Online safety of the entire school community is paramount.
E-safety is integrated into the ICT curriculum at all levels so that awareness of online safety becomes second nature to our children, leaving them confident, competent, but most of all safe, internet users.
Children at Garfield use the internet on a regular basis as part of their learning. Outside school children have access to a wide range of technology, including computers, laptops, tablets and smart phones.
Staff have been trained and are alert to the dangers children face online and to the warning signs of cyber bullying or grooming.
Ofsted places great importance on how schools address e-safety and it has consequently become part of their inspection criteria. Ofsted define e-safety as the school’s ability:
- To protect and educate pupils and staff in their use of technology
- To have appropriate mechanisms to intervene and support any incident where appropriate
They categorise three areas of risk:
- Content: being exposed to illegal, inappropriate or harmful material
- Contact: being subjected to harmful online interaction with other users
- Conduct: personal online behaviour that increases the likelihood of, or causes, harm.
A family agreement is a great way to start a conversation as a whole family about how the internet should be used safely and responsibly when online at home, at school or at a friend's house. To support parents in creating a family agreement Childnet International have put together some free advice and a helpful family agreement template for families to use as a starting point.
Please find below two documents to help you create your own family agreement
Please find below a copy of the presentation which was given to parents on 19th April 2017
How to help at home:
Be aware of your child’s internet use - Talk to your child about what they are doing online and, if possible, set up your computer in a shared area at home or encourage your child to use tablets and smart phones in shared areas, so that you can all share in the wonderful sites that are available online. Know your child’s passcodes and passwords, and set up parent controls of their internet access.
Social Media – Many app’s and games allow children to connect with each other, but allow children to connect with strangers too. All social media and messaging apps should be used cautiously and under your guidance. Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram, Tumblr and Snapchat have a minimum age limit , usually of 13, so our pupils should NOT be using them, as they do not offer the correct levels of protection.
Explore e-safety sites – There is a wealth of information about e-safety for parents and for children. These are some of the websites that we recommend you view and review regularly as e-safety information and resources are updated frequently.
Know IT All - lots of useful advice for keeping yourselves and your children safe on the Internet.
Think U Know - containing internet safety advice for those aged from 5 to 16, along with parents and teachers, this site is produced by CEOP (the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre).
Internet Safety Zone - Look in the 'Under 13s' section for useful safety advice and information.
Kidsmart - An award-winning internet safety programme for children.
Bullying UK - Information and advice about bullying for children, parents and schools.
Kidscape - An organisation which helps to prevent bullying and child abuse.
Childline - ChildLine is the free helpline for children and young people in the UK.
http://home.disney.com.au/activities/surfswellisland/ - games children can play to make them more internet savvy.
http://www.freefoto.com/index.jsp Freefoto allows children to find photos that are not copyrighted to use in projects – safer than a google image search especially if you search using the category buttons, but supervision is still needed.