Welcome to WhatsApp Communities
We have recently set up WhatsApp Communities for the church. You might have seen a group you’re in get added to it and be wondering what it’s about. Read on to find out more.
What is it?
WhatsApp Communities is a way for us to gather and organise the various WhatsApp groups that exist in church life, to facilitate communication and community.
Why are we doing this?
It makes it much easier for people to find and join groups that are relevant to them. It also gives us the ability to message everyone in the community via the announcements group. Finally it improves our compliance with GDPR rules, particularly when people leave the church.
We have some of this type of more social, and less ‘broadcast’ ability to communciate via the Facebook group already but it is limited because not everyone uses Facebook. WhatsApp, in comparison, has a much broader user base and so I hope will help us to reach and engage more people.
Is my personal information safe?
Yes, your contact information is only shared with those who you are in groups with. This is exactly the same way any WhatsApp groups you’re already in operate. Your details can also be seen by the overall community admin which is Holland Road Baptist Church. It cannot be used as a directory to look up people’s numbers.
Do I need to do anything?
No, ministry groups you’re in already will start to move into the community over the coming weeks. Once a group you’re in has been added to the community ‘Holland Road Baptist Church’ you will get a notification and be added to the community and its announcements group. You can then click on the ‘Communities’ tab in the WhatsApp app and browse other groups that may be of interest.
How do I join other groups?
You simply click on the group and request to join it. An admin of that group then can accept or reject your request with the option to message you directly if they don’t already know you.
Are there rules?
Of course. Like any community it needs some rules to keep it working well. Here they are:
We're all in this together to create a welcoming environment. Let's treat everyone with respect. Healthy debates are natural, but kindness is required. Before you message or reply think, would you say what you're sending to someone's face?
Please avoid statements, particularly anything unnecessarily political or controversial, which might damage rather than promote our unity in Christ. Some conversations may be best taken off group chats and continued separately one to one, either online or face to face.
Give more to the community than you take. Self-promotion, spam and irrelevant links aren't allowed.
We don’t want to remove people but if you can’t stick to the rules then the admins will remove you from groups.
What sort of plans do you have for the future?
It’s a work in progress. First of all we’re just gathering existing groups into the community and seeing how it goes. However it’s got lots of potential to create interest based and geographically focused groups too. We’re not trying to do everything at once but if you have an idea, or know of a group that you think could be added drop me an email on jonnyh@hrbc.org.uk
Can I leave?
You can leave individual groups at any point, just like any WhatsApp groups you’re already in. You can leave the community too if you want to. You can’t leave the announcements group without leaving all the groups you’re part of in the community though. We don’t use the announcements group much but you can mute it if you want to.