Online Safety

Children are growing up in a world with a bigger range of online activities than ever before and it is sometimes very hard for both children and adults to know how to stay safe.

Most parents will want to reduce the risks to their children, and remembering to set parental controls can reduce the risks to children, and reduce the risk to parents when children accidentally spend online money! The Internet Matters website explains this quite well. Online safety is not just about protecting children from some of the dangers of the internet – it is also about helping them manage their use of technology and most of the parental controls allow adults to set a maximum time for the use of a device or app.

Many children will at times suffer from online bullying. It is really important that they have someone they can talk to and know that it is not acceptable. Most apps and sites will have systems in place that allow bullying to be reported.

Since 2015 is has been a criminal offence for an adult to send a message with sexual content to a child (Section 67 of the Serious Crime Act  2015). If you are concerned that this might have happened please contact the Police without further using the device. This will help ensure that evidence can be preserved. The Police can be contacted by phone or from the ThinkUKnow website.

Useful Links

The links below will provide you with useful information regarding parental controls, up to date information on apps and sites along with advice to parents about dealing with issues.

Internet Matters
For information regarding parental controls and up-to-date information on how to keep safe.

Social Media Facts and Advice
For expert tips to support children.

NSPCC & O2
These companies have teamed up with O2 to provide advice to parents and have a free helpline on 0808 800 5002.

ThinkUKnow
A website aimed at children and their parents from the National Crime Agency.

Childline
Children can call Childline on 08001111 for advice on anything that is worrying them.