Safer Internet Day 2023

As parents and teachers we are constantly having to try and keep up with our children’s knowledge and use of a wide variety of social media platforms.

The benefits of the internet are wide and enrich all aspects of our lives. However, the risks are also very great. The NSPCC have just published a report that collected data from over 2000 young people from a range of backgrounds. It includes results such as:

• 23% of 8 – 11 year olds have a social media account and on average spend 13 hours and 24 minutes online each week. 74% of 12-15 year olds have social media and are line each week for 20 hours 48 minutes on average.
• 23.6% experienced an adult they don’t know trying to contact them over a site, app or game.
• 15.5% of young people aged 11-18 have received requests for a sexual image or message
• 19% of parents surveyed had seen sexual content on their children’s games, apps and sites and 15.7% had seen violence or hatred.

If you are worried about having the knowledge you need in order to keep your children safe on line please access the following resources:

• Netaware: https://www.net-aware.org.uk/ A site and mobile phone app giving superb information about 40 of the most popular social media sites that young people access. It tells you a bit about why they are attractive to young people and rates the risks of them.
• NSPCC helpline: https://www.nspcc.org.uk/services-and-resources/nspcc-helpline/ Available 24 hours a day for any adult needing advice to keep children safe online.
• Childline: https://www.childline.org.uk/ For children to get professional counselling, including for online abuse. Over 3,000 counselling sessions were about online bullying or online safety. Evidence shows that our youngsters prefer to access the online counselling sessions as they are so comfortable communicating in this way.
• Digital resilience: https://www.internetmatters.org/advice/digital-resilience-toolkit/ This site has lots of really helpful advice for parents of children of different ages. As does Parent Zone: https://parentzone.org.uk/home.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the school if you are worried about any aspect of your child’s online behaviour or safety so that we can work together to keep them safe.

Please click here to view the presentation from the recent E-Safety evening.
Also, please click here or on the picture to download a quick guide/checklist you can print out.

Please click here or on the picture to view a guide to E-Safety from CEOP – a link to CEOP can be found at the bottom of this page.

Keeping our children safe on line is a constant battle as they are surrounded by technology that is so sophisticated: smart phones, laptops, ipads, gaming consoles etc. Students are taught how to stay safe at school and the vast majority heed the advice.

SnapMaps

Recently SnapChat, used regularly by many children and young people, launched a new feature. SnapMaps allows users to see the location of their contacts. This feature allows others to accurately pinpoint where you are. There are three possible privacy settings:

• Ghost mode, where only you can see your position;
• My Friends mode, where any contact can see your location; and
• Select Friends mode, just those who you choose can see you

ChildNet have posted a thorough explanation of SnapMaps and how to ensure users stay safe. Well worth a read to share with anyone you know who uses the app.

Additional Info for All Adults!!

Are your settings locked down, have you followed all the advice given with regards to yourself?
This info (click here) was gathered about a teacher at Harlington in less than 30 mins – and has been published here with his permission (certain info removed).

Are you certain that your information is secure?