INTERNET SAFETY POLICY
1. AIM OF THIS POLICY
Clubland recognises that the internet is a useful resource for both staff and children, for the purposes of research, homework and entertainment. However it must be used with care to ensure that children are kept safe from exposure to harmful material, in accordance with the EYFS safeguarding and welfare requirements and the Prevent Duty.
2. PARENTAL PERMISSON
Children will only be allowed to access the internet at Clubland if their parent or carer has given written permission.
3. GUIDELINES FOR CHILDREN
A printed copy of the SMART guidelines are kept next to the computer. The guidelines are explained to any children wishing to access the internet:
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- Safe: Keep safe by not giving out personal information – such as name, email, phone number, address, or school name – to people who you don’t trust online
- Meeting: Never agree to meet anyone you have only met online unless your parent or carer is with you
- Accepting: Do not accept emails or instant messages, or open files, images or texts from people you don’t know. They can contain viruses or nasty messages
- Reliable: Not all the information found on the internet is reliable and people you meet online won’t always be telling the truth
- Tell: Tell a member of staff or your parents if someone or something you encounter online makes you feel uncomfortable
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4. PROTECTING CHILDREN
We have put in place the following safeguards to keep children safe whilst accessing the internet on Clubland’s computers:
- A risk assessment has been undertaken
- Children use their own school log-ins to access the computers, or a specific Clubland one
- Parental controls have been activated on all computers accessible to children:
- Google SafeSearch Filtering is turned on
- YouTube Restricted Mode is set to on
- Registration tablets are password protected
- The computers are located so that the screens can easily be seen from the rest of the room
- Staff keep a close eye on children and the sites that they are accessing when they use the internet
- The computers have an up-to-date virus checker and firewall installed
- The computer’s browser histories are regularly checked to monitor which sites are being accessed. All staff and children are informed of this fact.
If, despite the safeguards Clubland has put in place, a child encounters harmful material in the internet, pr receives inappropriate messages, or experiences online bullying, whilst using Clubland’s computers, the Playscheme Manager will be informed and the incident will be noted on an Incident Record in the child’s file and shared with the child’s parent. The Playscheme Manager will investigate how to prevent a reoccurrence of the incident.
If staff at Clubland become aware that a child is deliberately attempting to access sites containing sexual, extremist or otherwise inappropriate material, or has been shown such material by a third party, they will complete a Logging a concern form and refer the matter to Clubland’s designated Child Protection Officer in accordance with our Safeguarding Policy and Child Protection Procedure.
5. RELATED POLICIES
See also our related policies: Child Protection Procedure, Safeguarding Policy and Social Media Policy.
Last reviewed: October 2023
Next review date: October 2024
