ONLINE SAFETY NEWLETTERS

We have joined together with the National Online Safety (NOS) Campaign so together we can make it our mission to make the internet a safer place for children. We believe that through engaging Online Safety resources and through equipping parents and children with the knowledge they need to understand online dangers, we can together make a difference.

The NOS provides guides for parents as part of their #WakeUpWednesday campaign and it is viewed as one of the most trusted and reputable learning resources in the UK, providing expert advice on the latest platforms and online risks that parents and carers need to know about.

We shall be sharing these weekly guides with parents every Wednesday via our Parent Hub App and they are also available below. 

#WakeUpWednesday

A Parents and Carers Guide to Emotional Support

As we grow up, we’re inevitably exposed to new and challenging feelings – whether it’s sadness, fear or rage. These emotions can be tough to handle when we’re still learning about the world – and even once we’ve passed into adulthood – which is why emotional literacy is a vital life skill.

Of course, when emotions are running high, it can be tricky to help young people process these feelings in a healthy way, but it’s incredibly important that we do so as parents and educators. This free guide provides you with expert tips on teaching children to recognise their own emotions and deal with them in a mature manner.

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#WakeUpWednesday

A Parents and Carers Guide to Squid Games 15+

With themes of horror and violence, it’s important for parents and carers to understand the potential risks posed to young audiences by the nine-episode Netflix-exclusive TV show, Squid Game. The series, rated 15+, is about a world where contestants who are deeply in debt play children's games to win cash prizes. The losers, however, are violently killed. The show’s popularity has meant it has spread in various guises across online platforms, with a heightened risk of children and young people potentially viewing unsuitable content. That's why we've created this guide to help parents and carers understand exactly what Squid Game is all about.

In the guide, you'll find tips on avoiding potential risks such as inappropriate content, viral spin-offs and scene re-enactments.

#WakeUpWednesday

A Parents and Carers Guide to You Tube

We are always concerned by the number of our children who have free access at home to You Tube, sometimes for hours at a time, exposing them to much unsuitable and/or inappropriate content. Guidance states that children should not use You Tube unsupervised under the age of 13.

YouTube Kids is a child-friendly version of YouTube, offering a colourful and easy-to-navigate environment which is suitable for young children. The app is easily accessible and can be downloaded for phones and tablets without needing the YouTube app to be installed on the device already. Although YouTube Kids is obviously intended to be (and mainly succeeds in being) an extremely child-friendly platform, it has still raised concerns over its advertising policy as well as inappropriate content seeping through the curation process.

In the guide, you'll find tips such as disabling the search option, restricting viewing time and monitoring the watch history.

E SAFETY ALERTS

TikTok

It has come to our attention that a number of children are accessing TikTok either through their own accounts or their parents accounts.
This is highly unacceptable and poses a huge risk to children. The legal age for possessing a TikTok account is 13.
Without a clear knowledge of the dangers of this video- sharing app ( hence which it has an age restriction) children are at risk of watching unacceptable content and causing harm, which in turn becomes a safeguarding concern.
I have attached the national guidance with relation to TikTok and hope that you will support us in ensuring that your child, none of whom who attend Bracebridge are of legal age should be watching or using TikTok.
Many thanks

SQUID GAMES

Netflix’s Squid Game is set to become the streaming service’s most successful show of all time, with huge numbers of viewers taking to social media to discuss each new episode. The South Korean thriller features some scenes of fairly brutal violence and is rated 15 by the BBFC. It follows a group of adults who compete to win innocent-looking playground games, but who are killed if they do not succeed at the tasks.

Squid Game’s 15 rating has not prevented clips and images from the show being uploaded onto social media sites such as TikTok, with the #SquidGame hashtag being viewed more than 22.8 billion times. There have been reports of children who have accounts on these platforms inadvertently viewing gory, explicit scenes from the programme, and parents and carers should be mindful of the prevalence of these uploads. 

E SAFETY ALERTS

Siren Head

It has come to our attention that a number of children are watching clips on You Tube or playing the game Siren head whilst they are at home.

Siren head is an aggressive  predator making him a dangerous threat. It is an extremely violent monster who causes harm, serious injury or even death to others.

The age for Siren head is 18 and therefore no children should be watching anything regarding this. 

Should we continue to have further reports from any child, we will report to the relevant authorities. Allowing children to access inappropriate material online is against the law.

Please ensure you are monitoring what your child is watching online, especially You Tube at all times.

Do NOT allow your child to watch their tablet, IPAD or computer in their bedroom alone unsupervised.

Many thanks for your support.

Further Guidance

Online safety guidance:

These resources provide guidance for parents and carers to keep children safe online. They will, amongst other things, support you to talk to your child about a range of online safety issues, set up home filtering in a child-friendly way and set up age-appropriate parental controls on digital devices:

• Thinkuknow by National Crime Agency-CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection) provides resources for parents and carers and children of all ages to help keep children safe online
• Childnet has developed guidance for parents and carers to begin a conversation about online safety, as well as guidance on keeping under-fives safe online
• Parent Info is a collaboration between Parent Zone and NCA-CEOP, providing support and guidance for parents and carers related to the digital world from leading experts and organisations
• NSPCC has guidance for parents and carers to help keep children safe online
• UK Safer Internet Centre provides tips and advice for parents and carers to keep children safe online - you can also report any harmful content found online through the UK Safer Internet Centre

If you have any safeguarding concerns then please contact your child's class teacher in the first instance or Mrs L Wilson, the Designated Safeguarding Lead, on enquiries@bracebridge.lincs.sch.uk