The forum is included with any Test Academy course or online bundle, and is not sold on its own. An account without either sees the Forum pill with a small padlock on it, and opening it lands on a page headed The Forum is for Test Academy students rather than the rooms.
What opens it
- An active online bundle.
- A place in an in person class.
- A teacher or staff account.
Any one of those is enough. A trial class on its own does not open the forum, and neither does a FlexiClass membership by itself.
Why it is not open to everyone
The forum is a room full of students with teachers in it, so it is kept to families who are with Test Academy. Every message is screened before it appears and staff read the rooms, which is only workable at that size.
The pill stays visible
The padlocked pill is deliberate: the feature stays where it can be found rather than vanishing, so nothing appears to be missing from the account later.
Battle chat is the exception
One room is open to everyone: the chat beside a Battle, in either LearningHub or TypingHub. Any signed in student can read it and join in there, even without a bundle or a class. That room only exists beside a Battle, so it is not reachable from the forum itself.
If you are enrolled and still locked out
It does happen, usually when a bundle has just lapsed or a new enrolment has not attached to the right account. The page itself says to get in touch, and support can put it right. Do not buy anything a second time to fix it.