Online Safety

Growing Up Digital

The internet is an extraordinary force for good, but it is not designed with children in mind.  Yet one third of internet users are under the age of 18 and the part it plays in their lives continues to grow.  Despite good progress made by government and industry together on issues such as parental control filters and age verification, much more needs to be done to create a supportive digital environment for children.

On-line Safety in School

There is an increased focus required from schools with regard to on-line safety.  Schools must have measures in place to protect children from harm online – including cyber bullying, pornography and the risk of radicalisation.  At our school, we recognise that the internet can play a very important part in children’s education, but can also bring risks, which is why we do everything we can to help children stay safe online – at school and at home.  This includes:

• having appropriate filters and monitoring systems, so that no child can access harmful content via the school’s IT systems and concerns can be spotted quickly
• teaching our pupils about safeguarding, including on-line safety
• ensuring cyberbullying is included in our anti-bullying work

You can read the government’s latest guidance regarding on-line safety by following this link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-measures-to-keep-children-safe-online-at-school-and-at-home

Reporting an On-line Safety Issue

You can report an online safety issue using the CEOP button below (Child Exploitation and Online Protection Command). This button will take you to the relevant phone number and email address you need in order to report a problem.

Alternatively, we are always happy to help at school with an online safety issue. Should you or your child wish to report a problem, please speak to your child’s class teacher, who will then notify a senior leader if needed. The issue will then be dealt with and monitored.

The full policy to online safety is detailed below.

If you feel uncomfortable by something you have seen on the internet or when using any other kind of technology please report the problem. You can do this by telling someone! Tell your mum, dad or carer if you are at home. In school you can tell any adult. They will then tell the online safety leader who will sort the problem for you. Remember our school slogan to keep you safe when using the internet:

Resources for online safety

• Click on the link for good advice, guidance, videos and worksheets related to online safety.https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents/articles/parents-guide-being-social-online/
• Also take a look at this website on a Safer Internet usage.
• There is a safer search engine (just like Google but heavily restricted) which is recommended by CEOP called Swiggle - please use this with your children at home for research.  http://www.swiggle.org.uk
• For younger children, there is a story called 'Smartie the Penguin' which raises issues in a way that young children can relate to.
• For older KS1 children, 'Hector's World' is a good resource.  This is a series of cartoons about online safety and sharing 'personal information'. You can access the videos here: http://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/5_7/hectorsworld
• Interactive activities can be found here: www.hectorsworld.com/island/index.html

Please click on the links below for more help and advice on online safety.

• CEOP Police Find out more about reporting anything to do with Internet Safety.

• CEOP Report Abuse If you or anyone you know is worried about Child Exploitation, Online Protection or anything related to Internet safety please click this link which will take you to the CEOP reporting website.

• Safeguarding Guidance for parents
• Online safety advice for Parents
• Advice for Parents on Cyberbullying
• A Parents Guide to Dealing with Sexting
• Advice for Parents Keeping Children Safe
• Additional NSPCC offer for schools
• Sexting in schools and colleges January 2017
• Home or Out Alone Guide
• PCSO newsletter July 2021

• Internet Matters

• NSPCC Pants campaign

• Childline

• NSPCC Helpline

Top Tips for staying safe online

• Always ask a grown up before you use the internet. They can help you find the best thing to do.
• Don’t tell strangers where you live, your phone number or where you go to school. Only your friends and family need to know that.
• Don’t send pictures to people you don’t know. You don’t want strangers looking at photos of you, your friends or your family.
• Tell a grown up if you feel scared or unhappy about anything.
• Call ‘Childline’ on: 08001111 if you need to talk to someone who can help.