What is online safety?

 Online safety is the safe use of information systems and electronic communications including the internet, mobile phones and games consoles. It is important that pupils understand the benefits, risks and responsibilities of using information technology.

• Online safety also incorporates the following:
• Safeguarding children and young people in the digital world.
• Learning to understand and use new technologies in a positive, safe and ethical way.
• Trying not to be restrictive but teaching young people about the risks as well as the benefits so we can feel confident online.
• Supporting pupils to develop safer online behaviours both in and out of school.

Our Approach at Horsenden

• At Horsenden Primary School, we are committed to helping pupils:
• Use technology in a positive, safe, and ethical way.
• Recognise both the opportunities and risks of the digital world
• Develop safe and responsible online habits at school and at home.
• Accept our responsibility in helping children to develop both safe and responsible behaviours and online habits whenever they use these technologies both at home and at school.

We encourage pupils to use trusted online resources to support their learning. Internet access in school is protected by secure systems and filters, and our policies are reviewed regularly to reflect technological changes and updates issued by the government.

How we Keep Pupils Safe in School

Internet access in school is protected by secure systems and filters, and our practices and policies reviewed regularly to respond to and reflect changes and updates in an ever-changing environment.

We have developed the following safeguards to ensure the safety of our children when using the internet:

• No close-up pictures of individual children will be released or published unless permission has been granted by parents or guardians.
• Only authorised members of the school community are allowed to use school computers, devices and digital technologies, accessed by confidential passwords.
• Passwords are kept confidential by each user.
• Pupils are empowered to keep themselves safe and encouraged not to share personal details on the web or when in dialogue with other internet users.
• Information and personal details of other members of the school community are kept confidential and shared only with appropriate authorities in accordance with data protection policies.
• Pupils only use agreed search engines and online resources under the supervision of staff or responsible adults.
• The use of school computers and digital technologies with filters for additional protection is reserved for school work and appropriate applications.
• The school will monitor communication on school systems and secure sites.
• Pupils and adults are expected to take care when sending and receiving messages, only opening a message or attachment if they know the person who sent it.
• Our school community ensures concerns are reported immediately to a member of staff or responsible adult without individually responding to inappropriate content.

Keeping Your Child Safe Online at Home

Whilst 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.

To keep your child safe, they should:

• Ask permission before using the Internet
• Only use websites you have chosen together or a child friendly search engine.
• Only email people they know (why not consider setting up an address book?)
• Ask permission before opening an email sent by someone they don’t know
• Do not use Internet chat rooms
• 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.

Go through the rules with your child and put them up on display where the family can see them. It is also a good idea to do regular checks on the websites your child is accessing. You can do this by clicking on the 'Bookmarks or Favourites' and 'History' tabs of your internet browser. Continue to reassure your child that you want to keep them safe rather than take Internet access away from them.

Talking to your child about online safety

We regularly use our PSHE and ICT lessons to remind your children about the importance of staying safe online. You can use some of the online resources below to continue the conversation. Just click on the logo you want to look at to open the website in another browser. 

Parent Fact Sheets & Guides