Online Safety
Online Safety is integral to our responsibility to ensure that children are kept safe in school. Digital parenting is also a key aspect to maintaining children’s safety at home.
The development of children’s digital awareness is woven throughout the computing curriculum and also forms a part of our RSE (Relationships and Sex Education) provision.
The Inspire Partnership has identified that the teaching of computing and use of technology is to be a priority as part of our curriculum. As we move technology forward as a Trust, our strategy is to achieve the following for all pupils:
- Improve children’s engagement in lessons
- Help children adapt to different learning styles
- Provide a secure and safe environment for online use
- Be prepared for the digital world
As the high-tech world advances in telecommunications, it is imperative that we all work together, both at school and home, to ensure that Online Safety is paramount and at the very core of all use of digital resources. As a school, we are very mindful of how important it is to ensure that our children are fully aware of how to use the internet safely. We do this by embedding e-safety lessons throughout our curriculum and by talking about issues surrounding the internet through circle time sessions and assemblies. It is important that we teach our children to communicate with respect and kindness in real life and online, and also that we show them that we are working together on this.
Top Tips for Parents and Carers
- Talk with your child about Internet safety as soon as he/she begins using the Internet. It is never too early to start discussing the importance of being a good digital citizen.
- Use age-appropriate filtering, blocking and monitoring software on all Internet-enabled devices used by your child, including laptops, wireless phones and video games.
- Stay involved in your child’s online world by setting limits on his/her “screen time” and monitoring who your child is communicating with online. Get to know the web sites your child is visiting and educate yourself about your child’s online activities.
- Explain to your child that he/she should never give out personally identifiable information online. For example, your child should understand that he/she should not post detailed information about his/her whereabouts.
- Make sure your child knows never to meet someone they met online face-to-face without first talking with you about the situation.
- Tell your child to never share their passwords with anyone, including friends.
- Explain the consequences of posting inappropriate material online. For example, a child’s reputation can be impacted by a status entry or an image that is shared.
- Monitor your child’s mobile phone usage and review text messages sent and received, including images downloaded and uploaded.
- Educate yourself on the latest threats facing kids online (e.g., cyberbullying, sexting, etc.) and arm yourself with information that will allow you to talk to your child about being a good digital citizen.
Talking about #OnlineSafety
Click here for Childnet's advice on what and how to discuss staying safe online with your child. Click here to find ways of starting that conversation.
Guides for Staying Safe
For more information on staying safe online you can visit: https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/
For a parents' guide to being social online - click HERE
The NOS (National Online Safety) website has plenty of detailed guides on how best to stay safe online. You can visit their site here.
The National Cyber Security Centre has advice on how to stay safe here
What have you signed up for?
If you have any concern about a particular app or game or how to keep your child safe there are some useful guides to be found here.
Apps to help children stay safe online
The BBC have a website and app called Own It. The website has a lot of content for children to help them navigate their online lives, and the free smartphone app comes with a special keyboard which can intervene with help and support in the moments that children need it the most. It can be downloaded for free in the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
SafeToNets is an app for parents to help them safeguard their children from online risks like cyberbullying and sexting, whilst respecting their child’s rights to privacy. The SafeToNet Foundation is providing UK families with free access to 1 million licences during coronavirus
Parent/Carer Internet Support
Safety Online
CEOP is an asset of the National Crime Agency CEOP command. The CEOP command works to protect children from sexual abuse and exploitation both online and offline. Click here to report a concern.
Internet Matters
Keeping your children safe online matters. "Internet Matters" is an independent, not-for-profit organisation which aims to help parents keep their children safe online. We believe in maximising children’s potential online, while staying safe, and Internet Matters can help parents to address this important issue.
Internet Watch Foundation
For general information on the IWF which helps to protect child victims of sexual abuse which is online visit: https://www.iwf.org.uk/
If you see any criminal sexual content online you can report it anonymously:
ParentPort
If your child has seen any type of content online or offline that you think is unsuitable for them, you can report it using ParentPort.
Some more useful sites
