Creating a Parent-Run Group Chat

Sometimes you want a group chat that's entirely run by parents — for example, a parent representative who manages the conversation, adds or removes members, and keeps it running, all without a school admin visibly in the mix. Onespot's group chat feature lets you set this up so a parent representative is in control and no admin is a member of the chat.

Here's how to do it.

1. Create the group chat

In your Administrative Superpowers ⚡, go to New Screen → Group Chat.

Under Settings, fill in the basics:

Title — name it something like "Parent Group Chat" (or whatever fits).
Icon — pick one if you'd like.
Discussion Topic — optional, set this if you want the chat focused on a particular topic.
Reaction Type — choose how members can react (e.g. Like).
Replies — leave "Allow replies" checked if you want members to reply to each other.

You can just set the basic details here to get the chat started — the parent editor/moderator can change any of these later as they see fit.

The new chat starts with access set to members only, so only the people you add will be able to see it.

2. Add your members

This is the important part. Under Chat Members, click Manage Members and manually add the people you want in the group, including your parent representative(s). You don't need to add yourself.

3. Set the permissions

Still in Settings, set the permissions so the chat stays exclusive to its members:

Access — make sure Only users in this chat have access is selected (it should already be). This keeps the chat private to the people you've added.
Messages — select All chat members can post in this chat.
Replies — select All chat members can reply to messages.

Once that's all set, hit Create.

4. Assign the parent as editor/moderator

Now that the chat exists, open its settings again from ⚡ Administrative Superpowers → All screens & forms. You don't need to be a member of the chat to do this.

Scroll down to Permissions and tap Show more permissions.
Under Chat Editors/Moderators, tap Manage Editors.
Tick the parent representative(s) you want to run the chat, then tap Save Changes.

Once you do this, they'll be able to manage the chat on their own. For more on editor access, see How to Make Someone an Editor of a Specific Screen or Chat.

What this looks like for everyone

For you, as an admin: If you're not a member of the chat, you'll still see the screen exists. When you open it, you'll see a message that the chat is for members only. If your account has the All Members or All Screens & Forms permission, you'll also see a View this chat button so you can check in without being added. Viewing this way doesn't make you a member. Admins with the All Members permission can also find the chat under Messages → All Group Chats.

For the parent representative: The parent group chat now appears in their inbox, even though they don't have admin superpowers or the lightning bolt. They manage it from Chat Info by tapping the ⓘ info icon in the top right of the chat. From there, they can add or remove members and tap Open Settings to adjust the chat's settings.

One thing to pass along: they should not change anything under permissions so the chat stays private to its members.

Once your parent representative has editor access, send them our parent-facing guide. It walks them through finding the chat, managing members, and adjusting settings: Managing Your Parent Group Chat.