E-Safety

With the majority of children spending more time online doing their school work, playing games or watching videos. Technology is hugely valuable for education, as well as a way to keep in touch with friends and family. However it’s important we all consider how we can support children’s online safety during this lockdown, and always. 

PARENT SAFE (LGFL SafeguardED)

It's never easy to know how to keep our children safe when they aren't with us, and sometimes even when are, if we don't know what's happening in their lives or on their devices! Who are they talking to, what are they doing, are they okay? Don't despair though...click the link below for help and information. 

https://parentsafe.lgfl.net/

HELP WITH SECURITY SETTINGS ON VARIOUS APPS AND DEVICES. 

https://www.internetmatters.org/parental-controls/

Internet Safety Guidance
Digital Parenting
Digital Parenting is a partnership between Parent Zone and Vodafone.  The free magazine is an online safety guide for families, providing parents and carers with practical information and advice directly from teachers, other parents/carers and online safety experts on a range of subjects.

Digital Parenting Magazine Archive Editions:
https://www.vodafone.co.uk/mobile/digital-parenting/archive
Parent Info is a collaboration between Parent Zone and NCA-CEOP, providing support and guidance for parents from leading experts and organisations.
https://parentinfo.org/

Vodafone Digital Parenting
Vodafone’s Digital Parenting website is full of information to help your family live a happy and safe digital life.
https://www.vodafone.co.uk/mobile/digital-parenting/

CEOP
www.ceop.police.uk
The Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) are a national policing organisation which specialises in investigating grooming and sexual abuse online. Their educational website: www.thinkuknow.co.uk is suitable for children aged 4-16 and has a specific section with advice for parents/carers. The ‘Click CEOP’ report button provides a means of reporting abuse online and can be downloaded onto the school website for easy access.
 

The IWF
www.iwf.org.uk
The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) is the UK hotline for reporting illegal online content, such as child abuse images, or material considered to be criminally obscene. The IWF actively works to identify and safeguard any children involved, as well as getting illegal images and videos removed from the internet.

Parent Port
www.parentport.org.uk
Run by the UK’s media regulators, Parent Port enables parents and professionals to report inappropriate online material, such as videos, adverts or news articles.

Home Office
www.gov.uk/report-terrorism
www.educateagainsthate.com
The government have introduced a new red button for reporting online material which promotes terrorism or extremism and an educational website with advice and information for parents. 
 

NSPCC
www.nspcc.org.uk/onlinesafety
The NSPCC have teamed up with 02 to provide excellent information and advice for parents, as well as a free online safety helpline. They have also produced an app/site, on which they have reviewed the most popular apps and websites young people are using; including age ratings and how easy it is to report a problem: www.net-aware.org.uk. Parents can also choose to sign up to the Net-aware newsletter, for up-to-date information via e-mail.

Internet Matters
www.internetmatters.org.uk
Internet Matters is a not-for-profit organisation working with online safety experts to provide advice and information for parents to keep their children safe online. It has an excellent interactive tool which guides you step by step through setting up parental controls on all the different devices in your home, as well as video tutorials about specific topics of concern.

https://www.internetmatters.org/parental-controls/

Parent Zone
www.theparentzone.co.uk
Parent Zone provides up-to-date content on a variety of parenting concerns, including online safety. In collaboration with Vodafone, they have produced Digital Parenting magazine, which schools can order for free, to hand out to parents, or link to the online articles: https://parentzone.org.uk/DP5

UK Safer Internet Centre
www.saferinternet.org.uk
UK Safer Internet Centre is a collaborative organisation which provides a wide variety of advice and guidance on online safety. 

Games Rating Authority
Games Rating Authority gives you the opportunity to check the Age Rating of a game.  The ratings don't tell you whether a child is likely to enjoy a particular game and definitely don't indicate a game's difficulty. The ratings simply indicate whether there's something in a game that might be unsuitable for children and young people, such as violence, scary scenes, sexual content, drugs or swearing.
https://gamesratingauthority.org.uk/RatingBoard/games

Childnet
www.childnet.com
 A partner organisation of UK Safer Internet Centre, Childnet has a wealth of resources, including; leaflets, conversation starters and online storybooks; ‘Digi-ducks Big Decision’ (storybook) is available to buy from this website, or can be downloaded for free.

Get Safe Online
www.getsafeonline.org
Get Safe Online covers a lot of practical, technical information on protecting families and computers against fraud, identity theft, viruses and many other problems encountered online.

Websites for Pupils:
We advise all parents to review the content of these websites before allowing their child(ren) to use them.

www.thinkuknow.co.uk
CEOP’s education website has useful information for children and young people about online safety; it is broken down into different age categories so pupils can access age appropriate advice.

www.childline.org.uk/info-advice/bullying-abuse-safety/online-mobile-safety/
This website from the NSPCC offers general advice to children and young people, with specific sections on online safety and cyber-bullying. There is also an online chat facility where young people can contact a counsellor directly if they want further support. Please note – some of the content on this website is aimed at older children and may not be appropriate for all, so use with caution.

https://www.bbc.com/ownit
The BBC have produced a wealth of online safety related videos, games and quizzes for young people to explore. These resources are updated around Safer Internet Day each year.

www.kidsmart.org.uk
Kidsmart is an interactive child-friendly website produced by Childnet, which enables young people to access online safety information under different topics / categories.
 

SAFEGUARDING FROM HARMFUL INFLUENCES ONLINE

• The online world is a necessity for many children in accessing school work and it delivers huge benefits, not least in enabling us to stay connected to family and friends during this period. However, many parents may feel concerned about the content their children are accessing.

• Although rare, there is a risk that increased online activity and feelings of stress and isolation may be exploited by negative influences and online groomers of all kinds to target vulnerable children and young people directly.

• An understanding of digital safety will help parents and carers safeguard loved ones from a range of harms, whether that’s child sexual exploitation, fraud, or extremist influences seeking to radicalise vulnerable people.

What steps can I take to keep my child safe online?

• If you have downloaded new apps or bought new technology to help stay connected at this time, remember to review and adjust privacy and safety settings if you or your child is signing up to a new online service.

• Government has encouraged Internet Service Providers to allow parents to easily filter content to put you in control of what your child can see online.

• You can switch on family friendly filters to help prevent age inappropriate content being accessed on devices in your home.
  • The UK Safer Internet Centre provides guidance on how to do this.
  • Internet Matters has also provided step by step guides on how to setup parental controls.

• More information is included in the ‘Further Resources’ section.

What are the signs that my child may be being exploited online?

• Online exploitation is often hard to recognise because it is a complex issue. When it comes to being drawn into extremist ideas online, sometimes there are clear warning signs, in other cases the changes are less obvious.

• Although some of these traits may be quite common among teenagers, taken together they could be indicators that your child may need some help:
  • Exploring new and unusual websites, chat forums and platforms. Harmful influences may push individuals towards platforms with a greater degree of anonymity.
  • Joining new or secret groups since isolation.
  • Speaking with new friends or being secretive about chats during online gaming or in forums.
  • A strong desire to seek new meaning, identity and purpose.
  • Using language you wouldn’t expect them to know.
  • Watching, sharing or creating films online linked to religious, political or racial hate.
  • Becoming increasingly argumentative or refusing to listen to different points of view.

Should I be concerned that a loved one is being exploited online?

• The above are merely signs that they might need help, but you know your child best and you will want to speak with them first. Check in with them and ask about what they are viewing, who they are speaking to and how they are feeling. This might feel difficult, but here are some pointers to help you:

• • Listen carefully to their fears and worries. Find some helpful tips here.
  • Avoid explanations that could be interpreted as antagonistic, belittling or frightening.
  • If they are finding it hard to cope with bereavement and grief - advice can be found here.

What help is available if my child is being exploited online?

• It is important to safeguard loved ones from a range of online harms, whether that’s child sexual exploitation, fraud, or extremist influences seeking to radicalise vulnerable people.

• If you are concerned that your child may be at risk of radicalisation, help is available to make sure they get the support they need to move away from harmful influences.

• Teachers, healthcare practitioners, social workers, the police, charities, psychologists and religious leaders work together to safeguard those vulnerable to radicalisation through a safeguarding programme known as Prevent.

• Prevent protects people from being drawn into hateful extremism – regardless of the ideology. It works in a similar way to safeguarding processes designed to protect people from gangs, drug abuse, and physical and sexual exploitation.

• Receiving support through Prevent is voluntary, confidential and not any form of criminal sanction. It will not show up on any checks or negatively affect an individual’s future in any way.

• The type of support available is wide-ranging, and can include help with education or careers advice, dealing with mental or emotional health issues, or digital safety training for parents; it all depends on the individual’s needs.

• With this specialist help, vulnerable people across the country have moved away from supporting hateful extremism, enabling them to live more stable and fulfilling lives.

How can I access support and advice for a loved one being radicalised?

• As with other safeguarding functions, Prevent is still operating during this time and is here to support families in times of need.

• If you are worried that a loved one is being radicalised, you can call the police on 101 to get advice or share a concern so that they can get safeguarding support. Alternatively, you can contact your local authority safeguarding team for help.

• Contacting the authorities will not get the individual into trouble if a criminal act hasn’t been committed. The local authority or police will discuss your concerns, suggest how they can best help and give you access to relevant support and advice.

• If you think someone is in immediate danger, or if you see or hear something that may be terrorist-related, trust your instincts and call 999 or the confidential Anti-Terrorist Hotline on 0800 789 321.

I have seen concerning hateful content online that could cause harm. What should I do?

• Prevent takes robust action to tackle radicalisation online and to counter the ideology promoted by extremists. This includes removing terrorist-related material and action to suspend the accounts of those fuelling these views.

• Any member of the public can report terrorist content they find online through the GOV.UK referral tool. The Action Counters Terrorism campaign provides more information on this.