Home School Communication

Effective communication between home and school is paramount for ensuring the best possible educational experience for all students. We believe it serves as the vital link that bridges the gap between a child’s academic life and their home environment. As a school we endeavour to maintain open and seamless communication so we are able to share valuable insights into a student’s strengths, weaknesses, and unique needs. This collaboration allows for timely intervention and tailored support, ultimately leading to improved learning outcomes. As a school, our commitment to seamless communication reflects our dedication to fostering a nurturing and inclusive learning environment where students can thrive, supported by a strong partnership between parents and school staff.

Contacting School

House Tutor Contact

When contacting the school, your first port of call should be your child’s House Tutor. This can be done via email or phone call. This is usually sufficient to ensure that an issue can either be dealt with immediately or you will be directed to the most appropriate person to help.

All such calls should be made via the school’s main switchboard tel: 016977 45700, or you can email the relevant Student Manager.

Year Group email links can be found here: Year Group Team Contacts

 

Subject Specific Contact

Learning specific contact should be directed to your child’s teacher in the first instance.

 

Whole School Communication

The majority of whole school information will be sent to parents via our email system. This includes School Reports, with the exception of comment reports, which will be printed and given to your child to bring home. It is therefore imperative that email addresses are correct on our system. Please note that the emails generated from William Howard School (9425412@sims-communications.co.uk) should not be directly replied to, as this is an automated system and it is not monitored regularly.

The school also has a text messaging system that is used to inform parents of emergency school closures and various important reminders – if bus routes are delayed or not running for example. It is vital to keep us informed of any changes to your child’s contact details.

 

Staff Working Hours and Contact Protocols

Please be aware our staff will monitor, respond and send emails between the hours of 7am and 7pm weekly and only in emergency during the weekend. We will endeavour to respond to all communication within a 24 hour period.

Please respect the work-life balance of our staff and ensure emails are not sent outside the hours of 7am and 7pm in the week and only in an emergency during the weekend. This is to safeguard the wellbeing of our staff and ensure they are well rested to provide the best learning experiences every day for your child.

We appreciate emails may need to be written when convenient so we ask that you use the scheduling feature which is available on most accounts and devices.

In an emergency please contact either the Headteacher or Deputy Headteacher.

School and Parent Main Communication Platform

We use an app called Edulink One to communicate information about their children to parents.

The app is currently configured to allow parents access to:

  • Homework for all students
  • Achievements
  • Attendance
  • Behaviour
  • Details held on our system about each child, such as contacts (if these need changing please contact the school)
  • Timetable
  • School Calendar (currently being uploaded)

 

A brief guide to using the app can be downloaded here: Edulink Parents Quick Guide (2023)

This guide provides a more comprehensive guide to the features available: Edulink One Parent Guide (2023)

 

Student Access

Students will be able to login into their version of the App using their school email accounts.