Social Media Safety for Parents

Guidance for Parents- WhatsApp and Social Media Groups

Parent WhatsApp Groups – Guidance

To aid communication between parents and carers many of our classes or groups of parents have set up WhatsApp groups, which OPERATE INDEPENDENTLY of the school. We know these offer a great way to support and communicate with each other.

Class / parent group WhatsApp Groups

We understand that parents and carers find WhatsApp groups a really useful way of communicating with and supporting each other.

The messages in the WhatsApp groups come from parents in their personal capacity. The school does NOT post directly on any WhatsApp parent/carer groups.

At Our Lady and St Joseph, we believe it is important to

Work in close partnership with parents to support their child’s learning and development
Create a safe, respectful and inclusive environment for pupils, staff and parents / carers
Model appropriate behaviour for our pupils at all times

To help us do this, we set clear expectations and guidelines on behaviour for all members of our community.

Code of Conduct using Whatsapp groups

Parents should adhere to the following guidelines when using class WhatsApp groups:

The group should never be used as a platform to air views/grievances regarding a teacher, staff member, child or parent in the class or school
The group is not a political platform for airing opinions on current affairs
The group should not be used for private conversations with anyone else using the group
The group should be used keeping in mind mutual respect and cultural sensitivity between all its members

In line with parents code of conduct, we expect parents, carers and other visitors to:

Support the spiritual, moral and behavioural development of their child.
Reinforce the school’s values and expectations at home.
Encourage independence and self-discipline.
Take an active interest in their child’s education and school life.
Foster positive relationships with staff and the wider school community.
Support the implementation of the Behaviour Policy, including consequences.
Communicate openly with staff about any behavioural or emotional concerns.
Ensure good attendance and punctuality.
Attend meetings related to their child’s behaviour or wellbeing.
Raise any concerns in a constructive manner while working in partnership with the school..
Treat all members of the school community with respect – setting good examples with behaviour and speech
Seek peaceful solutions to all issues
Approach the right member of school staff to help resolve any issues of concern

The school is committed to building positive, supportive relationships with families by sharing behaviour updates and recognising pupil’s achievements

Please note, the school considers the following online activity inappropriate:

Abusive or personal comments about staff, pupils or other parents or any member of the schools community
Displays of anger including swearing, or using offensive language
Bringing the school into disrepute
Posting aggressive, defamatory or libellous comments
Emails circulated or sent directly with abusive or personal comments about staff, pupils or any members of the schools community
Using social media to publicly challenge school policies or discuss issues about individual children
Threatening behaviour, such as verbally intimidating staff, or using bad language

The school takes safeguarding responsibilities seriously and will deal with any reported incidents appropriately.

Raising Concerns

If you are concerned about inappropriate comments on a class WhatsApp group, in confidence, please contact our safeguarding team by emailing the school [email protected] with evidence to support your concern.

If the school suspects, or becomes aware, that a parent has breached the code of conduct detailed above, the school will gather information from those involved and speak to the parent about the incident.

Depending on the nature of the incident, the school may then:

Send a warning letter to the parent
Invite the parent into school to meet with a senior member of staff
Contact the appropriate authorities (in cases of criminal behaviour)
Seek advice from our legal team/the local authority’s legal team regarding further action (in cases of conduct that may be libellous or slanderous)
Ban the parent from the school site

The school will always respond to an incident in a proportional way.

Social Media Safety for Parents

Guidance for Parents- WhatsApp and Social Media Groups

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