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Schoolcomms provides schools with a choice of two methods for linking
recipients' contact details:
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Import the contact details held in the
SIMS database for each school member and their families (Import
in)
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Invite school members and their families to register their own contact details
on the web site (Web registration)
There are advantages to each approach and it is for each school to choose the
one that best suits their school community. It is possible to combine the
approaches by inviting parents to web register first, and then to import in the
remainder.
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Import in Contact Details
from SIMS
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Web registration using
security letters
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Who
is linked to each student?
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The Priority 1 parents are brought in automatically from
SIMS. If other
adults wish to link to a student then they can web register
using a security letter or they can be manually added by the
school.
On request, a school can also import from
SIMS lower priority contacts as non Prime
parents.
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Up
to four adults can link to each student, using the security
letters.
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What
do we need to do to get started?
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Run
the automatic import and start sending
messages
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Print
and distribute the security letters. Start sending
messages. It may
take some encouragement for the majority to register for
themselves.
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What
about data protection issues?
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It
is important that people know how their data is going to be
used. You must
inform parents that the data from SIMS will be used for SMS
and email messaging.
The parents can choose to opt out and be flagged as
such. Then their
contact details will not be imported.
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Because
the parents control their own data there is no problem. They can change their
preferences or opt out whenever they
choose.
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How
will the data be kept up to date?
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The
import of contact details can be run at any time, keeping
Schoolcomms up to date with any changes in SIMS. The import will not
change any web registered details, or links manually created
by the school through the School Members linked people screen.
Any web registered links will be maintained by the individual
concerned.
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The
registered users maintain their own contact details through
the web site.
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If you are unsure of the implications for your school, or would like to discuss a
changeover, please email support@schoolcomms.com or call us on 0844 445 7147.
Please look at the flow chart here
and the detailed notes on Importing Contact Details below.
Import Contact Details from SIMS:
The Contact Details Import will import the following details from SIMS:
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The email address and mobile phone number
for all School Members (students and adult school members ) who
are not already registered.
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The Priority 1 contacts of all Students that do not already have a linked Prime
Parent in Schoolcomms. Imported
priority 1 contacts will be given prime parent status.
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Lower priority contacts can be
imported from SIMS if requested by
the school. These will be given
non-prime parent status.
It is important that you have informed your school members and parents that
you are going to use the data collected from them for this purpose, in order to
comply with the data protection regulations. Users must be informed that their
details will be used for email and SMS messaging in connection with school
administration and they must be offered the opportunity to opt out.
By request, a school can be set
so that the import will also import the
other priority contacts. Priority 2 and
below will be brought in to Schoolcomms as
non Prime parents in addition to the
Priority 1 parents as Prime parents. Please
contact us if you would like to take
advantage of this facility.
If you are an existing school that has some web registered links and
some manual links added by the school, use the flow chart
here for guidance.
If you need any advice please
email support@schoolcomms.com or call 0844 445 7147.
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