E-Safety
At Springbank, we consider E-Safety to be a fundamental aspect of educating young people in modern Britain. It is a central cog in our safeguarding practice and we seek to educate the children in both the positive aspects and risks associated with the online world of today. The GLA E-Safety Policy includes more details regarding the approach the school take in this aspect of the curriculum.
The Curriculum
Pupils will be taught about online safety as part of the Personal Social Health Citizenship Education (PSHCE) and Computing curricula. Topics covered are age appropriate, and support our pupils in navigating the online world in a safe and secure environment. These topics throughout the first school journey include:
- Recognising dangerous situations online - risk management
- Building positive relationships - respect, kindness, being a good friend
- Managing feelings and emotions
- The role of media influence in our world
- Evaluating the reliability of digital content
Social Media
We would like to remind parents that there are age restrictions for applications which can be seen below. We strongly advise that parents adhere to these age restrictions for the safety and well being of their children. Our experience tells us that there are two key reasons these age restrictions exist:
- Younger children are less likely to have the necessary understanding of eSafety to keep themselves safe from harm online
- Younger children are less likely to have developed the emotional intelligence to effectively manage the non-verbal communications used on social media
There is a wealth of advice available to parents on security measures in access to these sites at The National Online Safety website and the NSPCC Net-Aware website
Acceptable User Agreement
In school, your child will be introduced to Super CAT, a character that will inform and support ways to stay safe when using different forms of technology in and out of school. Super CAT is in place to introduce children to the idea of staying safe online, alongside offering practical, relevant information for children. CAT stands for Check, Ask, Tell – three principles we feel are central to ensuring children know how to stay safe online.
As part of our ongoing commitment to keeping your child safe you will find the 2022-23 E-safety Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) that we will introduce through Super CAT.
Please read through the document and speak with your child’s class teacher should you have any questions. The principles of staying safe online are universal and apply to old and young alike. Please feel free to display the AUP at home and refer to it when your child has access to the internet, in much the same way as we will do in school. The Super CAT AUP will form part of the displays in school that encourage children to behave safely and responsibly when online and therefore offer continuity between home and school.
Alongside Super CAT, we will be carrying out regular lessons in school, exploring how to stay safe online. We will also post helpful guidance and advice through our website and any social media we have. There are many websites that can also offer advice and support to parents on staying safe online, including nationalonlinesafety.com, www.saferinternet.org.uk and www.thinkuknow.co.uk
Parent/Guardian Cyber Security Guides
Below are a wealth of resources to support parents and guardians understand more about apps and programmes their children may be drawn to.
- TIKTOK Parents Guide
- Snapchat Parent Guide
- Facebook Messenger Parent Guide
- Youtube Parent Guide
- Instagram Parent Guide
- WhatsApp Parent Guide
- Fortnite Parent Guide
- Roblox Parent Guide
- Minecraft Parent Guide
- Playstation Network Parent Guide
- Xbox Live Parent Guide
- 7 Conversation Topics
- Live Streaming Parent Guide
- Mental Health Social Media Guide
- Screen Addiction Parent Guide
- Sexting Parent Guide
- Online Bullying Guide
- Online Grooming – Parent Advice
- Managing Childrens TV habits