The Internet is a fantastic learning resource. It provides a wealth of information that can support students on their learning journey. It offers a range of collaborative tools such as wikis, blogs and forums where they can share and discuss. To many students using the Internet is second nature. For some parents the Internet can be a baffling and confusing place and this confusion, backed up by press reports, can make the Internet seem a dangerous place.

We hope that these links will help to provide some guidance and support on how to support your child's use of the Internet in such a way that they are kept safe but their learning is not hindered.

In school we take Internet safety very seriously. Internet safety is covered as part of Futures and ICT lessons. We also run training for parents during the school year.

As well as this, our Internet is filtered by Smoothwall and we monitor Internet activity. All emails are logged.

Facebook Update

Facebook and the CEOP Centre have joined forces to make young people safer online by launching the new ‘ClickCEOP’ application.

Through this partnership all young users of Facebook – and their parents – are invited to add the new ClickCEOP ‘app’ to their profile. Through this app, they will be able to access advice, help and support from the CEOP Centre. 

By adding and using the app young people will be able to report instances of suspected grooming or inappropriate sexual behaviour directly from their profile to specially trained investigators.

Once added to their profiles, young users will receive regular messages from CEOP and its partner organisations who operate ‘behind the button’ to make children safer. CEOP’s new Facebook page (www.facebook.com/ClickCEOP) will also contain polls, news alerts and status updates. The page will look at topics that teenagers care about, such as celebrities, music and exams and will link these subjects to questions about online safety.

Users can either add or bookmark the ‘app’ so it appears on their profile, as not only a constant source of help and reassurance for them but also as a strong visual signal to their friends, family and others that they are in control online.

Useful links

Childnet International	This website covers a wide range of issues from the Internet to mobile phones.
SWGfL	An Internet provider for the schools providing a wide range of services.
CEOP	The Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre is part of UK police and is dedicated to protecting children from sexual abuse wherever they may be.
Who is hosting this?	This page provides some excellent information on keeping safe online.

The information provided to students is based around the following SMART rules. You may wish to discuss these with your child.

These SMART Rules are taken from www.kidsmart.org.uk

It's well worth spending a little time browsing their website and looking at the issues surrounding the Internet.