Online Safety

With children spending more time online to do schoolwork and other activities, there could be an additional risk. This is why it is more important than ever that children, parents and carers know how to stay safe online.

It is important that parents and carers talk to their children about online safety, show an interest in what they are doing online and ask what they like and dislike about the apps and services they use. Discuss age appropriate ‘ground rules’ like how much time they spend online doing different things and what games and apps are appropriate to use. Also consider setting up and reviewing age-appropriate parental controls. Setting parental controls can be a quick and effective tool to help protect children online.

  • Thinkuknow provides advice from the National Crime Agency (NCA) on staying safe online
  • Parent info is a collaboration between Parentzone and the NCA providing support and guidance for parents from leading experts and organisations
  • Childnet offers a toolkit to support parents and carers of children of any age to start discussions about their online life, to set boundaries around online behaviour and technology use, and to find out where to get more help and support
  • Internet matters provides age-specific online safety checklists, guides on how to set parental controls on a range of devices, and a host of practical tips to help children get the most out of their digital world
  • London Grid for Learning has support for parents and carers to keep their children safe online, including tips to keep primary aged children safe online
  • Net-aware has support for parents and carers from the NSPCC, including a guide to social networks, apps and games
  • Let’s Talk About It has advice for parents and carers to keep children safe from online radicalization
  • UK Safer Internet Centre has tips, advice, guides and other resources to help keep children safe online, including parental controls offered by home internet providers and safety tools on social networks and other online services

Harmful or upsetting content

Get support by:

  • reporting harmful online content to the UK Safer Internet Centre
  • getting government advice and trusted resources from Educate Against Hate on safeguarding from radicalisation, building resilience to extremism, and promoting shared values

Bullying or abuse online

You can:

Online Safety Guides

Advice for parents and carers on setting boundaries around gaming:
Setting Boundaries Around Gaming

Advice for parents and carers about Whatsapp
Whatsapp 2023

Advice for parents and carers about Live Streaming
Live Streaming

Advice for parents and carers about supporting children to deal with upsetting content.
Upsetting Content

Safety tips for children using smartphones.
Smartphone Safety Tips

What children and young people need to know about free speech vs hate speech
Free Speech Vs Hate Speech 2

Supporting children with self-regulation.
Self Regulation

Supporting children who are experiencing bullying.
Bullying

Encouraging open conversations at home
10 Top Tips For Parents And Educators Encouraging Open Conversations At Home

Parents Guide to Lego Fortnite – How to stay safe and be aware of potential risks
Lego Fortnite

What parents need to know about online trolling
Online Trolling

What parents need to know about social media pressures: influencers
Social Pressures Linked To Social Media Influencers

Developing Digital Resilience
Internet Matters Guide Digital Resilience 6 10 Years Old

Anti-Bullying Week – Choose Respect
Choose Respect

What parents and carers need to know about in-game chat
In Game Chat (1)

What parents and carers need to know about Snapchat
Snapchat