Five Steps to Keeping Your Child Safe Online

Step 1 - Talk To Your Child

• If you are unsure just how all this technology works, get your child to show you.

• Talk to them about what they do online, why they find it so exciting and what they use it for. This is a great time to explore online with your child. 

Step 2 - Start By Being Safe

• Talk to your child about the importance of being responsible and safe online. 

• Take a look at the history button and links on your web browser. Talk to your children about what they see and do. 

• Remember this is about parenting, not about knowing the ins and outs of various technologies. 

• Consider filtering the content available on your child's internet enabled devices

Step 3 - Set The Ground Rules

Make sure your family has some clear ground rules when using the internet. Set boundaries and time limits and encourage good behaviour online – for example: 

• No cyberbullying

• No sharing of personal information

• No arranging to meet strangers. 

Step 4 - Guard Private Information

Keep your family information private. Think before you share personal information online and explain why it’s important to be cautious. Remember that once something goes public, it can be very difficult to undo. 

Step 5 - Report Abuse

You need to be ready to act if your child feels uncomfortable with anything they experience online. Let them know they can tell you, or another trusted adult, if they are having a problem.

Ensure they know:

• How to use the 'report abuse' button on the sites they visit

• How to block Unwanted Messages

• What to do if they discover a site that makes them feel uncomfortable

• You can report abuse via the Think You Know Website

 

      Parent/Carer guide for Snapchat - click here

 

Useful links to report Abuse

The report website click here

Facebook	Report
Youtube	Report
Twitter	Report
XBox 360	Report
Playstation	Report
Tumblr	Report
Skype	Report

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Useful Resources: 

Instagram Allows Users to 'Hide' Likes

https://www.saferinternet.org.uk/blog/instagram-allows-users-%E2%80%98hide%E2%80%99-likes

Discord: A Guide for Parents

https://www.net-aware.org.uk/networks/discord/

Information for Parents on Internet Safety

http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20121015000000/http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Parents/Yourchildshealthandsafety/Internetsafety/index.htm

Know It All for Parents 

http://www.childnet-int.org/KIA/parents/ 

YouTube Parental Restrictions | e-Safety Adviser (esafety-adviser.com)

Parental advice on filtering

http://www.saferinternet.org.uk/advice-and-resources/parents-and-carers/parental-controls

Education against Hate - extremist and radicalisation

http://www.educateagainsthate.com/

Your Child's Health and Safety 

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/parents/yourchildshealthandsafety/index.htm 

Advice and help on Cyberbullying aimed at parents and students

http://www.cybersmile.org/advice-help

Advice for parents from Ceops - the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre 

https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents/Secondary/

Digital wellbeing guides for parents/carers from UK Safer Internet Centre

https://www.saferinternet.org.uk/blog/digital-wellbeing-%E2%80%93-guidance-parents

Thinkuknow - resources from the national online safety education programme from CEOP, the online child protection command of the National Crime Agency

• Thinkuknow website

• Thinkuknow Parents Helpsheets

• Parent Info

      Childline -  resources to feel a little calmer in a busy world:   https://www.childline.org.uk/toolbox/calm-zone/

Childine and Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) have created a new reporting tool ‘Report Remove’ so that young people can report nude images that have been shared online and ask for them to be removed. Importantly, a young person can even report an image/video that hasn't been uploaded and shared. The IWF will assign a 'hash' to prevent the image being uploaded by anyone.

'Report Remove' - Remove a nude image shared online | Childline

 

Parent Protect Resources

The Lucy Faithfull Foundation has produced some fantastic, bitesize, information clips and resources for parents around protecting children and young people from harmful sexual behaviour both online and offline. Child sexual abuse is a major public health problem affecting more than a million children under the age of 16 in the UK. All available evidence indicates that the risk to children has grown during the Covid-19 pandemic. Parents can learn from short films telling them what they need to know about child sexual abuse and how to prevent it, including spotting the signs and online safety. https://www.parentsprotect.co.uk/