Kestrel

Part 4. The family portal

4.3 Answering the school

Version 1.0 ·Updated 2026-10-07

Next reviewed by 2027-04-07.

Written for a school's staff learning how Kestrel works, the trainers who teach them, and the families using the portal.

Consents, agreements, forms and requests, medical confirmations and news: how a family says yes, no or what has changed.

Written forFamiliesStudentsFront officeNurse

What it is for

The school asks families for answers: may the child go on an excursion, is the medical record still right, can the school use a photograph. The portal collects these answers in one place. Each answer is recorded against the child with your name and the day, so the school can show later what you agreed to.

Consents

The "Consents" section is for parents with responsibility for the child. It groups consents by what they need from you.

GroupWhat it means
Needs your answerThe school has asked and is waiting. Each shows a deadline, what it is for, when and where it runs and the cost.
Your consentsConsents you have given. Each can be withdrawn.
Answered noConsents you declined. Each can be changed to yes.
Asked for and not yet answeredRequests that are open and unanswered.
  1. Open "Consents" on your child's page.
  2. Under "Needs your answer", read "What it's for:" and the dates and cost.
  3. Press "Yes" to agree. Press "No" to decline, and fill "Reason (optional)" if you wish.
  4. Press "Cancel" if you opened a No and changed your mind.

To take back a consent, press "Withdraw" under "Your consents". Kestrel tells you, "Consent for" the purpose "withdrawn. The school has been told." The note above the list explains, "If you withdraw a consent, the school's office is told, and so are the staff running whatever it was for." To reverse a no, press "Change to yes". A consent the office wrote down for you shows "Recorded by the school". With none at all you read "No consents recorded".

Forms and requests

"Forms and requests" lists two things. The forms the school has sent you show a state such as "Sent" with the date, "Waiting on" a step since a date, "Approved" or "Declined". The forms you may start yourself show "Not sent this year" or "Sent this year" and a "Fill it in" button. With nothing available you read "No forms to send".

  1. Press "Fill it in" beside the form.
  2. Answer the questions. A star (*) marks a required one.
  3. Press "Send it to the school", or "Cancel".

A student who fills in a form is told that staff read it and that parents can see it was sent.

Agreements

The school's agreements, such as its terms of enrolment or a code of conduct, are under "Agreements" in the portal's top bar. Each agreement is shown once, with its words, and under "I accept this, for" a box for each child it is about. Tick the children you accept it for, then press "Accept what I ticked". One press accepts everything ticked, for each agreement and each child. An agreement the school asks you to sign asks for "Your full name" before the press.

A child already covered shows "Accepted", and one the school has excused shows "Excused". Where the school asks any one guardian, a child another guardian accepted for shows "Accepted" too. "Ask the school, or say why you won't accept" sends the office a question, or your reason for not accepting. Sending one accepts nothing, and an agreement still to accept never closes a section of the portal or changes the enrolment.

In the console the office reads each agreement at "Agreements", in the Messages area, with who has accepted, who is still to accept and who is excused. From one agreement's page the office records an acceptance given on paper, excuses a person with a reason, voids a mistake with a reason and answers a question. An administrator keeps the agreements, their words and each new version at Settings, "Agreements". A new version asks each person again; a correction asks no-one and is in force once a second person approves it.

Confirming medical details

Once a year the school nurse asks you to confirm the child's medical details. "Medical details" shows a form with Conditions, Medications and Immunisation, each with "Is this still right?" and "What has changed". Use "Add a condition" or "Add a medication" for something new. Press "Send to the school nurse". Until the nurse acts the page says "Waiting on the nurse". With nothing due you read "No confirmation to fill in". An item the nurse entered shows "From the school".

Screens

  • A child's name

    /portal/children/[id]

    Where the consents, forms, medical confirmation, news and messages sections appear.

  • Consents

    /app/settings/consents

    Where an administrator sets what the school asks consent for.

    Needs comms.consent.write

  • Agreements

    /portal/agreements

    Where a family or a student reads and accepts the school's agreements.

  • Agreements

    /app/agreements

    Who has accepted each agreement, and who is still to.

    Needs comms.agreement.read

  • Agreements

    /app/settings/agreements

    Where an administrator keeps the school's agreements and their words.

    Needs comms.agreement.manage

Training notes

  • Tell families a No can be changed later, and a Yes can be withdrawn at any time.
  • Remind staff that a withdrawal tells the office and the staff running the activity.
  • If a family says a section is missing, check their standing on the child. Consents need parental responsibility.
  • Tell families an agreement is accepted once for all their children in one press, and that a question to the office is the way to raise a concern.