Online Safety
Recent statistics highlight both the benefits available, and serious dangers posed to children online. Attached is the online resilience toolkit. This outlines behaviours which are age appropriate for children. It also highlights online behaviours which are potentially harmful or harmful at each stage of a child's development.
Online abuse should not be tolerated. If you are not comfortable with the way you or your child has been treated online this can be reported to CEOP by following this link.
If you feel you would benefit from information and strategies to begin a conversation with your child about how they use the Internet and how they can keep themselves safe, then click on the attached leaflet (My Life Online) at the bottom of this page. This resource includes guidance to support any adult (parent, carer or professional) to establish an open, respectful conversation about using the Internet and technology safely and positively, as well as a template for recording what has been discussed.
For further information about how to keep your children safe online, please visit the following websites:
Advice on setting parental controls
Parental Controls & Privacy Settings Guides - Internet Matters
Give your child a safe space to explore their curiosity online.
Our step by step parental controls guides will help you to set up the right controls and privacy settings on the networks, gadgets, apps, and sites they use to give them a safer online experience.
Parental controls are the names for a group of settings that put you in control of what content your child can see. Combined with privacy settings, these can help you protect your children from inappropriate content, online grooming, cyberbullying and other online safety issues.
Advice about gaming
We're here to help parents and guardians navigate the world of video games and board games. We have 2094 Video Games and 176 Board Games in our database. Each one hand-picked, deeply researched and tested with real families.
Get Smart About P.L.A.Y. (askaboutgames.com)
The UK Interactive Entertainment Association (Ukie) has today launched the Get Smart About P.L.A.Y campaign, encouraging more parents and carers to use tools that manage screen time and in-game purchases on video game consoles.
All About: PEGI Age Ratings (askaboutgames.com)
Age ratings ensure that entertainment content – such as films, DVDs, and games – is clearly labelled for the minimum age group for which it is suitable. Age ratings provide guidance to consumers to help them decide whether or not to buy a particular product.
Advice on reporting
Internet Watch Foundation IWF - Eliminating Child Sexual Abuse Online | IWF
We work to stop the repeated victimisation of people abused in childhood, and make the Internet a safer place, by identifying & removing global online child sexual abuse imagery.
Report Harmful Content - We Help You Remove Content
If you've experienced or witnessed harm online we can help. Report Harmful Content can help you to report harmful content online by providing up-to-date information on community standards and direct links to the correct reporting facilities across multiple platforms
Are you worried about online sexual abuse or the way someone has been communicating with you online?
General advice and tips on keeping safe online
Childnet — Online safety for young people
Helping make the Internet a great and safe place for children and young people. Advice and help linked to all aspects of online safety.
Common Sense Media: Age-Based Media Reviews for Families | Common Sense Media
Parent tips and FAQ’s. General information regarding online safety.
Information, Advice and Support to Keep Children Safe Online (internetmatters.org)
A good site if your child is using social networking sites to chat to friends and family or share their latest selfie, take a look at our list of social media guides to get you up to speed on the most popular platforms and help them set the right privacy settings.
Digital 5 a day | Children's Commissioner for England (childrenscommissioner.gov.uk)
The digital 5 a day provides a simple framework that reflects the concerns of parents/ carers as well as children’s behaviours and needs. It can also act as a base for family agreements about internet and digital device use throughout both the holidays and term time.
Based on the NHS’s evidence-based ‘‘five steps to better mental wellbeing’, the digital 5 a day campaign gives children and parents easy to follow, practical steps to achieve a healthy and balanced digital diet.