Chromebooks are simple, secure and safe devices that students can use to learn, explore, create and collaborate on with their teachers and their peers. We believe Chromebooks can make learning more effective and engaging and will enable our pupils to become well informed, responsible digital citizens and lifelong learners.  Chromebooks have an amazing potential to change the way students and teachers interact and learn. 

In order to both ensure equity of experience and to achieve the economies of scale with a manufacturer which make this scheme most affordable, we have selected the most appropriate device for students.

No, students will only use devices when the teacher deems them beneficial to teaching and learning. This could be for a small portion of the lesson, e.g to check their learning using a low stakes quiz, or for longer periods when undertaking extended tasks, e.g a collaborative piece of extended writing or not at all. The ability to access a device in any lesson as a creative, research and/or formative assessment tool will open up new possibilities for both teachers and students.  

Writing is still an important skill and note-taking and extended writing can still be done alone or in combination with technology. The device can become a research tool and doesn't need to always be a recording tool. Where notes require images, videos and audio, devices and third-party apps can complement handwritten notes. Digital skills, including typing, are also essential skills for students' next steps and in the workplace. Many students, particularly those with SEND have found the ability to re-write and type to be less constraining. They can also make use of accessibility features such as talk to type and audio notes. 

No. We recommend Chromebooks as our choice of device for those interested in buying a device because of their value, longevity, and compatibility with Google Workspace applications and Google accounts. We believe that a Chromebook supports your child’s learning beyond the classroom and as we have seen more than ever over the past few years  With our digital strategy embedded into our school ethos and curriculum, students and teachers have been making use of all the benefits that working in the cloud has afforded us.

If you have not bought a Chromebook yet but are interested, we strongly recommend buying one via the school as they can use this device inside and outside of school. As Chromebooks are managed by our IT admin team via a management license to ensure adequate safeguarding software and protection is applied, home devices cannot be brought into school. If you already have a Chromebook you may wish for your child to use the day-loan facility whilst on site.

No. These may not be fully compatible with the Google Apps and add-ons that we will be using for teaching and learning. The device will not be managed by the school or enrolled in the monitoring software that the school uses to keep children safe. In addition, technicians and teachers will not be able to spend time on lots of different, individual devices. 

Yes, your child should treat the Chromebook as their own when at home. A big part of the success of this scheme will rely on pupils valuing the Chromebook as part of their wider life and therefore taking care of it, charging it and bringing it to school every day. Storage space is provided via the Google domain that Ricards Lodge High School owns and is a limited resource, excessive use will be challenged. However, pupils who use the school domain to store personal files will need to remember to move them to a personal account before leaving the school.  The device will remain school-managed which will mean any non-education apps will need to be approved by the school before installation can occur. 

We will be maintaining our investment in the IT suites which run specialist software including our suites for Media, Technology and Music. Ricards Lodge High School recognises the importance of IT facilities and continues to invest significantly in this area to maintain an infrastructure that allows pupils to access high-quality resources to support their learning. Our Chromebook scheme will allow pupils to access online services in every lesson across their timetable. 

Ricards Lodge IT Support Service will be available at school to diagnose/troubleshoot issues that may arise. Their scope is limited as the device, if in need of a repair, will need to be sent to the manufacturing partner, or insurance provider for a more detailed diagnosis. This is necessary to ensure the manufacturer's warranty is not voided. Students will be entitled to borrow a 'long term loan' device whilst this process occurs and can take up to 3 weeks.   Depending on when you bought your Chromebook and how long you have had it will determine the process undertaken. 

Depending on when you bought your Chromebook through the programme it comes with a 1 or 3 year manufacturing warranty (See below). The warranty will not extend to any repairs or replacement of parts found to be damaged due to accidental damage, negligent use, incorrect maintenance work or work carried out by unauthorised third parties. 

2021/22 - Lenovo Gen 2 300e - Extended 3 years Manufacturing Warranty & Repair Service via Getech

2022/23 - Lenovo Gen 2 500e - Extended 3 years Manufacturing Warranty & Repair Service via ValueTech

2023/24 - Lenovo Gen 3 300e - 1 Year Manufacturing warranty only - No insurance/repair service*

*We recommend insuring your Chromebook via your household insurance policy, please note, that any work completed via a third party will void the manufacturing warranty. 

2024/25 - Asus CZ12 Flip - 3 years Manufacturing Warranty.  Optional Insurance (3 years) or Optional Insurance (5 years)

If your device is out of warranty and/or not insured the school can arrange for a quote via the school's hardware provider and Google Partner, GeTech. Work carried out by Getech will not void the warranty.  

Any Chromebook that is being bought through us will belong to Ricards Lodge High School until the full payment is received. Please contact the school and/or Freedomtech (if necessary) if you are having any issues with payments.

Yes. It is likely that students will be using the devices on a daily basis and must ensure they bring their Chromebook to school just like they would their exercise books and pencil case. The Chromebook for learning programme is there to provide students with a suitable, working device that can give them access to their schoolwork and resources inside and outside of school. 

Thefts of devices to and from school are very rare and for most schools running a one-one programme have been non-existent. However, it is sensible to reduce the risk of theft through some common-sense measures; pupils should keep their Chromebook in their bag on the way to and from school, both for road safety and crime prevention reasons. This is advisable if travelling by bus or on foot.

Ricards Lodge High School has a very effective web filtering system and all devices attached to our network go through this web filter. Ricards Lodge High School will be actively monitoring students’ Chromebooks while in school. We will be able to look at web filter logs should an issue become apparent. Students are already taught the importance of Online Safety through PSHE, Computer Science lessons, across the wider curriculum and assemblies.

Students, with the support of their parents, will be required to sign up to the Chromebook Code which sets out some simple rules to make things go smoothly. Some of the rules concern management (e.g. “I will bring the Chromebook to school every day, charged”) and some will be about classroom behaviour (e.g. “I will stop using the Chromebook when my teacher asks me to”), with the overall intention of creating a way of operating that all students, parents and staff understand and agree with. 

Connect to your home wifi when prompted just like you would with any other device. Your child can then log in with the username they use at school. They may need to add the email address if it does not appear automatically.

For example, Username: 6789@apps.ricardslodge.merton.sch.uk

Password: This will be the same password that your child uses for their School Google for Education account

Please follow this link for instructions on how to print:

https://support.google.com/chromebook/answer/7225252?hl=en-GB

No. There is no expectation for you to print from home for the school. Staff have been trained on how to use Google Classroom, our virtual learning environment, and other online systems for the submission of work online and most will use this. Some subjects may still require a printout occasionally as evidence for work, particularly some controlled assessments in Key Stage 4. However, your child can print any work they have done at home on the printers in school using the PCs in the ICT Suites

They can all be accessed through the school-managed-in-built apps on the Chromebooks links on Classroom pages, or bookmarks that students can set up. Many sites will allow students to log in using their school Google account. If the site requires a separate log in this can be saved in the browsers password vault for ease of access.

Chromebooks use the Chrome Operating System and you can find a lot of support in the playlist below on how to use the Chromebooks and Google Workspace for Education apps such as Docs, Slides, Sheets, Drive and more.

Tech Toolkit for Families and Guardians

Google Junior Training Series

There are important restrictions on sites/apps when using your school account. For parental peace of mind, we are including LGfL home protect (or equivalent) web filtering in addition to monitoring safeguarding software. 

Students can request unblocking sites that have an educational purpose via their school council representative or by speaking to the IT technicians in the Resource Centre.  It is not possible to download apps from the Google Play Store on a school managed device.

Appropriate sites that do not have an educational purpose, for use outside of school, may also be requested, however this will be regularly reviewed by the IT Network team and online safety lead. 

Work saved in Google Drive is backed up in the cloud.  If a device is damaged, or in need of a hardware reset any files stored on the device will be removed. Students must ensure they do not store an excessive amount of data, and excessive use may be challenged and storage limited to an amount necessary to undertake day to day school work. 

If you have purchased a device before June 2023:

If you have purchased the device outright the school will be able to de-provision the device for you and it will then be useable with a personal account. 

If you have paid by instalments you will have the choice to pay the remaining balance and keep the device, which will then be de-provisioned as described above, or return the device to the school and make no further payments. You will not be able to access a refund for any monies already paid and the school does not refund/purchase used devices back from parents. 

In certain cases, you may not have yet received the device, in which case the order can be cancelled and a full refund received. 

If you have purchased a device after July 2023:

• Under the Consumer Rights Act, you have an automatic 14-day cooling-off period. This allows you time to inspect the device and contact the school if you would like a refund. 

• You will then have a further 14 days to return the item to the school. The device must be ‘unused’ to receive a full refund. It does not have to be in its original packaging.  If the device has been used the school retains the right to deduct money from a refund.

• If you have paid a deposit for the device, it remains the property of the school until the final payment is made. Please inform the school of your request for a refund within 14 days. You will then have a further 14 days to return the item to the school. The device must be ‘unused’ to receive a full refund of your deposit. It does not have to be in its original packaging.  If the device has been used the school retains the right to deduct money from the deposit. 

If your child is leaving the school after 14 days you have two options:

1. If you have purchased the device outright the school will be able to de-provision the device for you and it will then be useable with a personal account. 

2. If you have paid by instalments you will have the choice to pay the remaining balance and keep the device, which will then be de-provisioned as described above, or return the device to the school and make no further payments. You will not be able to access a refund for any monies already paid and the school does not refund/purchase used devices from parents. 

Your child’s Ricards Lodge School email account is in fact a Google account and will be used when they are in school. The school will use management software to enable us to distribute apps to any Chromebook registered with it and effectively will ‘gift’ the app to the device. Only apps appropriate for teaching and learning will be distributed.

​The ​data is the property of Ricards Lodge High School –  Goggle for Education customers own their own data, not Google. Google offers customers a detailed data processing amendment that describes our commitment to protecting your data: https://www.google.com/intx/en/work/apps/terms/dpa_terms.html

As a school we are following DfE and ICO advice in this area and are fully compliant with the Data Protection Act: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cloud-software-services-and-the-data-protection-act

Google does store and log information but this data is encrypted in transmission and at rest, at the same time Google have a contract that says they do not share the data. http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en/terms/education_terms.html

If you have any further questions on privacy please contact the main school office.