Skip to content ↓

How to stay safe online

At St. Thomas’, we are proud to offer a rich computing curriculum that equips children to develop their digital literacy, acquire a range of information technology skills and become computer scientists. E-safety underpins all of our computing learning; knowing how to use technology safely is of paramount importance.

E-Safety During Lockdown

Lockdown has been a difficult time for children and young people and they have shown great resilience throughout these unprecedented times. Having to stay indoors without seeing family members and friends or engaging with their usual hobbies and past times has been incredibly hard; the restrictions of the pandemic have understandably led to an increase in screen time.

Furthermore, should children have to self-isolate and consequently engage with home learning, their screen time will continue to increase above the average amount that they would normally engage in. As a school, we are fully committed to our responsibility in educating children in keeping safe online and all classes have a six-week unit on e-safety every year. This year, we ensured that this was the first computing topic of all our year groups to ensure that children were equipped for a potential rise in time spent online and on electronics. 

As parents and teachers, it is imperative that we create an environment where children feel able to share any concerns they have if they encounter a problem online. Having a positive attitude towards technology is an important factor of this, but as parents it is essential that you monitor what children are engaging with and are informed about these websites/apps/games etc. 

Please find guidance and resources to help you keep your child safe online:

Information For Parents:

The National Online Safety team have produced this fantastic poster to help support parents in creating an environment for home learning that is both safe and happy:

Internet safety tips for children

Sharing photos, posting comments, playing video games -- these are just a few of the ways that children interact online, but sometimes there are risks. Learn five ways to keep your child safe on the internet.

E-Safety At Home

In school, we use a filtered search engine, ‘Kid Rex’, to ensure that children do not encounter any inappropriate content. We recommend this search engine for use at home too. We know that it can be surprisingly easy for children to access inappropriate material.  The following guidelines will help you to keep your child safe online:

  • Set the security levels within Internet Explorer or other browsers.
  • It may be worth considering locating the computer in a family area where possible (not a bedroom). This will enable you to supervise your son or daughter as they use the Internet.
  • Ensure they only use websites you have chosen together or a child friendly search engine.
  • Never give out any personal information about themselves, friends or family online including home address, phone or mobile number.
  • Only email people they know and ask permission before opening an email sent by someone they don’t know.
  • Never tell someone where they go to school or post any pictures of themselves in school uniform.

If you or your child are concerned about anything on line then you can report abuse by clicking on this link:

https://www.ceop.police.uk/safety-centre/