Article 34 - Children have the right to be free from abuse.

Article 36 - Children have the right to protection from any kind of exploitation.

Article 36: Every child has the right to be protected from doing things that could harm them.

“And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.” Luke 6:31

A guide to online safety 

Each week The National Online Safety releases guidance for parents and carers relating to various platforms that our children have access to. These guides are updated each week. Please visit www.nationalonlinesafety.com for further guides, hints and tips for adults. 

At Colsterworth Primary, we use National Online Safety to help keep our children safe online. National Online Safety is an independent online safety training provider. Their mission is to educate and empower trusted adults with the information they need to engage in meaningful dialogue between children and young people about the online world, their online activities and the ever-evolving risks that they are exposed to. They focus on both general online safety risks and platform specific risks to provide adults with easy to follow information which enables conversations between adults and children.

National Online Safety provides online CPD for parents/carers, staff and governors. Specific training relating to E-Safety is also available for Designated and Deputy Safeguarding leads and SENCOs. This training is provided annually.

National Online Safety also provides us with monthly webinars on trending topics to help keep staff up to date with online issues. We also receive weekly parental guides (Wake Up Wednesday) which we upload onto the school websites to help keep parents/carers up to date with online platforms, devices, apps and websites their child may be using.

National Online Safety responds to the current DfE statutory guidance around online safety including the revised ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ and links to ‘Education for a Connected World.’

It also provides with e-safety curriculum which is based on the ‘Education for a Connected’ framework. We have e-safety lessons every term that has an introductory video and some activities to complete with a teacher.

Our e-safety curriculum was based upon planning from National Online Safety, the ‘Education for a Connected World’ framework, teaching online safely in schools guidance and RSE statutory guidance.

Our progressive planning is from National Online Safety and they use the ‘Education for a Connected World’ framework. This framework describes the skills and understanding that children and young people should have the opportunity to develop at different ages and stages. It highlights what a child should know in terms of current online technology, its influence on behaviour and development, and what skills they need to be able to navigate it safely.

We also use the DfE guidance of ‘Teaching online safety in schools’. We know that the online world develops and changes at great speed and that it is difficult for schools and parents/carers to stay up to date with the latest devices, platforms, apps, trends and related threats. It is therefore important to focus on the underpinning knowledge and behaviours that can help pupils to navigate the online world safely and confidently regardless of the device, platform or app. 

Underpinning knowledge and behaviours include:

• How to evaluate what they see online
• How to recognise techniques used for persuasion
• Online behaviour (what is acceptable and unacceptable)
• How to identity risks
• How and when to seek support

These are covered through our curriculum and particularly during our managing online information, privacy and security and copyright and ownership strands.

We also have ensured that our e-safety curriculum is in line with new RSE statutory guidance.

Over the year we focus on each of the 8 different topics including:

• Self-image and identity (September)
• Health, well-being and lifestyle (October)
• Online Bullying (November)
• Online Relationships (January)
• Online Reputation (March)
• Managing Online Information (April/May)
• Privacy and Security (June)
• Copyright and ownership (July)

Each year we also take part in Safer Internet Day in February.

Pupils take an active role in their own and their peers’ learning of online safety. E-Safety Champions ‘team teach’ with the class teacher to help children learn about e-safety. They also take part and lead Collective Worships throughout the year and are heavily involved with Safer Internet Day and the school council.

There is one e-safety champion per class and they help to remind children that they can report any problems to an adult or on the website/game they are on.

Although we believe that empowering children with the underpinning knowledge and behaviours as a way to keep safe in the modern world, we know that children are the first people to discover apps, new games and problems. By having e-safety champions and regular meetings, staff get to hear about the latest trend/app to potentially be aware of and the pupils have a voice throughout school.

The opportunities that Computing gives our young people as they grow are both wide and fantastic. Even as little as ten or fifteen years ago the technology being used today would seem amazing. With this ever changing world comes ever changing challenges. It is important that all children are kept safe from things which could make them upset or put them at risk. At school we help the children to think about their use and behaviour of using iPads and computers. In discussions with them and using government advice we can minimise the risks.

The children at Colsterworth School know that they can talk to someone from their ‘safe hand’ if they have a worry or a concern about something online. We follow the rule of ‘zip it, flag it, block it’ in school, and encourage this at home too. 

Zip it: When you’re online, always keep your personal information private and think about what you say and do. Remember, people aren't always who they say they are.

Flag it: If you see anything that upsets you online or if someone asks to meet you, flag it up with someone you trust. If you are worried or
 unhappy about anything you see online, tell a parent/carer or an adult you trust and they can help you.

Block it: Think about blocking people who send you nasty messages and don’t open unknown links and attachments. Always delete emails from people you don’t know, and don’t open attachments from people you don’t know. They might be nasty or contain a virus that can stop your computer working.

Useful Links

These websites will give you and your child more information about staying safe online.

• www.thinkuknow.co.uk - The police's Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) website which has been designed and written specifically for children, young people, teachers, parents and carers.

• www.getsafeonline.org A beginner's guide to using the Internet safety, including a quiz and some video tutorials about how to ‘stay safe’ on-line.

• www.bullying.co.uk - One in five young people have experienced bullying by text message or via email. This web site gives advice for children and parents on bullying.