E-Safety

Being online is an integral part of young people’s lives. Social media, online games, websites and apps help our children to connect with their peers and the wider world. The internet and online technology provides new opportunities for young people to learn and grow, but it can also expose them to new types of risk.

Our approach at Alsager school is to minimize this risk. E-safety or online safety forms a fundamental part of our schools’ safeguarding and child protection measures. The school has in place both the technology and processes to protect children while using the internet in school. Access to the internet is filtered, what they access or try to access is tracked and records are maintained of their computer use including e-mails being sent and received. Online safety advice is shared in lessons and formal lessons about how to stay safe online are part of our curriculum. Students are also taught what to do should a problem arise online so it can be dealt with appropriately.

Acceptable Use Agreement

All users of the schools ICT facilities and the internet are expected to sign an agreement regarding the acceptable use of these facilities. This can be viewed in our E safety policy https://www.alsagerschool.org/key-policies-statements/.

Keeping your child safe on-line

Do you ever feel that your children know more about online technologies than you do? You are not alone. Staying up to date with new technology can be overwhelming and knowing exactly how to ensure we can keep children safe online presents a real challenge.

You may wish to consider the following advice:

Stay in touch with what your children are doing by spending time with them whilst they are on-line.
If they have a mobile phone, please monitor it closely.
Make sure you know the services, apps and games your child accesses.
Better still, learn how to access them yourself-ask your child to explain how to do this so that you are familiar with and understand the potential benefits and risks.
Consider using filtering software in your home and on their phones and tablets.
Talk to your child and ensure they know what to do should they encounter problems. They should always tell you if something makes them feel uncomfortable online.

There is a wealth of advice and support available to help keep us all safe and up to date. Below are some links to useful websites as a starting point.

The National Crime Agency’s CEOP Education team aim to help protect children and young people from online child sexual abuse https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/ or https://www.ceop.police.uk/safety-centre/
https://www.virtual-college.co.uk/resources/free-courses/keep-them-safe Parents Against Child Sexual Exploitation (Pace) and Virtual College have team up to provide a free to short online line course for parents and carers.
https://saferinternet.org.uk/ Information about the current issues, how to get help and report harmful content online.
https://www.internetmatters.org/ is a site that supports the whole family to stay safe online and contains a huge amount of tips and advice including a comprehensive section on extremism and radicalization.
Support for parents and carers from the NSPCC https://www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/online-safety/
https://www.childnet.com/young-people/11-18-year-olds/ Guidance and handy tips to help young people navigate and enjoy the online world including this fact sheet signposting resources, other websites and what to do when reporting harmful content https://www.childnet.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Parents-and-Carers-Resource-Sheet.pdf
https://www.connectsafely.org/ is a site with a wide range of information focused on safety, privacy and security.
https://parentzone.org.uk/ is a site specifically for supporting parents and carers in an increasingly digital world.
https://www.askaboutgames.com/ Specific information about online gaming.
One-page parental guides from https://nationalonlinesafety.com/ a selection of which can be downloaded below: