Terms of Use for Schools
Effective 2026-09-25 · Version 2026-09-25
Who these terms are for
These terms cover a school's own use of the Brightnote platform, operated by Twiddle Technologies, Company No. 14837803 (United Kingdom): the account your staff sign into, the fees involved, and how payouts, refunds and donor data are handled. This is separate from our Donation Terms, which cover a donor's own gift, and from any signed agreement your school has directly with Brightnote, which takes precedence over this page if the two ever differ.
What Brightnote provides
Brightnote is the technology platform: your school's giving page, campaign tools, and the account your staff use to manage them. Brightnote is a technology provider, not a party to any individual donation, and never holds or takes possession of the money your donors give.
Fees, and why you won't receive 100% of a donation
Two separate fees apply to every donation, and your school will not receive the full donated amount:
Brightnote's platform fee is currently 1% of each donation, deducted before the remainder settles to your school's own bank account.
Paystack's processing fee is separate, set and charged by Paystack, not Brightnote. As currently published by Paystack for South African merchants, this is 2.9% of the transaction plus R1, with 15% VAT added to that fee. Paystack sets and can change this independently of Brightnote; check Paystack's own published pricing for the current figure.
Brightnote may also charge your school a monthly subscription fee, based on a tier tied to how much your school is raising through recurring monthly giving. Today's tiers are Free (R0/month), Launch (R249/month, from R1,000 in monthly recurring giving), Grow (R999/month, from R10,000) and Established (R1,499/month, from R20,000). These tiers, their thresholds and their prices are not fixed and may change; we will give your school reasonable notice before a change takes effect for you.
Payouts and your Paystack account
Donations settle to your school's own bank account through a Paystack subaccount in your school's name. Where Brightnote sets this subaccount up on your school's behalf, Brightnote takes reasonable steps to verify the bank account details before enabling payouts to it. Either way, your school is responsible for the bank account details being correct and kept up to date, and for telling us if they change.
Refunds, chargebacks and payment problems
Because donations settle directly to your school and Brightnote never holds or controls that money, your school is responsible for handling refund requests and chargebacks, the same as we tell your donors in our Donation Terms. If a donor disputes a charge or asks for money back, that is between your school and the donor (and, where relevant, Paystack); Brightnote is not a party to that and does not process refunds on your behalf.
Your responsibility for donor data
Through your Brightnote account, your school can see the name, email, donation amount and giving history of people who have given to it. Your school decides what it does with that information and is responsible for using it lawfully, including under South Africa's POPIA. Brightnote operates the platform and processes that data on your school's behalf, but your school, not Brightnote, is the party responsible for its own compliance in how it uses its donors' information. Our Privacy Policy covers what Brightnote itself collects and stores.
Your content
Your school is responsible for what it posts on its own Brightnote page: campaign descriptions, images and updates, including that they are accurate. In particular, don't describe a donation as tax deductible unless Brightnote has confirmed your school as SARS-approved for Section 18A. You grant Brightnote the right to display your school's name and logo as part of showing your page to donors.
Your account
Your school is responsible for who it gives staff access to, and for anything done through that access.
Brightnote's role and limitation of liability
Brightnote provides the technology platform only. To the fullest extent permitted by law, Brightnote is not liable for a donor's conduct, for Paystack's own acts as an independent payment processor, or for how your school uses donations it receives, and Brightnote's liability to your school is limited to fees your school has actually paid Brightnote in the preceding 12 months.
Ending this
Either side can end your school's use of Brightnote. If your account ends, donations already made are unaffected; they've already settled to your school.
Changes to these terms
We may update these terms from time to time. The version and effective date at the top of this page always reflect the current version.
Governing law
These terms are governed by the law of South Africa.
Contact
Questions about these terms: hello@brightnote.co.za.