We recognise that many parents find WhatsApp and similar platforms helpful for sharing information and staying connected with other families but the information you share can pose safeguarding risks for you and your child if appropriate security measures, privacy settings and care with the content you are posting is not administered . We are therefore sharing the following advice and guidance to help parents use these groups safely.

Please note that WhatsApp groups and other social media groups used by the school community are not endorsed, managed or monitored by the school. Responsibility for these groups sits with the individual group administrators, and all members within the groups share responsibility for the content posted.

When using any group messaging platform, it is important to be mindful that:

Personal or confidential information may be shared unintentionally.
In some circumstances, sharing personal information could constitute a breach of privacy or present a safeguarding risk for your child or another child.
The WhatsApp Terms of Service and Acceptable Use Policy apply to all users at all times.

All parents may find it helpful to familiarise themselves with WhatsApp’s guidance on identifying suspicious messages and scams, including:

Protect yourself from suspicious messages and scams
About scams and fake messages

If you are a group administrator, we also encourage you to review:

How to keep your groups and communities safe

Reporting and blocking suspicious contacts to WhatsApp via their in-app methods is an essential step for all WhatsApp users:

How to report or block a contact on WhatsApp

Best Practice for Parent‑Managed WhatsApp and Social Media Groups

In addition to the guidance above, parents who manage or participate in class WhatsApp or similar groups may find the following best‑practice suggestions helpful:

Group member identification

To improve transparency and confidence within groups, members may wish to clearly identify themselves either by:

using an appropriate profile photo, or
setting a recognisable display name (for example, first name and child’s class or year group).

This can help members understand who is taking part in conversations without the need for anyone to post additional personal details within the chat itself.

Reviewing links shared via other platforms

Some class WhatsApp groups have historically shared joining links via Facebook groups or similar platforms. If any of these groups remain publicly visible, it may be helpful for those who set them up to:

reset the invitation link or
close them if they are no longer needed, or
ensure they are set to private

This helps prevent WhatsApp group invite links from being accessible to individuals outside the school community.

Letters for Parents

We publish a newsletter for Parents and Carers on Friday of each week during term time. The newsletter contains information about current and forthcoming school activities. Newsletters from the Headteacher and Board of Governors are shared on a termly basis.

The school regularly publishes a variety of additional letters to parents. These documents will share information about school or extra curricular activities, invite parents to grant permission for their child to participate and occasionally communicate events taking place in the local community that the school supports or is participating in.

Letters to Parents are published with Microsoft Sway - view them directly in your browser.

Understanding Financial Benchmarking for Our School

We are committed to transparency and accountability in managing our school's finances. As part of this commitment, we are required to publish a link to the Department for Education (DfE) financial benchmarking tool. This tool allows you to see how our school's income and expenditure compare with other schools across England.

What is Financial Benchmarking?

Financial benchmarking is a process that helps schools compare their financial data with similar institutions. By doing this, schools can identify areas where they are performing well and areas where they might need to improve. This comparison helps ensure that resources are being used effectively to support the best possible educational outcomes for our students.

Why is it Important?

Transparency: It provides a clear view of how our school is managing its finances.
Accountability: It helps us ensure that we are using public funds responsibly.
Improvement: By comparing our data with other schools, we can learn from best practices and make informed decisions to enhance our financial management.

How Can You Access This Information?

You can access the DfE financial benchmarking tool through the following link: Schools Financial Benchmarking - Hook Junior School. This tool allows you to explore detailed financial information about our school and compare it with other schools in England.

You can use this tool to gain a better understanding of how our school is performing financially. Your engagement and feedback are invaluable as we strive to provide the best possible education for our pupils.

All local authority, maintained schools are required to publish annually on their websites the number of individuals (if any) earning over £100k a year. This information is required to be published in bands of £10k.

There are currently no members of staff who earn over £100,000 employed at Hook Junior School.