Online Safety
Communication technology is moving so fast, it is sometimes challenging for all of us to keep up and ensure our young people are safe and using the internet in a positive way. Social Media in particular has created and then colonised new markets so quickly, that our culture struggles to catch up with the impact on our daily interactions.
In the Trust we think it is very important to educate our pupils in good netiquette practice and give advice on how to keep themselves safe online. We deliver specific lessons in ICT classes on this topic in all Key Stages that are age appropriate and progressive; we also use assemblies and special collapsed timetable days to give advice to all year groups.
If we identify there are particular issues, a latest trend or concern, local or national, we will aim to inform our learners, in order to give them advice and raise awareness.
We have a generation of children who increasingly identify their self-image with their on-line presence; their avatars, their usernames, the groups they join, the content they generate. Cyberbullying can take many forms and it is important for parents to monitor their child’s use of social network sites in the home. In our Trust schools, all social network sites are blocked on school devices so pupils cannot access them, but occasionally the problems of poor netiquette are brought into school via the use of personal mobile devices. In this case we encourage parents to work with their child on specific issues and to follow the guidance in the Trust mobile device policy.
All student and staff earning activity online and involving the use of school- based computers is monitored through a product called "Smoothwall". The Smoothwall monitoring agent is loaded onto every individual machine ,in each school. Designated Safeguarding staff receive notification and reports when any unauthorised activity is attempted and staff will either discuss this with the child(ren) or, where there are serious concerns, contact parents/guardians directly to make them aware of activity and the steps being taken to address these behaviours. Click below for more information on the Smoothwall website:
In the Trust we think it is very important to educate our pupils in good netiquette practice and give advice on how to keep themselves safe online. We deliver specific lessons in ICT classes on this topic in all Key Stages that are age appropriate and progressive; we also use assemblies and special collapsed timetable days to give advice to all year groups.
If we identify there are particular issues, a latest trend or concern, local or national, we will aim to inform our learners, in order to give them advice and raise awareness.
We have a generation of children who increasingly identify their self-image with their on-line presence; their avatars, their usernames, the groups they join, the content they generate. Cyberbullying can take many forms and it is important for parents to monitor their child’s use of social network sites in the home. In our Trust schools, all social network sites are blocked on school devices so pupils cannot access them, but occasionally the problems of poor netiquette are brought into school via the use of personal mobile devices. In this case we encourage parents to work with their child on specific issues and to follow the guidance in the Trust mobile device policy.
All student and staff earning activity online and involving the use of school- based computers is monitored through a product called "Smoothwall". The Smoothwall monitoring agent is loaded onto every individual machine ,in each school. Designated Safeguarding staff receive notification and reports when any unauthorised activity is attempted and staff will either discuss this with the child(ren) or, where there are serious concerns, contact parents/guardians directly to make them aware of activity and the steps being taken to address these behaviours. Click below for more information on the Smoothwall website:
We have a suite of trust-wide policies to support our online safety practice including
- Acceptable Use Policy (Pupils)
- Acceptable Use Policy (Pupils) - Leaflet Version
- Acceptable Use Policy (Staff including Volunteers and Visitors)
- Code of Conduct and Online Media Use Statement for Students, Parents/Carers and Visitors
- Online Safety Policy
- Social Media Policy
- Mobile Phones Policy
These can be viewed on our Policies and Documents pages.
