Children are growing up in a world with a bigger range of online activities than ever before and it is sometimes very hard for both children and adults to know how to stay safe.Our Designated Safeguarding leads ,Mrs Riley and Miss Farley can speak with you and offer support should you have any concerns about your child/children.Plese red the infirmtion below which offers lots of advice and support for parents and carers.
Parents/Online Safety Information
Most parents will want to reduce the risks to their children, and remembering to set parental controls can reduce the risks to children, and reduce the risk to parents when children accidentally spend online money! The internet matters website explains this quite well. Online safety is not just about protecting children from some of the dangers of the internet – it is also about helping them manage their use of technology and most of the parental controls allow adults to set a maximum time for the use of a device or app. Internet Matters is a site paid for by many British companies. It has a lot of good advice on adding parental controls as well as on most aspects of online safety. Parental controls will only help keep children safe. The best safety feature that a child has is their parent or carer. Take the time to talk to your child about the apps and games they are using and don’t be afraid to say no sometimes!
The range of online apps changes on a regular basis and the NSPCC have a site called Net Aware. This provides unbiased up-to-date information on current apps and sites along with advice to parents about dealing with issues. The NSPCC have teamed up with O2 to provide advice to parents and have a free helpline on 0808 800 5002. They will also give support in any O2 shop – you do not have to be an O2 customer. ThinkUKnow is the website aimed at children and their parents from the National Crime Agency. It has lots of useful suggestions and advice on how to report issues. It also has lots of games and activities including Jessie and Friends for the younger children and Band Runner for the older ones.
For the youngest children being tricked into sharing pictures can be an issue. LGfL have produced a lovely free video which has some great advice and a very catchy song!
Many children will at times suffer from online bullying. It is really important that they have someone they can talk to and know that it is not acceptable. Most apps and sites will have systems inn place that allow bullying to be reported. Your child’s school may be able to help.
Children can call Childline on 0800 1111 for advice on anything that is worrying them.
Finally since 2015 is has been a criminal offence for an adult to send a message with sexual content to a child (This is Section 67 of the Serious Crime Act 2015). If you are concerned that this might have happened please contact The Police without further using the device. This will help ensure that evidence can be preserved. The Police can be contacted by phone or from the ThinkUKnow website
Latest E-Safety News:
Think Before You Scare.!
LGfL produced a useful blog for DSL’s at https://safeblog.lgfl.net/2018/11/parents-scare-or-prepare/ Before children use a new app, parents should:
Listen
Take an active interest in your child’s online life and talk with them about how they use technology.
Ask your child why they want to use the app? How did they hear about it?
Discuss with them how they will keep themselves safe and make sure they know:
· How to block and report other users and content
· To speak to a trusted adult if they see anything or something happens online that makes them feel worried, upset or uncomfortable.
· About websites such as ChildLine and CEOP www.childline.org.uk and www.thinkuknow.co.uk
Functionality
Make sure that you understand how the app works so you can decide if you are happy for your child to use it. You may even wish to set up an account yourself first.
Consider:
· Does it allow video chat or the sharing of images?
· Does it allow user to communicate with ‘random’ strangers?
· Does it allow anonymous chat?
· Does it allow in-app purchases?
· Can you restrict access to the content that your child shares?
· How will your child’s personal data be used by the app?
Reviews
What do other people (i.e. other parents and carers) have to say about the app?
Ask your friends and family members or take a look online. You may be able to find reviews via search engines or using tools such as www.net-aware.org.uk and www.commonsensemedia.org
Age Restrictions
You can usually find age restrictions within the apps terms and conditions. This is not the same as the app/google store rating.
The age limit for many popular social networking sites is thirteen. This is due to American Legislation called COPPA. The age limit is not based on suitability of content and instead applies to any website, app or online service which collects, stores or uses children’s personal information. Some apps will have age limits of 18+ as they are exclusively designed for use by adults.
If children use apps that are aimed at an older age group then this may leave them vulnerable to being exposed to unsuitable content (including advertising), as well as being contacted by strangers.
Safety
Many popular apps will have ‘help’ and ‘safety’ sections, either within the app itself or via its website. Some apps will even have content specifically designed for parents and carers. www.saferinternet.org.uk has some useful parent guides which highlight safety tools on popular devices, and signpost to report mechanisms.
Does the app have any privacy settings? If so then help your child to apply them appropriately – for example is it possible to set the app so that only trusted friends can see information they post?
Explore the block and report features. Can your child block or report concerning users or inappropriate behaviour?
If the app doesn’t have safety or help sections or doesn’t provide the ability to report and block then you may wish to consider if it is safe for your child to use.
Boundaries
Talk to your child about safe and appropriate online behaviour.
Consider setting up a family agreement regarding how their internet use will be supervised and how long they can spend online. Resources to help can be found at www.childnet.com andwww.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/keeping-children-safe/share-aware/
Apply appropriate parental controls to all devices: www.saferinternet.org.uk andwww.internetmatters.org
Discuss your expectations about the types of content and information they should share online, rules relating to adding friends and meeting people in real life.
Do they understand:
· That content posted online should never be considered to be private and may be copied and shared?
· That they should behave online the same as they would in “the real world” and be kind?
· How to be secure online such as by using safe and strong passwords. You can visitwww.getsafeonline.org.uk for more advice
Momo
Here is a useful guide to everything you need to know. MOMO-Online-Safety-Guide-for-Parents-FEB-2019
Seven Conversations
Seven possible conversations to have with your child around E-safety. A really useful resource. 7-Conversation-Topics
Online Safety – Gaming Resources for Parents and Carers
The following blog provides useful information and an printable booklet that might be useful if you’re not sure about THAT game….. http://www.childnet.com/blog/gaming-resources-for-parents-and-careers
· Fake Musical.ly apps on the app store that charge for download or offer followers.
Safer Internet Day
Durham Education Development Service has produced a PowerPoint presentation for Parents about keeping children safe online.
It’s a really interesting presentation and includes a short video with a parent whose child was subjected to online grooming.
To access the video, then please click here.
Instagram and Twitter
We would like to remind parents about some online safety issues. Both Instagram and Twitter have a minimum age policy of 13. Whilst many parents choose to allow younger children to use these services we cannot recommend this. To keep their children safe on social media parents should ensure that the correct privacy settings are enabled, and that appropriate adult supervision is provided. Further information is available at the NSPCC site Net Aware http://www.net-aware.org.uk/
In addition, if you would like a free copy of the Vodafone Digital Parenting Guide then please click below: http://www.theparentzone.co.uk/ One in five young people has suffered cyberbullying
Nearly half of teenagers surveyed in new study stated cyberbullying is bigger problem than drug abuse Do You Really Know Who Your Children Are Talking to Online?
A message from Claire Lilley, Head of Online Safety at NSPCC to all parents about keeping your child safe.
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