Teach Secondary 13.5

its way into the local press, or some complicated set of circumstances may have led to a risk of reputational damage. What’s important in the first instance is to invest proactively in your everyday story. What is your everyday story? Your ‘everyday story’ is what’s being told and discussed about your school each day. This can be done through a multiplicity of media – your own website and newsletters, notifications sent home via ParentMail apps or similar, assorted social media channels, conversations at events, any public talks and addresses that you give. Use these opportunities to paint the picture you want to paint, since you get to choose the colours. For example, I’m a big fan of the weekly newsletter. I’ve produced mine for some time using Google Slides, in a way that lets the whole team access that week’s newsletter and contribute to it directly. This kind of cloud-based approach is great, because it lets class teachers provide updates of their own. Crucially, I also dedicate time to writing something meaningful; something that shines a light on what we value and what we’re aspiring to be as a school. Communicate the best bits If, on the other hand, your newsletter starts with a grid of attendance figures, followed by a dreary box about lost property and then a reminder about the need to order school lunches in time, your readers will get the impression of an uninspiring, slightly messy administrative machine. Instead, open with something celebratory that brings your school values to life – a story about children taking the initiative with a new club, or some feedback from teachers and students about the impact of some new equipment. You’ll then be showing your school to be what it is: a vibrant, ever- evolving learning community. Seek out other ways of communicating your best bits. Your website, while undoubtedly a convenient destination for parents needing key information, will actually be viewed more frequently by the wider public. Among those visitors may be prospective candidates for jobs, future families, members of the local press – and potentially Ofsted... Again, what story is your website telling? Images speak volumes, so make sure your visual language is coherent. Is there a sunny, naturalistic vibe? Or are you going for something more scholarly and sharper? Either is fine, but the more coherent the better. It’s also worth investing time in pushing out positive news stories to the local press. A ‘bake off’ event may seem trivial, but the effects of your school being written about positively are manifold. Your families will enjoy seeing the coverage, it gives PARENTAL COMPLAINTS ON SOCIALMEDIA When it comes to social media, schools must carefully juggle individual rights to freedom of expression with various protection duties, including safeguarding their staff from harassment and upholding the school’s reputation. Make constructive communication your first priority It’s important to remember that posting on social media is often a last resort for parents who have issues they wish to highlight. Therefore, whilst schools may have legal options to call upon, taking such action could stoke the flames further and lead to a collapse in relations between the school and parents. Schools should take a proactive approach to their relationship management that involves reviewing complaints procedures and staff training needs, and maintaining open lines of communication to help build trust. Should social media suddenly become a battleground, you can de-escalate the situation by reverting to analogue, simply picking up the phone and having an old-fashioned conversation. Parental complaints on social media Taking the ‘softer’ approach doesn’t always work as intended, however, so schools should have a social media action plan they can refer to if necessary. In most cases, the best course of action will be to simply retain a copy of the offending social media post and monitor any further activity. When deciding whether or not to take action in response to specific posts, consider how long it’s been since they were posted. Have there been any further interactions with the posts from parents and others? Have the posts caused anyone (including staff) genuine distress, and have the posts resulted in any media involvement? Sending a general reminder to parents about the appropriate use of social media may also have the intended effect. Contacting parents, providers or police If a school has any concerns around statements made on social media, they can use the relevant platform’s reporting function to request that the content be removed, as per the acceptable terms of use policies that all platforms operate. The school may also wish to write to the parent who made the post, asking them to edit or delete it, though this could risk encouraging the parent to publish further posts. Another measure could be to issue restricted communication plans to any parents found using social media to target the school or its staff. This might involve restricting a parent’s ability to telephone or email the school or staff. Any posts the school suspects may constitute a criminal offence should be reported to the Police. Dai Durbridge is a Partner in the education team at the UK and Ireland law firm Browne Jacobson 58 teachwire.net/secondary