e-safety: introduction
e-safety is high on our agenda at St Mary’s. For some years we have been ahead of requirements to meet the safeguarding requirements of girls online. We are now moving to address broader security implications by addressing data protection.
At the heart of what we do is a concern for the well-being of every member of our community. Our e-safety committee meets regularly to address current issues and to lead the school. Staff are trained in all aspects of the area, and girls are too.
This is a constantly changing area. It is also an arena we find exciting: this is the world of the 21st Century, and it is the world the young people we are educating inhabit at a profound level. We want to engage with issues which arise from this very new way of being, and we are keen to share that use of the internet space with the girls.
I hope the links below might prove of interest to you – broadly in terms of protection and also in terms of enabling you to see some of the resources we use with girls, staff and parents: you will find some are more light hearted as relentlessly alarmist views are not always helpful!
Link to the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP). "The Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre is dedicated to eradicating the sexual abuse of children. That means we are part of UK policing and very much about tracking and bringing offenders to account either directly or in partnership with local and international forces."
"Whether you are a parent, caregiver, or educator, you can keep up with the latest computer and online safety issues and help kids learn to avoid the real dangers that exist in their Internet-connected world. In partnership with security expert and author, Linda McCarthy, we offer a free, downloadable version of her new book, Own Your Space: Keep Yourself and Your Stuff Safe Online." Microsoft Online Safety
