To be concerned that a Mum from another class is still in our class WhatsApp group?

In the school I teach, they had an active policy this year that all numbers in the group chat had to be identified as belonging to a parent of a child in the class. If they didn't have a child in the class they were removed.'

I can't think why. I hope no-one here tells the school it's BU to have such a policy over such trivial matters. Why would school, or any school, have such a policy I wonder?!

At my school the school have no jurisdiction over the class WhatsApp group. It's set up by parents talking to each other and adding people who want to be. The school aren't in it and have no direct involvement that would allow them to decide how it is run.

I see you’re getting a lot of ‘who cares’ and ‘you have too much time on your hands’ responses. But it would bother me too, OP. Indeed a WhatsApp group is never ‘private’ but that does not mean everyone should be in it. Maybe try and speak to the admin, or accept it/leave it/wait until the next school year. I know what you’re describing isn’t ‘dramatic’ but it’s very odd and I would be annoyed by it.

🦇 💩

Just leave the group if you're bothered by it

If children have been at a school pre-school together or if you live in a small town/village, its highly likely people start reception knowing more than 4 parents. I knew over 4 in our year as friends for many years outside of school alone. I knew most by name (and im a working parent who does a quick drop off/pick up) but still knew the majority of parents. I’d been stood in the pre-school pick up line with them, didn’t have to make much effort to get to know a first name and birthday parties started from pre-school. Quickly got to know the other parent names at Reception parties (before the stage of dropping and running from parties!) 😁

And I can think of a couple of parents who stayed in the WhatsApp group after their children had moved schools, just so that they had access to parents' phone numbers for inviting their children to birthday parties etc -- friends don't necessarily change just because a child switches schools. I imagine they had it muted. I don't think anyone was perturbed by this. After all, we'd known the parent from years in the playground etc.

It wouldn’t worry me at all - child is in the same year. Not sure why the Mum needs to be in the whats app group as surely would be better to be in just her own class whats app? Why would anyone want the extra messages (party invites, lost property etc) if it didn’t relate to her class 🤷🏼‍♀️ But it wouldn’t worry me - her child is at the school in the same year.

If a child had left the school, then its the group organiser who should take that person out (if the person doesn’t take themselves out for some strange reason - i’d be gone straight away).

But the mum's kid is also in Reception. She wasn't in the group when it was for a year that has now moved up, she isn't "sticking around" in a group for an older or younger year group, she has presumably been in the group since it started.

some parents do post photos of their children after a party and to me it just feels weird (with privacy concerns) that this mum is still in a class WhatsApp group when her DC isn't in it

In what way is this a privacy concern? Her child is in the other reception class at the same school. The kids will be mixing all the time in the playground and at lunchtimes etc.

Why do you think this woman is somehow more likely to be a risk to your privacy than the other 30 people in the group, exactly?

@InveterateWineDrinker I'm assuming you weren't the parent talking about the party!

No, it's MUCH better when a selected few get invited to a party with paper invitations, but then use the all-class group to say thank you and wasn't it great afterwards...

(Says the voice of experience!)

Our primary school is a double-intake school from Reception upwards, so we have class groups instead of year groups. However, there is only one nursery intake and - since the class groups actually evolved from that - I can see why one parent might have been left on the list for the 'wrong' class at the start of Reception.

For what it's worth, we find the group incredible useful.

But how will she find the time to be the busybody she claims she isn't?

We have a whole year whatsapp rather than individual class ones, it’s more inclusive and makes it easier to organise parties and activities, share drop offs and pick ups etc. especially if your child has friends in other classes.

I’d never share anything personal or private on it, though - I’ve never even met many of the other parents!

This.

Plus our classes are mixed up every year, it’s much easier to have a year WhatsApp group.

A class WhatsApp group isn't really a private space anyway, OP.

As a poster above has said, if there are 30 kids in the class, there are potentially around 60 parents on there - you surely don't know them all very well or where they might be saving/ sharing any photos or info you put onto that group.

I assume the child of the person you are worried about was moved from your class into a different one?

It really wouldn't concern me at all because a) That person is still a parent of a child at the school, not a complete rando, and b) I wouldn't share anything personal there anyway.

This. Yes its a bit odd she's still in it but you shouldn't be posting photos or anything remotely private to your child on that chat anyway so I am not sure what your concerns are?

At the risk of sounding paranoid - any one of those adults on the chat who have a right to be there could be a paedophile or really dodgy in some way that you have no clue about. If you keep everything private and only post about class events such as what time the school fair is etc then I don't see the problem?

When people say someone is reading all of the messages, you only have to open the chat for it to come up as “read”. It doesn’t necessarily mean they are going through each one

I don’t get why you care? School WhatsApp groups should only be about missing school items, homework, school plays etc

This exactly. If there was different class groups then I’d want to be in both too. People organise days out with the kids, car pooling to school events, school volunteering, nights out. Parents and children get to know each other regardless of what class they’re in so I don’t understand the issue.

I don’t know who some of the numbers are in our class WhatsApp group and I’m sure some mums are from back before the classes got mixed around.

Doesn’t really bother me though as we don’t share photos (that’s just weird) it’s literally questions like “is it PE today” or “ do they need wellies”

As long as she definitely has a child in the other reception class I can’t see the problem. She could be on the PTA or something and is making sure all classes get notifications etc.

As for privacy you don’t know the other parents from Adam. Just because you have said hello and chatted to them doesn’t mean you know them properly. You also don’t know who they are showing the pictures to or if they are forwarding them on to grandparents etc.

I don’t get what your privacy concerns are.

Whats app groups arent my thing - I left a work one as half the members were no longer working there and I had never met them.
Anything urgent gets emailed to me .

Fortunately, when my kids were at primary they were not popular.
I did one once to arrange a collection for the class teacher who they had had 2 years running .