Keeping Safe Online

Using the Internet At Home

As a parent you'll know how important the internet is to children - they use it to learn, play, socialise and express themselves. It's a highly creative place of amazing opportunities.

However, the technology children use every day can seem a bit daunting and you might worry about the risks your child can face online - such as bullying, contact from strangers or the possibility of them seeing illegal or inappropriate content.

To best help support your child, we ask that parents engage with their children regarding their use of the internet while at home.

Here are some conversation starter ideas from www.childnet.com

Ask your children to tell you about the sites they like to visit and what they enjoy doing online.
Ask them about how they stay safe online. What tips do they have for you, and where did they learn them? What is OK and not OK to share?
Ask them if they know where to go for help, where to find the safety advice, privacy settings and how to report or block on the services they use.
Encourage them to help. Perhaps they can show you how to do something better online or they might have a friend who would benefit from their help and support.
Think about how you use the internet as a family. What could you do to get more out of the internet together and further enjoy your lives online?

You can download the Department for Education advice for parents on cyberbullying here

You can access the Department for Education online parents support website, called Parent Information here

Internet Safety Resources for Parents

To try to support parents there are a few sites detailed below, which offer excellent guidance to help keep your child safe whilst online. The weblinks contain information on different types of social media and how to help keep children safe. Childnet produce a detailed leaflet for parents which you can download here as well as being a great website resource for parents and children on online safety. You can find the weblink here

There is a great new online safety tool designed for parents launched by the Department for Education called Parent Info. It's has advice on everything from keeping children safe from online trolls to WhatsApp - a guide for parents.

ThinkUKnow has a great section for parents and covers topics such as gaming and talking to strangers. You can also search by topic or age range to find information that is relevant for your family. You can find the weblink here

Internet Matters is another great site to use - it has advice on cyberbullying, how to talk to your children about internet safety and quick guides to different types of social media such as Instagram and Snapchat. You can find the weblink here

Here are quick links to a range of Internet safety sites that you may find useful too...