This truly is the Age of the Internet. Now that increasing numbers of people have Internet access, we are ever more likely to turn to it for shopping, research and information.

This development has not been lost on schools. Not only are many in the UK now using the web to reduce the costs of, for example, staff recruitment, but they are also using it as a tool to market the work they do and the success they achieve. In fact, the latest figures from the DfES show that in 2003, 57 per cent of primary schools, 82 per cent of secondary schools and 50 per cent of special schools had their own website. Yet it's not simply about getting a website up there for all to see; it's as much, if not more, about regular and effective maintenance.  

Creating a website for your school offers the world a window on its community and work, in what could be argued to be the most appropriate form for a dynamic educational institution. While a website doesn't replace your school's prospectus, it can support it by offering readers heightened depth and scope. But there are certain pitfalls to avoid; a weak website could in fact diminish your public standing and one which does not fully represent what you set out to achieve as a school may simply serve to confuse. Getting the balance just right is essential if your website is to fully represent your school and reflect your ethos and direction. 

Safety first

Before even starting to plan your website, do keep in mind that there are certain safety issues that should be considered. For every piece of information, example of pupils' work, picture and photograph, ask yourself: could this have another purpose in the eyes of a visitor?  

Becta, the Government's lead agency for ICT in education, suggests that schools should never place names next to photographs of children and that only group photos should be used, not those showing just one or two children. 'Schools must ensure that no individual child can be identified or contacted either via, or as a result of a visitor using, the school website', says Becta. In addition, never use pupils' full names on your website. For more advice on Internet safety, visit Be Safe Online.

Focus on planning

This is the most important stage of the whole project. Without detailed and methodical planning your site is likely to lack clarity and fail to achieve the goals you want it to achieve. This could result in the loss of valuable time for little tangible gain.

If you're at the stage of thinking about creating a website for your school, consider first writing a policy to address all of the key issues that the project will have to face.

A quick word about copyright...

There is further advice on copyright issues on the Becta website, but suffice to say that no content posted on your website should infringe copyright. You may also want to protect your content by copyrighting it.

... and data protection

If you are planning to keep records of visitors to your site through a guest book, you will need to ensure that you are not contravening the Data Protection Act. Becta can advise further on this if you do decide to use a guest book or feedback forms.

Initial questions to ask

Before starting work on your school's website, make sure that the following questions can be answered:

• Why do you want a website, and what is its purpose?
• Whom do you want the website to be for (parents, pupils, staff, the wider community, etc.)?
• Is the whole school community behind the idea? Are there any dissenters?
• Who will be responsible for the website?
• Will you create a web team? 
• What impression do you want your website to give (remembering that impressions are made as soon as the homepage loads onto a visitor's screen)?
• Who will design and create it?
• What expertise in your school's community can you draw on (parents, pupils, governors, older siblings)?
• Can you afford to pay for web-design services? 
• Who will write the content?
• How often will your website be reviewed?

Technical issues

You'll need to secure a domain name for your school's website. Although you can register a '.sch.uk' name, you don't have to stick to this format. Some schools have chosen '.org', '.com' or '.info' as alternatives. The Nominet website can offer further advice on this.

You will also need to choose a host before your site can go live. Your LEA and Becta will be able to advise on this.

Other technical considerations include the software options to choose when creating your website. Again, Becta can advise.

What do you want your site to contain?

According to Grant Robertson, Network Manager for Eteach.com, some websites are a 'triumph of style over content', but for schools it's important that visitors to the site can get the information they need as quickly and painlessly as possible.

'School website designers need to look at their plans from the end user's point of view', Robertson explains. 'Complicated file structures won't present a school in the best light. You really have to think about what will work in every browser.'

There's a temptation to provide too little content on a website, initially at least, but this isn't as practical as it might seem. The potential scope of a school website is immense, but core information is vital. Grant Robertson suggests that the following, at least, should all have a place on a school's website:

• School name, location (with directions, perhaps linking to a map) and contact details
• School logo and motto
• Ethos or mission statement
• Welcome from the head
• Basic information about the school (e.g. the number on roll, number of staff, a brief history of the school and the key facilities it has)
• List of all staff members and their role in the school
• Ofsted reports (with all but the most recent archived) 
• School calendar of key dates and events
• Timetables
• Examples of children's work
• School newsletters (with all but the most recent archived)

Becta suggests the following optional extras could be included too:

• The school prospectus (although the website is a prospectus of sorts so there is probably little point in having the whole thing online) 
• Curriculum and other policies (summaries would do)
• Schemes of work
• Homework notes for pupils
• Activities for pupils
• Links to other useful information or activities for pupils
• A search engine (once your site takes off it will be useful to find content quickly)

Whatever you decide to include in your website, make sure that it has an identified readership group, e.g. governors, parents, pupils, staff, the community. Aim to write with that readership in mind.

Email

Becta also suggests that schools consider giving email links to classes or to individual teachers. However, they offer a significant caution: 'Someone in school will have to be responsible for managing all the emails that come in, and particularly the increasing amount of spam that is either irrelevant or inappropriate for pupils, such as invitations to adult websites.'

There are other considerations about email too, says Becta. '[Schools] also need to think about management issues where you give out email addresses for individual teachers: do your teachers have time in their school day to respond? Are they willing to communicate with parents individually? Whilst you will want to give parents and others the opportunity to communicate with you via email, it might be wiser to settle for general email addresses such as info@schoolname or even teachers@schoolname.'

Keeping an eye on style

Don't commit the style gaffes that will reflect badly on your school. These 'dos' and 'don'ts' may help:

Do

• Follow (or create) house style
• Use a clear font that will be easily read on all computers (Arial and Verdana are good choices) in a healthy size such as 10— or 12-point
• Keep navigation simple by planning your content into logical groups before building the website
• Position your logo on the top left of every page
• Make sure that it is clear on every page of your website which site it belongs to (some users may not enter your site through its homepage and so-called 'orphan pages' can be infuriating for users who are unable to determine what they are looking at)
• Minimise the amount that users have to scroll down each page to access the information provided as research indicates that Internet users are reluctant scrollers (using 'next' and 'previous' links will help to avoid this) 
• Take care over your choice of pictures (go for those with clean backgrounds with a simple focus, not complicated resized ones)
• Remember that your users will have different monitor sizes

Don't

• Have anything on any page that is constantly moving. It's disturbing to the user
• Use colour schemes that clash or blend, e.g. blue text on a red background, or black on grey, as text will be impossible to read
• Clutter each page with complicated graphics so that download times are excessive (research indicates that users typically lose interest after about 10 seconds)
• Use any fancy techniques that are not going to contribute to your site's clarity and ease of use (it's not necessary to show off ICT prowess — elegant design is far more practical)
• Resort to using complex URLs (these should be as simple, logical and readable as possible)
• Include undated content (date everything and archive what doesn't have current value)

Your homepage

Once you have mapped out the possible content for your site, you could start by thinking about what your homepage will look like. Although your homepage is essentially a contents page for your site, don't blast visitors with so many options that they are baffled. These ideas may help:

• Give a sense of what's unique about your school.
• State what you are offering users.
• Use graphics only when they are adding value to content, not simply as decoration.
• Think about navigation. How will visitors find their way around?
• Offer only around six routes into your website. Any more and you'll start to confuse.
• Avoid having a link that points to the current page.
• Gather all 'corporate' information in one area.
• Identify what the website's priorities are and point users in the right direction to access them.
• Consider showing examples of content to tempt users deeper into your site.
• Keep everything clear and unambiguous.

Summing up

Remember that, just like any developing project, the website that goes live after all your planning and preparation is like the first step on a journey. It does not, indeed should not, have to be the final word on the subject. This is a project that will need careful nurturing and attention. If it turns out that a feature doesn't work well, change it. If there are obvious gaps, fill them. As long as you plan in the time to develop the website, you simply need to know that when it first goes live it's a foundation on which to build. Just don't forget to give it a test run before launching it on the general public!

Becta offers the following 'ten tips on building a good website':

• Plan the site: consider all the options, map them out and retain this as a blueprint of how the site might grow over time.
• Start one small manageable area and then build gradually.
• Keep it simple and accessible for all users, including those with special needs — see what you can achieve without being over-ambitious.
• Use the functions that are unique to the web to make your pages easier to navigate and interesting to visitors — hyperlinks, graphics and small animations if they're appropriate.
• Remember your audience.
• Enlist the help of others — children can take digital photos, for example, and write material for their own pages.
• Invite feedback on how others view your offerings.
• Review and update the site constantly — to ensure that you see your site as others see it.
• Remember issues such as copyright, plagiarism, child safety and privacy.
• Appoint a webkeeper to coordinate the efforts of everyone in the school and oversee the site's content.

For further information and support, access Becta's ICT Advice portal.