Child Safety Online

A practical new guide has been produced for providers of social media and interactive services to encourage businesses to think about “safety by design” to help make their platforms safer for children and young people under 18. It is based around six principles, namely: Content, Parental Controls, Dealing with Abuse/Misuse, Child Abuse or Illegal Contact, Privacy and Control, and Education and Awareness. Advice and industry examples of good practice are used to build on these principles.

Webinar: Child Protection

Webinar: Keeping children safe online

Led by the NSPCC's Child Protection in Sport Unit, this free webinar takes place
on 18 March 2016 at 11am. 

Register to attend

Update: School Inspection

The March edition of the School Inspection Update has been published, discussing inspection of school and academy sixth forms; there are various links within the document for further reading and statistics on topics such as online safety, teaching assistants, workload, performance tables and more. Handbooks for school inspectors can be found here.

The UK Safer Internet Centre have declared today to be 'Safer Internet Day' here in the UK,  to help promote the safe, responsible and positive use of digital technology for children and young people. To help support the public, their website provides useful e-safety tips and resources, such as education packs for schools, advice for parents, carers and teachers, a hotline in case of any serious issues that cause concern and there is also a separate helpline dedicated to young people. Find out more about their youth film here.

A supporting TV channel, SID TV, has also been launched today; in the first episode, the presenters talk about being kind online and what being a good friend online means.

Ofsted Policy on Safeguarding

Ofsted's policy "Safeguarding children and young people and young vulnerable adults" is now available online; it aims to provide guidance for all members of Ofsted's workforce, who may come across concerns in this area. The policy and procedure for responding to concerns, when these have been identified, are also included in the document.