E-Safety @MWS

Online safety is an ever-increasing topic. At Mary Webb School we recognise that it is an important part of life for students, so we take the approach of educating students in how to use the technology safely and enjoy it. We take a view that usage should be appropriate and sensible and whilst it’s great in rural areas like ours there also should be limits to usage.

We strongly recommend a digital sunset and there’s a link below with more information on timings.

It’s important for parents and carers as well as students to stay up to date in the ever-changing world of social media. This part of our website will provide you with helpful links and information on topics around online safety. There is also a feed from Parent Info, a joint venture between CEOP and parent Zone. Please feel free to contact school if you have any concerns for your child’s online safety.

Are you worried about online sexual abuse or harmful online communication?

Report to CEOP’s Child Protection Advisors

Parent Info

Parent Info is a collaboration between Parent Zone and NCA-CEOP, providing support and guidance for parents from leading experts and organisations.

Parent Zone website

Supporting Young People Online

Information and advice for parents and carers

The internet is an amazing resource which enables children and young people to connect, communicate and be creative in a number of different ways, on a range of devices. However, the internet is always changing, and being able to keep up to date with your children’s use of technology can be a challenge. You may sometimes feel that your child has better technical skills than you do, however children and young people still need advice and protection when it comes to managing their lives online. Issues that your child may encounter on the internet will vary depending on their age and online activities. We have grouped potential online risks into these four categories:

Conduct

Children need to be aware of the impact that their online activity can have on both themselves and other people and the digital footprint that they create on the internet.

It’s easy to feel anonymous online and it’s important that children are aware of who is able to view and potentially share the information they may have posted.

While using the internet, it’s important to keep personal information safe and not to share it with strangers.

Encourage your child to be respectful and responsible when communicating with others online and to consider how what they share may reflect on them.

Discuss with your child the importance of reporting inappropriate conversations, messages, images and behaviours and how this can be done.

Content

Some online content is not suitable for children and may be hurtful or harmful.

This is true for content accessed and viewed via social networks, online games, blogs and websites. It’s important for children to consider the reliability of online material and be aware that it might not be true or written with a bias.

Children may need your help as they begin to assess content in this way.

There can be legal consequences for using or downloading copyrighted content without seeking the author’s permission.

Contact

CEOP Centre

It’s important for chldren to realise that new friends made online may not be who they say they are and once a friend is added to an online account, you may be sharing your personal information with them.

Regularly reviewing friends lists and removing unwanted contacts is a useful step. Privacy settings online may also allow you to customise the information that each friend is able to access.

If you have concerns that your child is, or has been the subject of inappropriate sexual contact approached by another person, it’s vital that you report it to the police via the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre.

If your child is bullied online, this can also be reported online and offline.

Reinforce with your child the importance of telling a trusted adult straight away if someone is bullying them or making them feel uncomfortable or if one of their friends is being bullied online.

Commercialism

Young people’s privacy and enjoyment online can sometimes be affected by advertising and marketing schemes, which can also mean inadvertently spending money online for example within apps.

Encourage your child to keep their personal information private
Learn how to block both pop up and spam Emails
Turn off in-app purchasing on devices where possible
Use a family Email address when filling in online forms

Make your child aware of scams that may seek to gain access to their accounts and advise them to be wary in following links or opening attachments in Emails that appear from organisations such as banks and service providers.

There are real advantages in maintaining an open dialogue with your child about their internet use.

Not sure where to begin? These conversation starter suggestions can help.

Ask about the websites and apps their like to visit and what they enjoy doing online

Ask about how they stay safe online.

What tips do they have for your and where did they learn them?

What is ok and not ok to share?

Think about how you use the internet.

What more could you do to use the internet together?

Are there activities that you could enjoy as a family?

Ask them if they know where to go for help, where to find safety advice, privacy settings and how to report or block the services they use.

Encourage them to hep someone. Maybe they can show you how to do something better online or may have a friend who would benefit from their help and support.