We are aware that most people take part in online activities and social media. It is fun, interesting and keeps us connected. There are various online school groups managed by parents for parents, such as class Facebook pages and Whatsapp groups and they can be a wonderful source of knowledge, support and advice. These groups can be useful for reminders and primarily for Class Reps to share key messages or information from the PTFA. We encourage you to join in and positively participate if you wish.

However, we ask that you respect the Christian ethos of the school by replicating the values that we teach our children, and to use common sense when discussing school life online in these spaces.

Think before you post

We request that social media, whether public or private, is not used to fuel campaigns and voice complaints against the school, school staff, parents or pupils.

If parents have any concerns about their child in relation to the school, they should contact their child's class teacher in the first instance.

Social media should not be used as a medium to air any concerns or grievances. Online activity that we consider inappropriate includes:

• Identifying or posting images/videos of pupils
• Abusive or personal comments about staff, pupils or other parents
• Bringing the school in distribute
• Posting offensive or unfounded comment
• Using social media to publicly challenge school policies
• Discussing issues about individual children
• Threatening behaviour, such as intimidating staff, other parents or using bad language

In addition to the above, we ask that personal correspondence between school and home remains confidential and private. Emails are sent from school with the intention that they are shared only with the intended recipient.

We strongly value our partnership with our parents and carers and encourage you to talk to us if there are any issues arising, and we will endeavour to help find a suitable solution.

The movement’s aim is to educate and empower parents / carers on the dangers of smartphones, and to change the norm by delaying giving children their own phone, specifically a smartphone, until at least 14, with no access to social media until 16. We believe that the only reason any child or young teenager needs a smartphone is because everyone else has one. 

When smartphones first came out, we had no idea of their risks. Now, the evidence is overwhelming, and frightening for any parent / carer. There is some excellent empirical data on the negative impact of smartphones on children (and some good alternative phones) here: https://delaysmartphones.org.uk/evidence/. 

By creating a voluntary ‘parents pledge’ to agree to the above, we hope that we can reduce the peer pressure felt by children concerned over bullying or being left out, which many cite as their reason for wanting a phone. Starting this in primary school will put children, parents, and carers in a stronger position as they navigate the move to secondary school and their integration with children from other schools.

To access further information, please use the link 'Smart phone free childhood' under 'In this Section'.

NSPCC - Bullying and cyber-bullying