Digital Safety For Parents

You may see the internet and technology making the news – for the wrong reasons…

At Yardley Primary School, we take digital safety extremely seriously.  We believe that it is the right of all children to feel safe and secure when using technology.  We know that the internet can sometimes be a tricky place to be, but at Yardley Primary School we teach our pupils to be resilient online – from Reception all the way through to Year 6!

We teach children to use the internet and other technologies safely, and we show them how to behave in an appropriate manner.  They know what to do if they feel uncomfortable with anything they see or hear either online or through other technology such as mobile phones.

It is really important that parents and carers work with us to ensure children stay safe in their use of technology.  When we talk about digital safety, we are not just talking about the internet.  We are talking about the use of computers, games consoles (such as Xbox), mobile phones, televisions, tablets (such as the iPad) and many other things.

Ask your child what they have learnt in Digital Safety this year – the more they talk about it at home and you are aware of it, the greater digital citizens they will be!

On this page you will find useful websites to support you with digital safety at home, downloads of useful leaflets and guides, and videos showing the dangers of the internet and how we can make it safer for children.

Struggling to afford access to digital technology?

The current cost of living crisis has put financial stress on many households across the UK.   Affordable access to digital technology (whether broadband and data, devices, or even the energy costs needed to go online) is becoming increasingly difficult for many.

Here’s where to find help.

Check out this useful article from our friends at Parent Zone, it tells you where you may be able to get help.  Click here to access the article.

Helping your child cope with media coverage of traumatic events

Seeing coverage of upsetting world events in the news, online or on social media can be distressing for children, especially in today’s 24-hour news cycle.  But there are things parents can do to help children make sense of them:

If you have a serious problem, you can click on one of the following buttons for advice or to report it:

You can anonymously and confidentially report:

Are you worried about your child and online sexual abuse or the way someone has been communicating with them online? Report it to CEOP.

If your child is under 18 and an explicit or nude image of them has been shared online, Childline can confidentially help them to get it removed.

This service is one step you can take to help remove online nude, partially nude, or explicit photos and videos taken of you.

Very useful websites

RECOMMENDED!  The one stop shop for information and advice for keeping children safe online.

Help your children get the most out of the internet.

Get Safe Online is the UK’s leading source of unbiased, factual and easy-to-understand information on online safety.

Advice and online guides about gaming and PEGI age ratings.

Information presented for parents and carers to find games suitable for children, teenagers and young adults.

Expert reviews, advice and age appropriate recommendations on games, apps, films and more.

Supporting children online

Supporting preschoolers online (0-5s)

Supporting young children (6 -10s) online

Supporting pre-teens (11 - 13s) online

Help with your internet at home

Internet Matters offer step-by-step instructions to set controls on major broadband providers and mobile networks.  Click here.

Digital Parenting Magazine 

Help your family stay safe online with Vodafone's Digital Parenting magazine.  This magazine provides parents and carers with the latest useful information and advice regarding online safety.  View the latest and previous issues below:

Help with technology, games, services and issues 

Our friends at National Online Safety have produced some great guides and resources for apps, websites, current issues and generally keeping safe online,  Check them out below:

Gambling

Gaming Disorder.pdf
Gaming Streamers & Influencers.pdf
Loot Boxes & Skin Betting.pdf
Loot Boxes & Skin Betting 2.pdf
Recognising the Signs.pdf
Sports Betting.pdf

Gaming

Age Ratings.pdf
Among Us.pdf
Apex Legends.pdf
Avakin Life.pdf
Call of Duty-Black Ops 4.pdf
Call of Duty-Black Ops Cold War.pdf
Call Of Duty-Modern Warfare.pdf
Call of Duty-Warzone.pdf
Counter-Strike Global Offensive.pdf
Cunch-Line Chronicles.pdf
Cyberpunk 2077.pdf
Discord.pdf
Esports.pdf
FIFA 20.pdf
FIFA 21.pdf
Fortnite Battle Royale.pdf
Fortnite Chapter 2.pdf
Fortnite Chapter 3.pdf
Games Consoles.pdf
Gaming Disorder.pdf
Gaming Streamers & Influencers.pdf
Google Stadia.pdf
Grand Theft Auto.pdf
Horror Games.pdf
League of Legends.pdf
Loot Boxes & Skin Betting.pdf
Loot Boxes & Skin Betting 2.pdf
Minecraft.pdf
Nintendo Switch.pdf
Oculus Quest.pdf
Overwatch.pdf
PlayStation 4.pdf
PlayStation 5.pdf
Pokemon Go.pdf
Policing vs Parenting-Get to Grips with Gaming.pdf
Rec Room.pdf
Roblox.pdf
Rocket League.pdf
Safer Apps and Games for Children.pdf
Screen Addiction.pdf
Steam.pdf
Twitch.pdf
Valorant.pdf
Violent Behaviour.pdf
Virtual Reality.pdf
Xbox One.pdf
Xbox Series X-S.pdf

Mental Health

10 Ways You Can Share Kindness Online.pdf
12 Ways to Champion Equality Online.pdf
14 Ways to be Kind Online.pdf
Age Ratings.pdf
Check In With Your Firends.pdf
Conversation Starters-Online Content.pdf
Fitness Trackers.pdf
How Not to Be a Screen Zombie.pdf
How to Be Kind Online.pdf
Loneliness Online.pdf
Maintain Good Mental Wellbeing During Isolation.pdf
Mental Wellbeing Through Nature Online and Offline.pdf
Online Bullying for Children.pdf
Replika.pdf
Sadfishing.pdf
Screen Addiction.pdf
Social Media & Mental Health.pdf
Social Media & Mental Health-Postive & Negative Impacts.pdf
Social Pressures-Appearance.pdf
Supporting Children to Deal with Upsetting Content.pdf
Supporting Children to Express Themselves Safely Online.pdf
Supporting Children's Mental Health.pdf
Violent Behaviour.pdf

Online Bullying

10 Ways You Can Share Kindness Online.pdf
14 Ways to be Kind Online.pdf
Chatroulette.pdf
Discord.pdf
Group Chats.pdf
How to Be Kind Online.pdf
Online Bullying for Children.pdf
Rec Room.pdf
Screengrabs.pdf
Tackle Online Hate Together.pdf
Trolling & Online Abuse.pdf

Online Identitiy

12 Ways to Champion Equality Online.pdf
Free Speech vs Hate Speech.pdf
Lifestyle Sites.pdf
Online Avatars.pdf
Online Challenges.pdf
Replika.pdf
Social Media Influencers.pdf
Social Pressures-Appearance.pdf
Social Pressures-Friends and Followers.pdf
Social Pressures-Likes.pdf
Supporting Children to Express Themselves Safely Online.pdf
Torrent Sites.pdf

Online Information

Age Inappropriate Content.pdf
Age Ratings for TV & Film.pdf
Conversation Starters-Online Content.pdf
Cryptocurrency.pdf
Cyber Crime.pdf
Deepfakes.pdf
Echo Chambers.pdf
Email Scams.pdf
Fake News.pdf
Group Chats.pdf
Home Internet Controls.pdf
NFTs.pdf
New Devices.pdf
Online Content.pdf
Online Hoaxes.pdf
Online Shopping.pdf
Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Sharing.pdf
Persuasive Design.pdf
Phishing.pdf
Phone Scams.pdf
Protecting Personal Data.pdf
Search Engines.pdf
Signal.pdf
Start a Conversation with your Child about Online Safety.pdf
Supporting Children to Deal with Upsetting Content.pdf
TextMe.pdf
Voice Activated Searching.pdf
WhatsApp.pdf

Online Platforms

Age Inappropriate Content.pdf
App Store.pdf
Chatroulette.pdf
Clubhouse.pdf
Cross-Platform Sharing of Inappropriate Content.pdf
Deep Web & The Dark Web.pdf
Discord.pdf
Disney Plus.pdf
eBay.pdf
FaceApp.pdf
Facebook.pdf
Facebook Messenger.pdf
Houseparty.pdf
Instagram.pdf
Kik.pdf
Likee.pdf
LiveMe.pdf
Managing What your Children Watch on TV.pdf
Metaverse.pdf
Microsoft Teams.pdf
Netflix.pdf
Netflix - Stream Safe.pdf
Omegle.pdf
OnlyFans.pdf
Rec Room.pdf
Reddit.pdf
Roblox.pdf
Safer Apps and Games for Children.pdf
Signal.pdf
Snapchat.pdf
Telegram.pdf
Tellonym.pdf
TextMe.pdf
TikTok.pdf
Tinder.pdf
Triller.pdf
Tumblr.pdf
Twitch.pdf
Twitter.pdf
WeChat.pdf
WhatsApp.pdf
Wink.pdf
YOLO.pdf
Yubo.pdf
YouTube.pdf
YouTube Kids.pdf
Zoom.pdf

Online Relationships

10 Ways You Can Share Kindness Online.pdf
A Digital World For Everyone (for children).pdf
Avakin Life.pdf
Catfishing.pdf
Friends & Followers.pdf
Group Chats.pdf
Inspiring Children To Build A Better Digital World (for adullts).pdf
Online Grooming.pdf
Rec Room.pdf
Roblox.pdf
Start a Conversation with your Child about Online Safety.pdf
Tech Related Communication.pdf
Tinder.pdf
Wink.pdf

Privacy

Age Ratings for TV & Film.pdf
Android Parental Controls.pdf
Android Parental Controls-Privacy.pdf
App Store.pdf
Apple Guided Access.pdf
Cyber Crime.pdf
Deep Web & The Dark Web.pdf
Email Scams.pdf
Emergency-Google phone.pdf
Emergency-iPhone.pdf
Emergency-Samsung phone.pdf
Hacking.pdf
Hidden Photo Apps.pdf
iPhone Parental Controls.pdf
iPhone Parental Controls-Privacy.pdf
Location Tracking.pdf
Online Grooming.pdf
Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Sharing.pdf
Phishing.pdf
Phone Scams.pdf
Protecting Personal Data.pdf
Remote Access & Remote Data Deletion.pdf
Sexting.pdf
Signal.pdf
TextMe.pdf
Virtual Private Networks (VPNs).pdf
Webcams.pdf
WhatsApp.pdf

Social Media

Clubhouse.pdf
Cross-Platform Sharing of Inappropriate Content.pdf
Discord.pdf
FaceApp.pdf
Facebook.pdf
Facebook Messenger.pdf
Friends & Followers.pdf
Group Chats.pdf
Hoop.pdf
Houseparty.pdf
Instagram.pdf
Kik.pdf
Likee.pdf
LiveMe.pdf
Music Streaming Apps & Sites.pdf
Omegle.pdf
Online Bullying.pdf
Online Challenges.pdf
Online Content.pdf
Persuasive Design.pdf
Reddit.pdf
Sadfishing.pdf
Signal.pdf
Snapchat.pdf
Social Bots.pdf
Social Media & Mental Health.pdf
Social Media & Mental Health-Postive & Negative Impacts.pdf
Social Media Influencers.pdf
Social Media Scams.pdf
Social Pressures-Friends and Followers.pdf
Social Pressures-Likes.pdf
Spotting Ads On Social Media.pdf
Squid Game.pdf
Tackle Online Hate Together.pdf
Telegram.pdf
TikTok.pdf
Triller.pdf
Tumblr.pdf
Twitch.pdf
Twitter.pdf
Video Streaming Apps & Sites.pdf
WeChat.pdf
Wink.pdf
YOLO.pdf
YouTube.pdf
Yubo.pdf

Streaming

Live Streaming.pdf
Music Streaming Apps & Sites.pdf
Netflix.pdf
Netflix - Stream Safe.pdf
Squid Game.pdf
Streaming.pdf
Twitch.pdf
Video Streaming Apps & Sites.pdf
YouTube.pdf
YouTube Kids.pdf

Technology

Amazon Alexa.pdf
Android Parental Controls.pdf
Android Parental Controls-Limit content.pdf
Android Parental Controls-Privacy.pdf
Apple Guided Access.pdf
Children's Devices.pdf
Cyber Crime.pdf
Emergency-Google phone.pdf
Emergency-iPhone.pdf
Emergency-Samsung phone.pdf
Fitness Trackers.pdf
Google Stadia.pdf
Home Devices.pdf
Home Internet Controls.pdf
How Not to Be a Screen Zombie.pdf
How to Clean Devices.pdf
iPhone Parental Controls.pdf
iPhone Parental Controls-Limit content.pdf
iPhone Parental Controls-Privacy.pdf
Managing What your Children Watch on TV.pdf
New Devices.pdf
Nintendo Switch.pdf
Oculus Quest.pdf
Online Shopping.pdf
PlayStation 4.pdf
PlayStation 5.pdf
Replika.pdf
Screen Addiction.pdf
Setting Up New Devices For Children.pdf
Smartphone Online Safety Tips.pdf
Torrent Sites.pdf
Virtual Reality.pdf
Webcams.pdf
Xbox One.pdf
Xbox Series X-S.pdf

Fairy Tales for the Digital Age

In partnership with Andersen Press, Vodafone have produced digital copies of three great digital safety books - Chicken Clicking, Troll Stinks and Old Macdonald Had a Phone, written by author Jeanne Willis and illustrated by Tony Ross.  The books explore themes of internet bullying, managing screen time and being mindful of internet predators in fun and engaging stories.

Download the books for free below along with a fun activity sheet.

Age Restrictions on Social Media

Most of the popular social media services require users to be at least 13 years of age before they can register, although some sites are created especially for children under 13.

The age requirements are there for a number of reasons:

Videos

Screen time tips to support 0-5 yrs (Early years)

Screen time tips to support 5-7 yrs (Key stage 1)

Screen time tips to support 7-11 yrs (Key stage 2)

How to be a positive digital role model for children

Safer Internet Day 2024

On Tuesday 6th February 2024 we joined schools and youth settings across the UK in celebrating Safer Internet Day 2024.  Safer Internet Day is celebrated globally in February each year to promote the safe and positive use of digital technology for children and young people, and to inspire a national conversation about using technology responsibly, respectfully, critically, and creatively.

Using the internet safely and positively is a key message that we promote in school, and celebrating Safer Internet Day is a great opportunity for us to re-emphasise the online safety messages we deliver throughout the year.

Visit our Safer Internet Day page to find out more and to see what we got up to in school.