1. E-Safety – Staying Safe On-line
Practical Tips for Parents
Ralph Plummer: Assistant Head Teacher Data, IT & Business
Nick Norgrove: Assistant Head Teacher, Safeguarding Lead
Abbeyfield School

3. Building a child’s digital resilience will keep them safer than blocking or filtering
The best way of ensuring that children stay safe and make the right decisions online is through confident parenting.
Allowing your child to self-regulate by encouraging their online interests, discussing boundaries and being available for support if they need it is far more effective than content blocking tools.

4. Don’t limit the talk you have with your child to ‘the online safety conversation’
Discuss the adventures your children have online, take an active interest, find out what they’re good at and like doing and make sure that it’s an on-going discussion and that safety forms just part of this.

5. Balance taking an interest in your child’s online activities with giving them the space to be independent
In the real world, you can’t always be there to help your children cross the road without coming to harm – they internalise the road safety messages you teach them and then they learn to navigate journeys safely and independently. The same rules apply in an online environment.

6. Don’t be afraid to set boundaries
Giving your child the freedom to explore online doesn’t mean being a completely hands-off parent.
Set expectations of how they should behave towards others online – their friends and people they don’t know. Discuss rules about sharing photos and images of themselves and others: Can they bring phones and tablets to the table at meal times? Can they have them in their bedrooms?

7. Concentrate on how children use digital media rather than for how long
There’s no ‘one size fits all’ as far as screen time goes
Does the child have a healthy balance of offline activities that they do regularly?
Setting a good example. Parents can help their children by not being intimidated by new technologies, as well as modelling constructive and balanced digital habits themselves.’

9. E-Safety - How to be safe online
Where can I get further information?
(CEOP)

10. The CEOP cyber café is a great way to explore what some of the dangers might be and how to keep safe online. Its interactive and very easy to use. Something you could do in partnership with your children.

11. E-Safety - How to be safe online
How can you support the school?
Take away internet enabled devices at bedtime
Limit screen time in the evening
Avoid allowing your child to use internet enabled devices in isolation e.g. bedrooms
Password protect the internet / your computer so it is only used when you are around or have allowed it
Ensure you have turned on parental controls within the set-up of your internet
Ensure your children know that they can turn to you if they see something they shouldn’t or someone is trying to contact them that they don’t know
Find out what sites the school is using to support your child's learning and visit these together – ask you child to talk you through what they can do on these sites
Talk to your children about the dangers of using open chatrooms, social media platforms and the need to keep personal information secure
Explain why legal age restrictions on social media platforms (Face book: 14, Instagram: 13) are in place and enforce them
Encourage students to avoid using messaging services (instant messenger type functionalities with other devices e.g. games consoles, free online games) Ensure your child understands the consequences of cyber bullying for both victim and perpetrator