minute, families stop watching.
• Empty rooms and corridors. A lovely building with nobody in it tells parents nothing about the people.
• Lists of results. They belong on your website and in your prospectus, where families can read them properly.
• Anything you would not want a pupil to see again in five years’ time. The film will be online for a long while.

School open evening ideas that work on film

If you want more than one video, these ideas work well as short clips:

• A day in the life. Follow the school day from arrival to home time.
• Ask a Year 7. Recent starters answer the questions Year 6 pupils really ask. Is it big? Do you get lost? What is lunch like?
• Subject tasters. Fifteen seconds from each department.
• Meet the team. The head of Year 7, the SENCo, the pastoral team.
• Your questions answered. Uniform, transport, clubs and homework.
• Getting ready. Pupils setting up for the evening, as a countdown in the final week.
• Thank you. A short clip of the evening itself, posted the next day with a reminder of the deadline.

For primary schools, the same ideas work with a Reception focus: the classroom, the outdoor area, and the routines that help the youngest children settle.

How long should an open day video be?

Make one main film, then cut shorter versions for each place it will be watched.

Where it will be watched	Suggested length	Shape
Your website and YouTube	90 seconds to 2 minutes	Landscape
Facebook feed	60 to 90 seconds	Landscape or square
Instagram Reels, Facebook Reels, TikTok	20 to 45 seconds	Vertical
Stories and reminders	10 to 15 seconds	Vertical

These are starting points, not rules. The real test is simple: would a busy parent watch it to the end on their phone? Add subtitles so the film works with the sound off and for families who are deaf or hard of hearing.

When should you film it?

Aim to film at least four to six weeks before your open evening. That leaves time to edit, for the school to approve the film, and to start posting around three weeks before the event.

If your open evening is in early October, that means filming in the first weeks of September, or in the summer term before. Summer filming has real advantages: the school is settled, the light is good and the film is ready the moment term starts. Just check that the staff, uniform and buildings on screen will still be accurate in September.

Primary schools have a little longer, because Reception applications close in mid-January. Filming in the first half of the autumn term usually works well.

When should you post it? Admissions dates for 2026/27

Families apply through their local council. For children starting school in September 2027, the key dates are:

Date	What happens
September 2026	Applications open (Birmingham opened Year 7 applications at 9am on 1 September)
31 October 2026	Year 7 applications close
15 January 2027	Reception applications close
1 March 2027	Secondary offer day
16 April 2027	Primary offer day

GOV.UK sets out the national closing and offer dates, and Birmingham City Council confirms them for September 2027 entry. Councils set their own opening dates, so if you are outside Birmingham, check your own council’s admissions page. Note that 31 October 2026 falls on a Saturday, so a reminder on the Friday makes sense.

A simple posting plan for a secondary open evening:

1. Three weeks before. Put the main film on your website, Facebook and YouTube, and pin it to the top of your pages.
2. Each week before. Share a short vertical clip with the date and the booking link.
3. The day before and on the day. A short reminder.
4. The day after. A thank-you clip, with a reminder of the 31 October deadline.
5. Until applications close. Keep the main film pinned, and link to it whenever you remind families to apply.

Primary schools can follow the same pattern through the autumn term and up to 15 January, alongside any tours or open mornings they run.

Example: The Coleshill School open evening film

The Coleshill School, in North Warwickshire, wanted a short film to bring families to its open evening on Thursday 8 October 2026. We filmed an ordinary school day with students and staff and cut it into a social media video of 1 minute 31 seconds, made to be shared on the school’s channels in the run-up to the evening.

The film follows the day: students arriving, music, PE, lessons and the hall. It is cut to keep moving, so it holds attention on a phone, and it shows families what a normal day looks like before they visit. You can watch the Coleshill film on our work page.

Vertical clips work alongside a main film. For Bournville School, an all-through school, we created day-in-the-life videos for both the primary and secondary phases, filmed vertically for phones.

Tips for getting it right

• Check consent first. Get the school’s up-to-date photo consent list before filming, and flag any pupils who must not be identified. Our guide to filming and photographing in schools explains the rules.
• Do not name pupils on screen or in captions. The NSPCC advises against putting children’s names with their images.
• Keep it real. Real lessons beat staged scenes, and families can tell the difference.
• Use music that is licensed for the way you will share the film.
• Watch it on a phone before it goes out.
• End with one clear action: book your place, with the link.

Planning your open evening film with Moments

We make open evening films for schools across Birmingham and the West Midlands, from one main film to a full set of short clips for each platform. Every film is planned around your timetable and shot by a DBS-checked crew, with a clear, fixed quote up front.

If you are already thinking about next year, get in touch and we can plan the filming date with you. For the wider admissions picture, read our guide on how to increase pupil numbers.