Tag: online safety

Safeguarding in Education Blog

Staying Safe Online

Chalktalk Education

The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) recently reported that every 2 minutes they remove a photo online of a child suffering sexual abuse and that in 2022 over 252,000 webpages containing hundreds of thousands of images and videos of children suffering sexual abuse were assessed and removed from the internet by their analysts. 97% of the imagery is of girls and almost 7 in 10 cases of child sexual abuse and 11 – 13 year olds were involved. It’s not just this age group, the IWF also report that the younger the child, the more severe the abuse and over 1,400 reports were confirmed to show children under the age of 2 suffering sexual abuse.

It’s hard to keep up with the changes in technology and this is crucial if we are going to be able to safeguard our children on the internet. Recently, I was lucky enough to find out about the latest variety of apps and online platforms so read on for an explanation about each and the risks to children:

Omegle

Free online chatroom advertised as a platform where you can “chat with random strangers online”. Omegle pairs users at random allowing them to chat via video or chat. There is no registration process or age verification. The website is identified as a hotspot for grooming children of all ages and investigations have found sexually explicit videos and live streams involving minors as young as 7 or 8.

What is Omegle? What parents need to know | Internet Matters

Sendit App

Combination app used in conjunction with Snapchat and Instagram where followers can anonymously respond to private messages. The App costs £8.99 and encourages its users to spend money. Anonymous apps leave children more open to cyberbullying, child-on-child abuse and grooming. Due to being anonymous it is harder to identify perpetrators.What is the Sendit app? The risks of companion apps | Internet Matters

Roblox

Roblox can be a safe gaming platform for children of all ages however it also has a dark side which is often hidden. Some of the risks in relation to Roblox include; unknown adults using the chat room to contact children for the purposes of grooming, exposed to sexualised avatars, inappropriate language being bypassed and used within the game.Parent Alert: Is Roblox Safe for Kids? Watch Out for These 4 Dangers | Defend Young Minds™️

Addiction

Gaming addiction is now recognised by the World Health Organisation as a clinical disorder. There’s are increasing concerns around children as young as 8 developing addictions to pornography hugely impacting psychological and developmental well-being. Pornography and inappropriate content online is only a click away.

CARE for Online Safety | CARE

Please share the above information with your parents and staff, together with these top tips:

Safeguarding in Education Blog

Safeguarding in Education Blog – Searching, Screening & Confiscation

Chalktalk Education

In September 2022 the DfE updated the guidance on Searching, Screening and Confiscation. There should be a direct link between this guidance and the school’s safeguarding and child protection policy and also to Sharing nudes and semi-nudes: advice for DSLs and Senior Leaders. Advice for the rest of the school staff is in the form of a one page summary Sharing nudes and semi-nudes: how to respond to an incident with clear guidance that they should report to the designated safeguarding lead immediately. If staff are dealing with an incident regarding an inappropriate image online, they may need to rely on the guidance in relation to searching, screening and confiscation as well. Staff should not view or forward illegal images of a child – the guidance advises what to do where viewing an image is unavoidable. When there is suspicion that there is an indecent image of a child and/or video, the member of staff should avoid looking at the device and confiscate it, to preserve evidence to hand over to the Police. These guidance documents do not apply to adults sharing nudes or semi-nudes of under 18 year olds as this is child sexual abuse and it is crucial to refer to the Police as a matter of urgency.

Top Tips for Best Safeguarding Practice

  • Ensure your behaviour policy reflects the updated Searching, Screening and Confiscation guidance and the focus on safeguarding and update any other linked policies.
  • The behaviour policy should be accessible to all members of the school community, staff, parents and children. This is part of  schools’ statutory responsibility and referenced in Keeping Children Safe in Education 2022
  • Review your policies as well as your practice to ensure they are consistent
  • Headteachers should oversee any searching to ensure that a culture of safe, proportionate and appropriate searching is upheld, which safeguards the welfare  of all pupils and staff with support from the designated safeguarding lead
  • Staff should receive effective training on the guidance – all staff need to know the process and know what to do. For example, they should not just be asking children to see inside their bags.
  • Before searching a pupil, the reason for the search should be explained. They should know how they will be searched and where the search will take place. Pupils should be given a chance to ask any questions.
  • The cooperation of the pupil must be sought before a search is carried out and if they are not willing to comply with the search, statutory guidance states ‘the member of staff should consider why this is’.
  • If a search is still considered necessary, but is not urgent, the pupil should be supervised and kept away from other pupils while the advice of the headteacher, designated safeguarding lead or pastoral lead is sought as they may have more information
  • If after consultation with the other members of staff, the pupil is still refusing to cooperate, an assessment should be made as to whether reasonable force should be used to carry out the search
  • A member of staff can use ‘such force as is reasonable to search for any prohibited items identified in paragraph 3, but not to search for items which are identified only in the school rules’
  • Consider whether to use reasonable force – the DfE’s Use of Reasonable Force  states that reasonable force should be considered on a case-by-case basis. Parental consent is not required.
  • The power to use reasonable force should be included in the school behaviour policy which should also acknowledge the school’s legal duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled children and children with special educational needs and disabilities
  • Ensure information about the behaviour policy, searching, screening and confiscation and reasonable force are incorporated into your training at induction or thereafter, emphasising that behaviour and safeguarding are interlinked
  • Reflect and analyse searches to see if there are patterns and/or high numbers. Are there any groups that are disproportionately impacted?  If so, schools should consider preventative approaches.
Safeguarding in Education Blog

Safeguarding in Education Blog – Girls’ Attitude Survey 2022

Chalktalk Education

The Government’s Violence Against Women & Girl’s Strategy states ‘There should be no facet of life where violence and abuse are allowed to occur – at home, at work, at school, online, or on the streets’. Girl Guiding UK have recently published the latest Girls Attitude Survey 2022. Every year, since 2009 they have provided a platform to give girls a voice on the issues that matter to them, by asking over 3,000 girls and young women aged 11-21, how they feel about their everyday lives. This latest survey reports findings on a regional basis for the first time. The evidence shows girls and young women are still concerned about their education, safety, inequalities and their mental health.

The Findings

The survey found that, unsurprisingly, the pandemic will have a lasting negative impact on their wellbeing and opportunities, with notable differences across nations of the UK. They were asked about community, gender stereotypes, safety and sexism. Girls and young women chose mental health, women and girls’ safety, and equality and inclusion as the issues most important to them.

  • A quarter (26%) said they don’t feel safe online and more than 2 in 5 (46%) think there should be a way to ensure users of social media platforms are old enough to use them. Given that 97% of the material that the Internet Watch Foundation took down in 2021 involved girls, this finding is not a surprise.
  • Over half (53%) don’t feel safe when they are out on their own.
  • Around 1 in 5 (19%) said they don’t feel safe in school.
  • 40% say inequality has become worse in the last year with 71% experiencing discrimination. The survey found that girls who are white are more likely to feel safe in school than those who are not white – we need to think deeply on how we can make our practice safer and more inclusive to ensure that all girls feel safe in schools and settings and are empowered to talk about their experiences.
  • 80% see or experience sexism online and on social media.
  • 36% said they are put off from applying for high profile jobs because of the abuse women in these positions receive online.
  • Just 10% are completely happy with their appearance, compared to 42% of 7 to 10-year-olds. The survey shows that pressures around appearance continue to be a real challenge for girls and young women, especially as they get older.

In 2021 the survey reported a ten year decline in girls’ happiness and wellbeing, exacerbated by the Covid pandemic. Last year’s survey shows signs that wellbeing is recovering and good mental health is increasing, but it is still lower for older girls. It decreases when girls get to secondary school. We need to think about why this is and how we can support, empower and keep girls safe throughout their school and college years.

Ofsted’s Review of Sexual Abuse in Schools and Colleges found that incidents in school tend to be ‘lower-level’ sexual harassment, with other incidents tending to happen online, at parties or parks. The report identified that only two in five young people said they would speak to someone at school about sexual abuse, and that school staff rely too heavily on children raising a concern. Inconsistencies in how schools see their role and understand what constitutes harmful sexual behaviour were identified.

Top Tips for Best Safeguarding Practice

  • Read the research!
  • Consider your pupil voice structures – could you raise similar topics as those in the Girls’ Attitude survey with your children? Can you ask them some of the same questions, and ask the student council to find out some information in relation to the attitudes of girls and young women in your setting?
  • Consider how you can tackle some of the topics covered by the survey – safety on the street/in school in PSHE. It is also crucial to involve boys and young men in the discussions.
  • Consider disparities in the responses between groups in the school (protected characteristics).
  • Consider the structures you have in place to support girls’ happiness, wellbeing, mental health and confidence.
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Safeguarding in Education Blog – Social Media, Misogyny and Statutory Guidance for Schools

Chalktalk Education

Welcome to the new academic year 2022-23!

As adults it can be difficult for us to navigate social media platforms and to keep up with the latest influencers and trends. For children it is more difficult to understand and address the effects of damaging social media patterns. It can sometimes mean they run into material which can have a negative influence and impact and sometimes it is used to abuse them or others. During the summer break you may have heard of the influencer Andrew Tate, who has been actively advocating extreme views on misogyny and sexism on social media platforms. Recently these platforms, including Facebook, YouTube and Instagram (where it is reported he had more than 4.7 million followers), have banned him for his extreme misogynistic views. Social media companies are working to remove videos containing his views and violence.

It is his influence on boys and young men that is very worrying as well as his rise to notoriety for his derogatory views about women and toxic beliefs about masculinity. It has been reported that many young people follow him and that boys as young as 11 are attempting to emulate him. Many parody social media accounts have been set up, each one receiving money through Tate’s ‘affiliate’ programme. Parents may not be aware of what their children are watching on screens behind closed bedroom doors. This is something the DfE have asked schools to address in one of the latest updates to statutory guidance.

What does statutory guidance expect from schools?

It is important that schools raise awareness and educate parents about online harms – paragraph 139 of Keeping Children Safe in Education 2022 states that schools should reinforce to parents:

  • the importance of children’s safety
  • inform them of the filtering and monitoring systems used
  • what the school is asking children to do online outside of the school
  • the sites you are advising they access and
  • the staff they will be interacting with

There is a big emphasis this year on keeping parents informed and educated about online safety. This can be done through newsletters, workshops, information evenings and the school website. Use drama productions and open evenings where children play a big part in educating their parents, to engage and help parents to keep their children safe online when they are not in school. Governing bodies should review incidents and the effectiveness of online safety systems including the PSHE curriculum, healthy relationships, respect and consent.

Top Tips for Best Safeguarding Practice

  • Ensure children feel comfortable and confident in sharing concerns about themes they encounter in the online world, encourage children to share their experiences and anything that could be troubling them
  • Remind children of the importance of critically assessing all the information they see online, even where accounts appear verified and have many followers
  • Make staff aware of ‘alpha male’ influencers who advocate misogyny and an anti-feminist community on the internet – also known as the ‘manosphere’ a term also used by INCELs (involuntary celibates)
  • Ensure staff listen out for potentially problematic discussions inside and outside of lessons and engage children in conversations about what they see online
  • Make parents aware of how dangerous Tate’s content is and educate them about recognising the signs of hate – ensure there is a collaborative process between school and home, to keep abreast of developments about what is happening online
  • Use LGfL’s ParentSafe which includes top tips for parents, including parental controls, screen time and reporting concerns, to raise awareness and educate parents about online safety
  • Safeguarding and online safety should be a standing item at governing body meetings
  • The effectiveness of school filters and monitoring systems should be reviewed regularly by the safeguarding team, considering the ages of the children and likely contextual risks
  • Review the PSHE curriculum in relation to healthy relationships and consent and teach children about respect and tolerance as part of the RSHE curriculum
  • Ensure staff have awareness of systems and how to escalate concerns
  • For governors to fulfil their responsibility to ensure children’s exposure to online risks are limited, there should be regular reviews of online safety systems and trends and patterns in relation to any online safety incidents
  • Each review should trigger discussions about identifying trends and learning lessons