E-Safety

Children have the right to enjoy childhood online, to access safe online spaces, and to benefit from all the opportunities that a connected world can bring to them, appropriate to their age and stage. As they grow older, it is crucial that they learn to balance the benefits offered by technology with a critical awareness of their own and other’s online behaviour and develop effective strategies for staying safe and making a positive contribution online.

Education for a Connected World, 2018

E-safety at Lantern Lane

The internet is an essential element in 21st century life and ICT knowledge, now seen as an important life-skill, is vital to access life-long learning and employment. It is also important to recognise that the internet provides many benefits, not just to children, young people and vulnerable adults, but also to the professional work of staff. E-safety covers the Internet but it also covers mobile phones and other electronic communications technologies.

We know that some adults and young people will use these technologies to harm children. The harm might range from sending hurtful or abusive texts and emails, to enticing children to engage in sexually harmful conversations or actions online, webcam filming, photography or face-to-face meetings. There is a ‘duty of care’ for any persons working with children and educating all members of the school community on the risks and responsibilities of E-safety falls under this duty. It is important that there is a balance between controlling access to the Internet and technology and allowing freedom to explore and use these tools to their full potential.

E-safety is a whole school issue and responsibility. While acknowledging the benefits, it is also important to recognise that risk to safety and well-being of users is ever- changing as technologies develop. Our curriculum reflects the many areas that e-safety covers and also combines with our RSHE teaching to ensure we equip our children with the knowledge they need to navigate the online world.

Our e-safety coverage:

We follow Childnet's SMART rules for staying safe online.

Information for Parents and Carers

Below are a selection of places to find information about supporting children with online behaviours.

Privacy settings on social media - a poster with information about how to change privacy settings on social media platforms

Places to support children

UK Safer Internet Centre to report and remove harmful online content

CEOP for advice on making a report about online abuse

Childline for free and confidential advice

Places to support parents/carers

Childnet offers a toolkit to support parents and carers of children of any age to start discussions about their online life, to set boundaries around online behaviour and technology use, and to find out where to get more help and support

Commonsensemedia provide independent reviews, age ratings, & other information about all types of media for children and their parents

Government advice about protecting children from specific online harms such as child sexual abuse, sexting, and cyberbullying

Government advice about security and privacy settings, blocking unsuitable content, and parental controls

Internet Matters provide age-specific online safety checklists, guides on how to set parental controls on a range of devices, and a host of practical tips to help children get the most out of their digital world

Let’s Talk About It provides advice for parents and carers to keep children safe from online radicalisation

Stopitnow resource from The Lucy Faithfull Foundation can be used by parents and carers who are concerned about someone’s behaviour, including children who may be displaying concerning sexual behaviour (not just about online)

Net-aware provides support for parents and carers from the NSPCC and O2, including a guide to social networks, apps and games

Parentzone provides help for parents and carers on how to keep their children safe online

Parent info from Parentzone and the National Crime Agency provides support and guidance for parents from leading experts and organisations

UK Safer Internet Centre provide tips, advice, guides and other resources to help keep children safe online