Wihkum is a staff duress alarm app for schools. Staff press HELP on their own iPhone or Android phone, and the people your school has set for that help type, such as the closest trained staff, are alerted with their location inside the school’s geofence. Master users can trigger a lockdown or evacuation, every incident is recorded, setup can take as little as 2 hours, and pricing starts at A$3 per user per month.
Teachers and support staff shouldn’t have to send a student running to the office with a coloured card when something goes wrong. Wihkum is a duress alarm system for school staff that turns each staff member’s own phone into a personal duress alarm. It’s set up around your school’s grounds, so when someone presses HELP, the right people know who needs help and where. Staff download the free app, and your school can be up and running in as little as 2 hours. Pricing starts from A$3 per user per month.
From A$3 per user per month.
When a staff member presses HELP, Wihkum alerts the people your school has chosen for that type of help, not the whole school, so help can get there quickly without unsettling everyone else.
One duress button covers everything from a student’s allergic reaction to an intruder on the grounds. When staff press HELP, they can choose the type of help they need, so responders know what to expect before they arrive:
Each help type can be set to notify different people. For example, an intruder alert can call emergency services and notify staff, while students fighting in the playground can notify the closest trained staff. Your school can also create its own help types, each with its own alert tone, to suit the way your school works.
Some situations need the whole school to act at once. In Wihkum, nominated Master users can send an immediate lockdown or evacuate notification to every staff member. Only Master staff can see and use these two buttons, so everyday staff accounts stay simple and focused on calling for help. For more on planning ahead, see our guide to school lockdown systems.
In the United States, some schools give staff wearable panic badges, and some of those badges have started full lockdowns by mistake:
Most calls for help are everyday medical or behaviour situations. A false lockdown frightens students, brings in police and can make people take real alerts less seriously.
In Wihkum, a call for HELP and a whole-school lockdown are kept separate. HELP alerts the closest trained staff. Only Master users can start a lockdown or evacuation, and they must enter a one-time 4-digit code first. That means a bumped phone, a press in a pocket or a wrong tap can’t put the school into lockdown on its own.
The right help for everyday incidents, and a deliberate, confirmed step for a lockdown.
Nobody can see where you are unless you press HELP. Then, and only then, trained responders see your location. The app checks location periodically so it can work out who the closest responders are, but that information isn’t visible to anyone until help is requested.
Wihkum doesn’t sell data to third parties. Its only income is subscriptions. The app is also light on your phone, using about 3% to 8% of battery a day, depending on movement, and about 3 to 5 MB of data a month. Read more about security and privacy.
Upload your staff list in bulk and Wihkum can be running across your school in as little as 2 hours. The app works on any phone currently supported by Apple or Android, so there’s no extra hardware to install. Custom schedules let you set when the system runs during school hours, weekends and holidays, and support staff such as gardeners and cleaners can call for help 24/7. Schools in Western Australia can also read about emergency help for schools in WA.
Wihkum starts at A$3 per user per month. Pricing depends on your school, so tell us how many staff you have and a Wihkum representative will be in touch to discuss pricing for your school.
Under model WHS laws in Australia, organisations must manage the health and safety risks of workplace violence and aggression. In the US, the OSH Act 1970 requires employers to provide a safe workplace, and in the UK the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 does the same.
Wihkum doesn’t replace your risk assessment, but it helps you meet your duty of care in practical ways. It gives staff a fast way to call for help and identifies trained responders in advance. It also records every incident, including the date, time, staff involved and location, so you can report on it and review it.
A fixed duress button only works if you’re standing next to it. Wihkum goes wherever your staff go on the school grounds, on the phone they already carry.
| Fixed wall or desk button | Wearable button | Wihkum app | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where you can raise an alert | Only where it’s installed | Wherever it’s worn | Anywhere inside the school’s geofence, on the staff member’s own phone |
| Who gets the alert | Depends on the system | Depends on the system | The people set for each help type, with location |
| Lockdown and evacuate | Depends on the system | Depends on the system | Yes, for Master users (with a one-time 4-digit code) |
| Incident records | Depends on the system | Depends on the system | Every incident logged |
| Hardware | Installed buttons | Badges or devices for each staff member | Runs on supported iOS and Android phones |
Staff press HELP on the Wihkum app, and the people your school has set for that help type, such as the closest trained staff, get an alert with their location.
Yes. Staff download the free Wihkum app on any currently supported iPhone or Android phone.
Wihkum starts at A$3 per user per month. Enquire for your school’s pricing.
It depends on the help type. Each help type can be set to notify different people. For example, students fighting in the playground can notify the closest trained staff, while an intruder alert can call emergency services and notify staff.
No. Your location is only shared with trained responders when you press HELP.
Yes. Master users can send a lockdown or evacuate notification to all staff, and only Master staff have access.
With some wearable panic badges it can, and several US schools have had accidental lockdowns. In Wihkum, only Master users can start a lockdown or evacuation, and they must enter a one-time 4-digit code first, so an accidental press can’t lock down the school.
As little as 2 hours, by bulk uploading staff records.
Custom schedules cover school hours, weekends and holidays, and support staff such as gardeners and cleaners can call for help 24/7.
Prefer to talk? Call +61 433 022 863.
