Our Online Safety leader is Mrs Wilkinson who is also our deputy safeguarding lead.
Technology is at the very centre of all our lives today - especially our children's. Learning how to use technology wisely is an essential skill for life and learning in the 21st century. However at a time when there is increased access to numerous different technology platforms, many children are at a greater risk of online grooming, cyber bullying and exposure to inappropriate or illegal content online. At St Barnabas we believe that both school and parents/carers need to work in partnership in order to safeguard children from harm online.
At St Barnabas we believe that promoting online safety plays a critical role in protecting our pupils online and as a result pupils are taught about how to stay safe and how to behave appropriately online. We have extensive security measures in place which keep children safe whilst using technology in school. We have Netsweeper filtering provided by ON247 and internet usage is monitored by our internet support company Dataspire, our Senior Leadership team and our Governors, to help safeguard our children from potential dangers or unsuitable materials.
Talk to your child about why it is important to stay safe online. Explain that whilst the internet is a fun, exciting and knowledge-rich tool, it is also a place where people may wish to bring them into dangerous activities or expose them to unpleasant material. It is important to be clear that you are not saying your child may never use the internet again, or that everything on it is harmful – it is about teaching them to have a greater awareness and to be able to manage and report any risks. Keep an open dialogue with your child – letting them know they can always talk to you about anything that has made them feel uncomfortable online is key to keeping them safe.
Only give your child access to devices, websites, apps, games and social media sites that are age appropriate. Access the PEGI guidance (https://pegi.info/page/pegi-age-ratings) on age ratings to inform your choices when buying games for your child, or deciding whether the games they are playing are appropriate, by following the age-ratings assigned to each game. Read each game’s advice for parents and play the game yourself to help you understand what it involves.
Common Sense Media Common offer a trusted library of independent age-based and educational ratings and reviews for movies, games, apps, TV shows, websites, books and music which can be found using the following link https://www.commonsensemedia.org/.
It has come to light that children from different year groups across school are talking about or playing a game on the playground called 'red light, green light'. For those of you who are not aware, this game is part of a series on Netflix called 'Squid Game'. Even though it sounds like a child's game, Squid Game is rated 15 and therefore is not appropriate for primary aged children to watch due to 'sexual and violence references, injury detail, crude humour, sex and suicide references plus sexual images and violent images'.
Squid Game has now become one of the latest videos on 'Tik Tok' for children aged 13 and over. TikTok is where users video themselves for a short period of time and upload their videos for people to like. Many TikTok videos can include explicit language.
We are also aware that versions of Squid Game are available on Roblox, Minecraft and Fortnite, so although children may not have watched the programme, they can still be exposed to the same graphic themes via these platforms.
This is a polite reminder for ALL parents that you have responsibility over what social media sites your children are accessing, and your role as responsible adults is to keep them safe online.
We want to alert you to this current trend so that you can be extra vigilant with your child's use of social media and activity online. We regularly teach the children in school how to keep safe online but you may also wish to talk to your child about how to keep safe online at home too. We will be speaking further to the children in KS2 about age restrictions and the dangers of viewing material that is not suitable.
Here are some helpful links for parents about Squid Game and how to change Netflix settings:
We really appreciate your support in safeguarding your children when accessing social media, apps, games and television programmes.
Communication
Discuss with your child rules for being online and draw them up together, including which websites, games, apps, social media sites etc., are acceptable. If certain materials are off-limits, try to explain why, for example, because of excessive violence or bad language. If your child uses online gaming, consider setting rules, such as only talking to people you know and having the conversations on speaker, rather than through headphones, so you can monitor it.
Information sharing
Talk to your child about what information should be kept private; for example, name(s), date of birth, address, contact details, school name etc., should never be given out to strangers online. Remind your child not to give out their passwords and ensure they change it occasionally. Teach them to unclick the ‘remember me’ option on public computers such as at school and the library.
Supervision and monitoring and parental controls
Ensure all devices used by your child are kept in a communal space, or a space where they can be supervised whilst using their devices. You can check what your child has been doing by looking at the history in your internet browser, Set parental controls which are designed to help parents/carers manage their child's online activities. However, do not rely on parental controls on devices over you offering support and advice to your child online, as they are not always 100% effective and some children know how to bypass them. The use of ‘SafeSearch’ is highly recommended for use with children. Most web search engines will have a ‘SafeSearch’ function, which will allow you to limit the content your child is exposed to whilst online. Look out for the ‘Settings’ button on your web browser homepage (often shaped like a small cog).
For further information on setting up parental control see the following link:
Make sure your child knows how to report or ‘block’ unsuitable content, messages or people online – show them how to block on the websites or games they frequently use and explain that they can always tell you, a teacher or another adult if they experience anything which makes them feel uncomfortable. If a parent/carers is worried about online sexual abuse or the way someone has been communicating with a child on line a report should be made to the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) team. CEOP is a command of the National Crime Agency and can investigate what is happening – with the assurance that the safety and wellbeing of children is paramount at all times.
To make a referral to CEOP see the following link:
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