Internet Safety
Child abuse and the internet The internet has become a significant tool in the distribution of indecent photographs/ pseudo photographs of children. Internet chat rooms, discussion forums and bulletin boards are used as a means of contacting children with a view to grooming them for inappropriate or abusive relationships, which may include requests to make and transmit pornographic images of themselves or to perform sexual acts in front of a webcam. Contacts made initially in a chat room are likely to be carried on via email, instant messaging services, mobile phone or text messaging.
Children and young people may find the following tips useful.
Top Tips for Staying Safe
- Remember, everyone you meet online is a stranger, even though they may seem like a friend.
- Always use a nickname when you log on and never give out any personal details that would allow someone you meet online to contact you. That means full name, home or school address, telephone number, personal email or mobile number. Never arrange to meet up alone with someone you make friends with online, but if you are going to anyway, make sure that you take an adult you trust and always meet in a public place.
- Try to have your online conversations in public; people are less likely to hassle you if other people can see them doing it.
- Accepting emails or opening files from people you don't really know, can get you into trouble they may contain viruses, nasty messages or annoying links to stuff you don't really want to see,
- Talk to an adult you know well and ask for help if you are worried or upset about anything you've seen or been sent online.
Useful links
Access IT at home
Keep Your child safe on the internet
Advice on chatting online
Advice for parents and carers, and reporting abuse
Information for schools
Internet safety and safe surfing for young people
Helpful links for parents
MSCB E-Safety Strategy
Our Vision
Every child and young person will be confident and safe in the digital world. They will be supported and encouraged to develop as responsible 21st century citizens. Schools and agencies will support and guide families and professionals to ensure that they also effectively contribute to our safer community and recognise their responsibility to present themselves as positive role models.
Introduction
Middlesbrough Safeguarding Children Board takes seriously the statutory role it has to ensure that member agencies co-operate to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people in the locality, and to ensure that they are effective in doing so. As part of promoting the welfare of children and young people in accordance with the Children Act 2004 and Working together to safeguard children 2006, the LSCB has devised an e-safety strategy plus a policy that is built on four key areas:
- Policies, practices and procedure
- Education and training
- Infrastructure and technology
- Standards and inspection
1. LSCB E-safety Task Group - Objectives
1.1. To agree where the E-safety Task Group will sit within the organisational structure of the LSCB
1.2. To develop a vision statement that will inform the overall strategy of the LSCB
1.3. To develop terms of reference for the E-safety Task Group and agree its membership, as well as clear roles, responsibilities and the nature of the accountability that the Strategy Group will have to the LSCB
1.4. To identify priority areas of action and associated funding
2. Policies, procedures and practices - Objectives
2.1. To ensure that member agencies and partners of the LSCB, as well as other settings in which children and young people access the internet and digital technologies, have in place policies, procedures and practices that enable children and young people to use the internet and mobile digital technologies safely and securely.
2.2. To ensure partner agencies have practice guidance which promotes safe and secure use of the internet and mobile digital technology.
2.3. To promote appropriate mechanisms for reporting abuse to all member agencies and partners of the LSCB. This will include, Northern Grid, the Internet Watch Foundation, UK Council for Child Internet Safety, the police and CEOP ( Child Exploitation and Online Protection).
2.4. Each member agency and partners of the LSCB to ensure they have a media strategy for dealing with child protection incidents.
3. Education, training and information - Objectives
3.1. To audit provision of e-safety training and e-safety awareness campaigns by member agencies and partners with a view to maintaining consistency.
3.2. In conjunction with the LSCB Training Task Group, to develop an education and training strategy that will ensure the provision of education to children and young people that promotes safe and responsible use of the internet and other digital technologies. In addition, the strategy will include training for members of the children's workforce with a view to raising their awareness of e-safety and how it relates to safeguarding children
3.2.1. To develop an awareness campaign that will focus on educating key stakeholders (parents and carers, the media and partner agencies) about the opportunities and the threats of the internet and digital technologies.
4. Infrastructure and technology - Objectives
4.1. To promote a set of robust principles and guidance about safe internet provision that take into account national standards on filtering and accreditation of software.
4.2. To disseminate good practice information to other providers (such as post offices, internet cafes, phone boxes, digital handheld devices and mobile phones) aimed at enabling children and young people to use the internet safely and responsibly
4.3. To encourage the mechanism that will bring together experts in ICT and related technologies and also practitioners with a statutory duty to safeguard children to consider new and emerging technologies and their trends, and to disseminate good practice as quickly as possible to agencies providing services to children, young people and their families
5.1. To develop an e-safety monitoring dataset, which member agencies can report on, and which includes policies, practices and procedures; organisational internet safety reporting mechanisms; infrastructure arrangements and training that adhere to national standards.
5.2. There is an expectation that e-safety is embedded as part of the safeguarding responsibilities of member agencies and partners of the LSCB.
5.3. In conjunction with various forums for children and young people, to develop a mechanism that collates their views and opinions on the safeguarding practices related to e-safety.
MSCB E Safety - May 2010
Middlesbrough eSafety Strategy.pdf
