TheLink Help Centre

• Our URL address doesn’t contain www. and can be easily accessed by simply entering https://thelink.slough.gov.uk or even by only entering thelink.slough.gov.uk in the URL address bar.

• You can click on the TheLink Logo and it takes you to the home page.

• You can bookmark key articles/pages to create your own personalised collection of resources.  (Please see our Miscellaneous FAQ section for instructions on how to do this).

• If you hover over events and training, you can select to see the past events that have taken place.

• You can request to upload an article/event on our website by emailing thelink@slough.gov.uk.

•  If you like or dislike a certain page, you can give feedback by clicking on the smiley face or sad face icons.

• When navigating across the site, if you see a + sign this means there is a further section, which you then hover over and the further section is displayed.

• The site automatically adjusts itself by size depending on the technology you use (iPad, mobile, laptop or desktop).

• You can use the  on the top right corner to search for something specific (this is useful if you want to locate a specific piece of news or event as you can type in what you are looking for and then do a further filter to find the information you need).

• If you enable newsletter you will receive an update on the latest pages that have been updated.

• If you right click on the title of an attached document you can “copy shortcut/copy link” and paste this into any electronic communication which will allow users to auto-download the document using this link

• If your cursor changes from a pointer to a hand it means you can click on this, and this will either take you to a new page or expand the page to provide more content.

This section includes guides that may be useful for you when using our website.  Please see below:

• Quick Guide to using TheLink website.
• A Guide to Registering for Events and Trainings on Eventbrite
• Eventbrite Payments Procedure

If you feel a further guide needs to be created to make the processes easier for you then please email thelink@slough.gov.uk or alternatively provide anonymous feedback using the smiley icon or the sad icons displayed on each page.  Please remember to not insert your name if you wish to provide anonymous feedback.

I want to register to TheLink website

• Select register from top right.
• Enter first name.
• Enter surname.
• Enter email address (Please note: we only accept professional email addresses unless you are a governor or childminder).
• Choose a username.
• Enter telephone number (optional).
• Enter organisation of where you are from (using dropdown option – select other if not listed and enter organisation in the textbox provided).
• Enter your role (using dropdown option– select other if not listed and enter organisation in the textbox provided).
• Tick the box if you wish to be subscribed to the newsletter.
• Read the terms and conditions and privacy policy shown on the bottom black pane titled “useful links”.
• Select the box “I have read and agreed to the terms and conditions”.
• Select “I am not a robot” box and follow the choose the signs instructions.
• And select create.
• Before you are able to create a password, your registration will be verified by the website administrator.  Once your email address has been verified, an email will be sent to you via thelink@slough.gov.uk asking you to then set up your password.
• You will then be able to log in each time you visit the site using your username and password or email address and password.

I have registered but cant log in why is this?

• It can be one of two things: either your account is yet to be verified thus not allowing you to log in or you are inputting the wrong registration details to log in.

• Account yet to be verified: if you have recently registered and are unable to log in, this means you will need to wait until the website administrator has verified your details by contacting the school/setting you are from. You will know this has been completed when you receive an email from thelink@slough.gov.uk asking you to set up your password.  Please also check your junk mail as some emails may enter there, depending on each individual account settings.

• Inputting wrong registration details to log in:  try using your user name to log in with the password you remember.  If this fails, try your email address and password.  Remember you have only 5 attempts until your account gets locked.  If this happens please call us on 01753 875504 and we will re-activate your account.

What happens after I register?

• Once you have registered, your account will be verified by the website administrator, who will then contact the school or setting you are from to double check the information provided.   This is for security reasons and to prevent spammers registering to the website and gaining access to information that is only designed for educational professionals in Slough.

• Once we have verified your details, we will activate your account and an email will be sent to you from thelink@slough.gov.uk asking you to set up your password.  You are then able to log in at any time using the registration details provided.

How do I log in?

• Select log in at top right.
• Then enter your email address and password.
• Select log in.
• This will automatically take you to your profile page, where you are then free to navigate the site as you please.

Although I have subscribed, I still haven’t received the weekly newsletter? Why is this?

• Please email thelink@slough.gov.uk to let us know that you haven’t received the weekly bulletin, as this may have been an administration oversight.
• If you register without subscribing to the newsletter but decide to subscribe afterwards, please email thelink@slough.gov.uk to notify us.  This is because we do not receive an update on user profile changes after the initial registration.

I have opted out of the newsletter but I still receive emails?

• Please email thelink@slough.gov.uk to let us know that you still receive the weekly bulletin despite opting out.  This may have been an administration oversight.
• If you have subscribed to the newsletter upon registration but opted out at a later stage, please email thelink@slough.gov.uk to notify us, as we do not receive an update on user profile accounts after the initial registration.

I want to see news articles

• Select homepage by clicking on TheLink logo.  This will redirect you to a new page (the URL for this is https://thelink.slough.gov.uk).
• Then scroll down where you will see 3 boxes.  Click on the title of the box which says “News”.  This will redirect you to the news page.
• You can then browse by scrolling to see which news interests you. 

How to upload a news article

• Please use the attached document which includes the instructions of how to upload a news article on the site: TheLink Form – News Checklist.
• Once reading the checklist as a guide of what we need, email thelink@slough.gov.uk and put in your request.
• We endeavour to respond within 3 working days.
• Once your request is complete, it will be added to the next bulletin (sent to all registered users who have subscribed to the newsletter).

How to make your news article stand out

• You can request for your news to be placed on the top of the news page (the three blocks), which we will then review.
• You can request for your news to be put on the home page banner (latest news section).
• If you require a response within a certain timeframe from users (deadline), you can request to include this with your news article request.

How to find TheLink news only

• Go to the homepage by clicking on TheLink logo.
• Scroll down until you reach the three boxes.
• Select the title “news” on third (relevant) box.
• This will be automatically filtered as news from TheLink only.
• If you are navigating from one news article and select “back”, this will bring up all news articles including external news.
• Scroll near the top where it says “filters”.
• Select on the first drop down and choose “The Link”.
• Select “apply” and this will then show you TheLink news articles only.

How to find external news articles

• Go to the homepage by clicking on TheLink logo.
• Scroll down until you reach the three boxes.
• Select the title “news” on third (relevant) box.
• This will be automatically filtered as news from TheLink only.
• Scroll near the top where it says “filters”.
• Select on the first drop down and choose any of the following options such as:
  • CYPN
  • Department for Education
  • Ofsted
  • BBC Education
• Then select “apply” and your results will show in accordance to your filter.

I want to know how I can register to an event

• Some events may have its own booking procedures thus please read the instructions on the desired event.  Different ways to register can be:
  • a drop in session where you can just turn up on the day at the venue.
  • some events may require booking by simply emailing the relevant personnel. 
  • most of our events will be on Eventbrite, where you can use this online platform to book yourself a place. Please see the attached pdf for guidance of how to register to events on Eventbrite:  A guide to registering for events and trainings on Eventbrite.

I want to see what events are taking place

• Hover over the bar at the top which says “events and training”.
• This will give you two options you can select:
• Past events – which will show you all the events that have taken place
• Forthcoming events – which will show you all the upcoming events due to take place.
• Once you have selected either of the two above, your results will then be displayed.
• You will also see a tag on each event from the main listing page that gives you indications of who the event is targeted at and what type of event it is
  • For example is it a training session, a network meeting, a conference, a briefing or seminar, a partnership board meeting
  • For example is it for schools, safeguarding related, for early years?
• You will also see a summary on the box which tells you the target audience for the event or training.
• You can click on any of the titles that interest you to find out more.

Please note further guidance on events and training can be found in the "useful guides" section.

How to search for specific information

• Click on the search icon on the top right corner and type in what you require.
• Then you will be redirected to a refreshed page which will list all the articles and items on the site that are related.
• If you still haven’t found what you are looking for, you can use the filter bar near the top of the page to filter your search via:
  • Type - this determines the kind of information you are looking for i.e. event, news, a basic page etc.
  • Related Tags - this determines the category of information i.e. childminder, early years, schools, teachers etc.
• You can also sort your search results by the following categories:
• Relevance, title or updated
• This will allow you to refine your search results to retrieve the information you need a lot faster

How to download documents

• Any page that contains an attachment will be displayed at the bottom of the page. 
• Some pages will have documents that have been made private, therefore you would need to log in to download any attachments.  So, if you see a page which refers to an attached document, and it is not visible, you would need to log in to retrieve this document.
• You can download any attachments by clicking on it, which will pop up in pdf, word or excel, where you can then save in your designated folder.

I can't see the attached document?

• Where pages refer to an attached document but is not visible at the bottom of the page, this means that the document has been made private.  This could be due to the nature of the document, that is only for the attention of educational professionals.  Therefore, you will need to log in to download the document.

RSS Feed – What is this and how do I use this?

• RSS stands for Rich Site Summary or Really Simple Syndication.  This is a feed that shows every update by the minute, if activated.
• You will see the RSS icon on the filter section in news.  It is a red/orange square with 1 white dot and 2 curved diagonal white lines.
• If you select on this it will redirect your page to a list of the updates.
• It’s an easy to way to weed out news articles that may or may not interest you, as you can read the articles in detail whilst scrolling. 

Can I use an RSS Feed for other things than news?

• The RSS Feed can be used for any page updates on the website.

Is there a way to provide feedback to TheLink?

• You can email thelink@slough.gov.uk OR
• For anonymous feedback - you can select either of the smiley face icon or sad face icon on any page you wish to give feedback to.  A box will then appear where you can complete the sections in accordance to your feedback.  If you wish to provide anonymous feedback please make sure you do not input your name in the feedback box.

How do I know the content is up to date?

• On each page on the right hand side, there is a “last updated” heading which tells you when the page was last updated.

Is there a way to collect pages/articles for easy access?

• Yes, you can bookmark any page or article by simply selecting “bookmark this page” on the page you want bookmarked. 
• Please note you can only do this if you are a verified registered user and have logged in.
• This bookmark will then go to your “shortcuts” section shown on the black pane at the top (next to the star icon).
• If you select “shortcuts” you will see a grey pane appear under the black pane, where you can then select on your bookmarked article/page for easy access. 
• You can also edit your "shortcuts" by selecting "edit" on the right of the grey pane.