E-SAFETY
At St Helen’s we promote an understanding of e-safety for children, staff, governors, parents and carers with the aim that our pupils know what it means to use the online world safety and effectively.
Our approach to online safety is based on addressing the following 4 categories of risk as identified in Keeping Children Safe in Education 2023:
Content – being exposed to illegal, inappropriate or harmful content, such as pornography, fake news, racism, misogyny, self-harm, suicide, antisemitism, radicalisation and extremism
Contact – being subjected to harmful online interaction with other users, such as pressure from another child(ren), commercial advertising and adults posing as children or young adults with the intention to groom or exploit them for sexual, criminal, financial or other purposes
Conduct – personal online behaviour that increases the likelihood of, or causes harm, such as making, sending and receiving explicit images (e.g. consensual and non-consensual sharing of nudes and semi-nudes and/or pornography), sharing other explicit images and online bullying; and
Commerce – risks such as online gambling, inappropriate advertising, phishing and/or financial scams.
What is online safety?
This is is the safe use of the internet for gaming and communication. It included devices such as laptops, tablets, smartphones and games consoles. It is important that children and young people understand the benefits, risks and responsibilities of using and sharing information online.
Children are taught about online safety in their RSHE & computing lessons. In addition, we run additional assemblies and lessons to help children remain safe when required.
Our children talking about online safety:
Worried about what you or your child has seen on line?
Report to CEOP a serious E-safety incident 
Find out more about harmful content and how to report it (for children)
Using the Internet safely at home
While many Internet Service Providers (ISPs) offer filtering systems to help you safeguard your child at home, it remains surprisingly easy for children to access inappropriate material including unsuitable texts, pictures and movies. Parents are advised to set the security levels within Internet browsers with this in mind. Locating the computer or tablet in a family area, not a bedroom, will enable you to supervise children as they use the Internet.
Simple rules for keeping your child safe
To keep your child safe they should:
- set screen time limits and switch off times
- ask permission before using the Internet, tell you what they are doing
- only use devices in family space, not in bedrooms
- only use websites and games you have chosen together or a child friendly search engine.
- only email and message people they know
- limit use Internet chat rooms (on games consoles or devices)
- do not use their real name when using games on the Internet (create a nick name)
- never give out a home address, phone or mobile number
- never tell someone where they go to school
- never arrange to meet someone they have ‘met’ on the Internet
- only use a webcam with people they know
- ask them to tell you immediately if they see anything they are unhappy with.
Using these rules
Go through the rules with your child. It is also a good idea to regularly check the Internet sites your child is visiting e.g. by clicking on History and Favourites. .
Breck Foundation
Ofsted have produced a useful 'Online Safety Webinar' for parents and schools. The webinar focuses on the work of the Breck Foundation. This foundation is a self-funding charity, raising awareness of playing safe whilst using the internet. It was established following the death of a young boy called Breck who was groomed online.
The webinar lasts for around 1 hour. For parents who are short on time we would recommend that the first 23 minutes are watched, after that Ofsed focus on what schools and inspectors can do to keep children safe.
Gaming & social media
Things you can do to keep your child safe online:
- check your parental controls on your PC to stop then accessing inappropriate material;
- accessing games on a console or tablet? Here's how to set parental controls: Ask About Games
- have a conversation, discuss sites and apps together, talk about any concerns they may have;
- talk about personal information and what not to share online;
- is your child accessing social networks? Most of these have an age limit of 13+, check the content and age limits of what they are accessing here: NetAware, have a look at this useful information from childnet on talking to your child about social media
- Is your child playing computer games, check the age limit here: Netaware
Other resources
As well as the Breck Foundation website, the NSPCC website provides further resources and links on how to keep your child safe online. Live My Digital, is an educational site aimed at families. The site has links to a video series which covers the following online safety themes:
- Cyberbullying
- The digital footprint
- Identity and self-esteem
- Relationships and grooming
- Security and privacy
- Sexting (sharing semi-nude and nude images)
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Childnet International, parent and Carers ToolkitPractical tips and advice on different aspects of keeping your child safe online
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Safe Search EngineChild Friendly and Safe Search Engine
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Promote good use of devices with your child from a platform for good.orgClick here when your child gets a new gadget. One of these cards might help establish good and safe use.
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How to set up parental controls at homeClick here for a link to the Safer Internet centre's guide to setting up parental controls at home.
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Digital Parenting tipsClick here for digital parenting tips from vodafone by age groups
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Think You KnowClick on the link for the Think You Know website
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CEOPclick on the link to the CEOP site
Letters and E Safety updates
Monitoring and filtering at school
To help keep your children safe at school, the school has a secure filter and monitoring process. These are all in line with the new statuory guidance.
Our school internet is provided by School's internet, who provide a filter called Netsweeper. Netsweeper provide a regular report, which is sent to the school's safeguaring team and flags up any issues. This also ensures, that pupils and staff cannot access or be exposed to inaprporiate content.
The school uses Censo as its monitoring service, this tracks school activity and will alert the school if pupils/ staff are accessing or trying to access inappropriate content. Censo will immediately alert the DSL (Designated Safguarding Lead), if it monitors any inapropriate behaviour or content.
The school conducts a regular check with SWGL (South West Grid for Learning) to ensure our filters and systems are safe and secure for the whole school.
Interm IT , update and manage our computer systems and hold an annual review with a member of the safegaurding team.
Mr Denton (Deputy Head and Deputy Safeguarding Lead) is in charge of monitoring and filtering. In addition, to monitoring the above items, Mr Denton will provide updates to governors and inform them if there has been an issue. This will normally take place at full governing body meeting, unless there has been a serious incident.
Mrs Monighan is the nominated governor for filtering and monitoring.
