Online Safety

At Crawford Village we want every user to be safe, confident and supported when using technology - whether learning in school, at home, or in the wider community. Online safety is part of safeguarding and wellbeing. It is not “just an IT issue”: it is about people, relationships, behaviour, learning, and protection.

Our online safety strategy is built around four outcomes-focused areas that strengthen day-to-day practice:

• Leadership and policy that make expectations clear
• Education that builds skills, resilience and positive behaviour
• Technology that protects users and supports safe learning
• Impact review that proves what’s working and what we will improve

Leadership and policy: clarity, consistency and accountability

• When leadership is strong, online safety becomes part of “how we do things here”—not a one-off initiative.

Clear responsibilities

• We make sure roles are defined and understood across senior leaders, the Designated Safety Lead, an Online Safety Lead, governors and technical staff/providers. This ensures safeguarding decisions and technical safeguards work together.
• What this improves: decisions are quicker, concerns are escalated correctly, and actions don’t get “lost” between teams.
• Benefit for users: children and adults get safer, more consistent support.

A joined-up Online Safety Group

• We involve the right voices—leaders, staff, governors, and (where appropriate) learners and families—to keep online safety responsive to real experiences and emerging risks.
• What this improves: shared ownership and a whole-school approach.
• Benefit for users: safer practice is reinforced across school and home.

A policy that is understood and used

• Our online safety policy is aligned with safeguarding expectations and linked to related policies so that staff and families can see one clear, consistent approach.
• What this improves: fewer grey areas and more confident decision-making.
• Benefit for users: clear boundaries and predictable responses.

Acceptable use expectations that protect everyone

• We set out simple, age-appropriate expectations for learners and clear professional expectations for staff, so everyone understands what safe and respectful use looks like.
• What this improves: behaviour, consistency, and fairness.
• Benefit for users: safer online spaces and fewer harmful incidents.

Reporting and responding that leads to action

• We promote a culture where people feel able to speak up, and we respond consistently, recording concerns, acting promptly, and learning from patterns and new risks.
• What this improves: early identification and effective safeguarding intervention.
• Benefit for users: children get help sooner; everyone feels listened to and protected.

Education: confident learners and informed adults

• We teach online safety to build knowledge, skills, attitudes and resilience—so learners can enjoy the benefits of technology while managing risks.

Planned learning for learners

• Online safety education is progressive, inclusive and revisited regularly. We use learner voice to shape what we teach and to keep it relevant.
• What this improves: safer choices, healthier online behaviour, and confident help-seeking.
• Benefit for users: learners become better prepared for real-life online challenges.

Staff training that supports safeguarding practice

• All staff receive induction and ongoing updates so they can spot concerns, respond appropriately, and model safe practice. Key roles receive enhanced training to lead and make informed decisions.
• What this improves: confidence and consistency across the workforce.
• Benefit for users: concerns are handled calmly, correctly and promptly.

Governors trained to provide challenge and support

• Governors/trustees understand their duties and can ask the right questions about policy, training, curriculum, filtering/monitoring, and cyber security.
• What this improves: accountability and sustained improvement.
• Benefit for users: online safety stays a priority over time, not just after incidents.

Strong partnerships with families and agencies

• We communicate practical guidance to families and work with relevant partners. We also share effective practice beyond our school where it supports safer communities.
• What this improves: joined-up messages and earlier support.
• Benefit for users: children experience consistent expectations across school and home.

Technology: protection that enables learning

• We use proportionate technical controls to reduce exposure to harm while supporting teaching and learning.

Effective filtering

• Filtering reduces the risk of access to harmful and illegal content and is reviewed to ensure it stays fit for purpose.
• Benefit for users: safer browsing and research.

Safeguarding-led monitoring

• Monitoring helps identify concerns early and supports timely intervention, handled with appropriate governance and data protection.
• Benefit for users: timely intervention when risk is emerging.

Secure systems and cyber resilience

• We protect networks, devices and accounts, and we prepare for threats like phishing and ransomware—so learning is not disrupted and users are protected.
• Benefit for users: safer services, fewer incidents, faster recovery.

Data protection that builds trust

• We handle personal and sensitive information carefully and lawfully, with clear processes and accountability.
• Benefit for users: privacy is respected and risks from misuse are reduced.

Safe day-to-day practice

• We manage devices consistently (including expectations around personal devices where relevant), apply safeguarding and consent to digital content, and communicate responsibly through our public channels.
• Benefit for users: fewer avoidable mistakes and a safer, more responsible digital culture.

 Impact: proving what works and improving what doesn’t

• We regularly review how well our policies and practice are working, what the evidence tells us, and what we will improve next. This keeps our approach current, targeted and effective.

How to raise a concern or get help

If something online worries you, we want to know.

• Learners: talk to a trusted adult, your tutor/class teacher, or the safeguarding team.
• Parents/carers: contact [DSL name / safeguarding email/phone].
• Staff: follow safeguarding procedures and record concerns promptly.

Our commitment

We will keep strengthening leadership, education, technology and impact review so that technology at Crawford Village is used safely, respectfully and positively—and so our community can be confident that online safeguarding is robust, consistent, and always improving.

Update on taking photgraphs in school.

Our Online Safety policy can be found on our policies page.  Please follow the link here. 

The use of technology is becoming a transformational tool for learning. Whilst the use of a wide range of different technologies can undoubtedly enhance pupils' learning experiences, there is a considerable need to ensure that all pupils are protected when embracing technologies such as accessing information on the internet.
In order to keep pupils safe in their use of online resources, we use the SMART acronym as seen below. These posters are displayed in all classes in the school to remind pupils of their responsibilities.

Download our Online Safety Poster for KS1                        Download our Online Safety Poster for KS2

At Home

We appreciate parents can have a difficult job keeping up with their children on the fast changing technology available to them, let alone knowing the dangers they face. The issues of safety, privacy, online predators or grooming and cyberbullying are sometimes complex, both technically and psychologically and parents can struggle to keep up.  As a parent you'll know how important the internet is to children - they use it to learn, play, socialise and express themselves.  It's a highly creative place of amazing opportunities.  But the technology children use every day can seem a bit daunting and you might worry about the risks your child can face online - such as bullying, contact from strangers or the possibility of them seeing illegal or inappropriate content. 

You can download a simple checklist here that may help you start to protect your children online and decrease the risks they face.  Or you can engage with your children regarding their use of the internet while at home.  Here are some conversation starter ideas from Childnet International

• ask your children to tell you about the sites they like to visit and what they enjoy doing online.

• ask them about how they stay safe online. What tips do they have for you, and where did they learn them? What is OK and not OK to share?

• ask them if they know where to go for help, where to find the safety advice, privacy settings and how to report or block on the services they use.

• encourage them to help. Perhaps they can show you how to do something better online or they might have a friend who would benefit from their help and support.

Think about how you use the internet as a family and what you could do to get more out of the internet together and further enjoy your lives online.

You can download the DofE advice for parents on cyberbullying here.

You can access the DofE online parents support website called Parent Info here.

Parental Control Guide

This guide will help you set up parental controls to provide your child with a safer online environment. Parental controls can help to protect your child from seeing something that they shouldn’t - although it is important to emphasise that no system is effective all of the time so it is important to engage with your child and talk to them about their online life regularly. Download the guide here.

Internet Safety Guides

These summary guides provide up to date information on reasons for concern and tips for staying safe. They cover what have become the four most important social media platforms for children – WhatsApp, Instagram Snapchat and TikTok. Please click on any image for a full-size copy of all four guides, which may be downloaded.

At School

As part of your child’s curriculum and the development of computer skills, we provide access to the internet only in teacher supervised lessons. We strongly believe that the use of the web and email is hugely worthwhile and an essential tool for children as they grow up in the modern world.  However, because there are always concerns about children having access to undesirable materials, we have taken positive steps to deal with this risk in school. Our school internet access provider operates a filtering system that restricts access to inappropriate materials. 

At the start of the school year, each class discusses how we can all stay safe online and the dangers we may face on the internet.  We then ask every child in KS2 to sign an Acceptable Use Agreement so that we know they have read and understood our school's rules on staying safe.  We also have an Acceptable Use Agreement for our younger children. For more information you can download our online safety policy from our policies page by clicking the link here.

To help parents we have put together a selection of links to websites that will help them to ensure that their children can reap the benefits of the Internet while staying safe.  We have also included links to our monthly newsletter.

ThinkUKnow
Childnet
UK Safer Internet Centre
Parent Port
Safer Internet - Parental Controls

Digital Parenting Magazine - You can read, watch or listen to online safety advice - click the link here.

Please see  our useful videos (below) on how to keep your child safe online (or click on the link here.)  These have been produced in conjunction with Knowsley City Learning Centre.

Setting up Parental Controls on an iOS device with Family Sharing

Setting up Parental Controls on your child’s iOS device (when you don’t have an iOS device)

Setting up Snapchat Family Centre

Roblox Parental Controls and Privacy settings

Nintendo Switch Parental Controls App

YouTube Kids App

Early Years

Links to many parent and child-friendly resources on all aspects of Online Safety:
Early Years Toolkit
Internet Matters

Files to Download