E- Safety Policy

Duck Street, Cerne Abbas, Dorset, DT2 7LA

‘The Small School with the Big Heart.’

Tel: 01300 341319             e-mail:office@cerneabbas.dorset.sch.uk         Website: www.cerneabbas.dorset.sch.uk

E - Safety safety and Acceptable Use Policy

Our vision is to be the best we can be.

We are committed to nurturing every child to thrive in a safe and engaging environment based on our Christian values of Peace, Trust, Friendship, Joy, courage and Forgiveness. We strive to develop happy and confident learners ready to face the challenges of their next steps.

1. Aims

Our school aims to: 

• Have robust processes in place to ensure the online safety of pupils, staff, volunteers and governors
• Deliver an effective approach to online safety, which empowers us to protect and educate the whole school community in its use of technology
• Establish clear mechanisms to identify, intervene and escalate an incident, where appropriate

2. Legislation and guidance

This policy is based on the Department for Education’s (DfE) statutory safeguarding guidance, Keeping Children Safe in Education, and its advice for schools on:

• Teaching online safety in schools
• Preventing and tackling bullying and cyber-bullying: advice for headteachers and school staff
• Relationships and sex education
• Searching, screening and confiscation

It also refers to the DfE’s guidance on protecting children from radicalisation.

It reflects existing legislation, including but not limited to the Education Act 1996 (as amended), the Education and Inspections Act 2006 and the Equality Act 2010. In addition, it reflects the Education Act 2011, which has given teachers stronger powers to tackle cyber-bullying by, if necessary, searching for and deleting inappropriate images or files on pupils’ electronic devices where they believe there is a ‘good reason’ to do so.

The policy also takes into account the National Curriculum computing programmes of study.

3. Roles and responsibilities

The governing board

The governing board has overall responsibility for monitoring this policy and holding the headteacher to account for its implementation.

The governing board will co-ordinate regular meetings with appropriate staff to discuss online safety, and monitor online safety logs as provided by the designated safeguarding lead (DSL).

The governor who oversees online safety is Justin Rush

All governors will:

• Ensure that they have read and understand this policy
• Agree and adhere to the terms on acceptable use of the school’s ICT systems and the internet

 The headteacher

The headteacher is responsible for ensuring that staff understand this policy, and that it is being implemented consistently throughout the school.

The designated safeguarding lead

Details of the school’s DSL and Deputy DSL are set out in our child protection and safeguarding policy as well as relevant job descriptions.

The DSL (who is currently the Headteacher) takes lead responsibility for online safety in school, in particular:

• In ensuring that staff understand this policy and that it is being implemented consistently throughout the school
• Working with the ICT manager and other staff, as necessary, to address any online safety issues or incidents
• Ensuring that any online safety incidents are logged and dealt with appropriately in line with this policy
• Ensuring that any incidents of cyber-bullying are logged and dealt with appropriately in line with the school behaviour policy
• Updating and delivering staff training on online safety
• Liaising with other agencies and/or external services if necessary
• Providing regular reports on online safety in school to the headteacher and/or governing board

This list is not intended to be exhaustive.

The ICT manager (Dorset Council - Doug Lambert)

The ICT manager is responsible for:

• Putting in place appropriate filtering and monitoring systems, which are updated on a regular basis and keep pupils safe from potentially harmful and inappropriate content and contact online while at school, including terrorist and extremist material
• Ensuring that the school’s ICT systems are secure and protected against viruses and malware, and that such safety mechanisms are updated regularly
• Conducting a full security check and monitoring the school’s ICT systems on a monthly basis
• Blocking access to potentially dangerous sites and, where possible, preventing the downloading of potentially dangerous files
• Ensuring that any online safety incidents are logged and dealt with appropriately in line with this policy
• Ensuring that any incidents of cyber-bullying are dealt with appropriately in line with the school behaviour policy

This list is not intended to be exhaustive.

 All staff and volunteers

All staff, including contractors and agency staff, and volunteers are responsible for:

• Maintaining an understanding of this policy
• Implementing this policy consistently
• Agreeing and adhering to the terms on acceptable use of the school’s ICT systems and the internet, and ensuring that pupils follow the school’s terms on acceptable use
• Working with the DSL to ensure that any online safety incidents are logged and dealt with appropriately in line with this policy
• Ensuring that any incidents of cyber-bullying are dealt with appropriately in line with the school behaviour policy
•  

This list is not intended to be exhaustive.

Parents

Parents are expected to:

• Notify a member of staff or the headteacher of any concerns or queries regarding this policy
• Ensure their child has read, understood and agreed to the terms on acceptable use of the school’s ICT systems and internet

Parents can seek further guidance on keeping children safe online from the following organisations and websites:

• What are the issues? - UK Safer Internet Centre
• Hot topics - Childnet International
• Parent factsheet - Childnet International
• Healthy relationships – Disrespect Nobody

Visitors and members of the community

Visitors and members of the community who use the school’s ICT systems or internet will be made aware of this policy, when relevant, and expected to read and follow it. If appropriate, they will be expected to agree to the terms on acceptable use. 

4. Educating pupils about online safety

Pupils will be taught about online safety as part of the curriculum:

The introduction of the new relationships and sex education (RSE) curriculum was compulsory from September 2020. Under the new requirement, all schools will have to teach:

• Relationships education and health education in primary schools
• Relationships and sex education and health education in secondary schools

This new requirement includes aspects about online safety. As such we’ve added these expectations in italics below.

In Key Stage 1, pupils will be taught to:

• Use technology safely and respectfully, keeping personal information private
• Identify where to go for help and support when they have concerns about content or contact on the internet or other online technologies

Pupils in Key Stage 2 will be taught to:

• Use technology safely, respectfully and responsibly
• Recognise acceptable and unacceptable behaviour
• Identify a range of ways to report concerns about content and contact

By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils will know:

• That people sometimes behave differently online, including by pretending to be someone they are not
• That the same principles apply to online relationships as to face-to-face relationships, including the importance of respect for others online including when we are anonymous
• The rules and principles for keeping safe online, how to recognise risks, harmful content and contact, and how to report them
• How to critically consider their online friendships and sources of information including awareness of the risks associated with people they have never met
• How information and data is shared and used online
• How to respond safely and appropriately to adults they may encounter (in all contexts, including online) whom they do not know

The safe use of social media and the internet will also be covered in other subjects where relevant.

5. Educating parents about online safety

The school will raise parents’ awareness of internet safety in letters or other communications home, and in information via our website or virtual learning environments (Tapestry and Class Dojo). This policy will also be shared with parents.

Online safety will also be covered during parents’ evenings.

If parents have any queries or concerns in relation to online safety, these should be raised in the first instance with the headteacher and/or the DSL.

Concerns or queries about this policy can be raised with any member of staff or the headteacher.

Parents receive monthly E-Safety newsletters which provide up-to-date information on current e-safety concerns and information about various online platforms and social media including parental guides.

6. Cyber-bullying

Definition

Cyber-bullying takes place online, such as through social networking sites, messaging apps or gaming sites. Like other forms of bullying, it is the repetitive, intentional harming of one person or group by another person or group, where the relationship involves an imbalance of power. (See also the school behaviour policy.)

 Preventing and addressing cyber-bullying

To help prevent cyber-bullying, we will ensure that pupils understand what it is and what to do if they become aware of it happening to them or others. We will ensure that pupils know how they can report any incidents and are encouraged to do so, including where they are a witness rather than the victim.

The school will actively discuss cyber-bullying with pupils, explaining the reasons why it occurs, the forms it may take and what the consequences can be.

Teaching staff are also encouraged to find opportunities to use aspects of the curriculum to cover cyber-bullying. This includes personal, social, health and economic education, and other subjects where appropriate.

All staff and governors receive training on cyber-bullying, its impact and ways to support pupils, as part of safeguarding training (see section 11 for more detail).

The school also sends information/leaflets on cyber-bullying to parents so that they are aware of the signs, how to report it and how they can support children who may be affected.

In relation to a specific incident of cyber-bullying, the school will follow the processes set out in the school behaviour policy. Where illegal, inappropriate or harmful material has been spread among pupils, the school will use all reasonable endeavours to ensure the incident is contained.

The DSL will consider whether the incident should be reported to the police if it involves illegal material, and will work with external services if it is deemed necessary to do so.

Examining electronic devices

School staff have the specific power under the Education and Inspections Act 2006 (which has been increased by the Education Act 2011) to search for and, if necessary, delete inappropriate images or files on pupils’ electronic devices, including mobile phones, iPads and other tablet devices, where they believe there is a ‘good reason’ to do so.

When deciding whether there is a good reason to examine or erase data or files on an electronic device, staff must reasonably suspect that the data or file in question has been, or could be, used to:

• Cause harm, and/or
• Disrupt teaching, and/or
• Break any of the school rules

If inappropriate material is found on the device, it is up to the staff member in conjunction with the DSL or other member of the senior leadership team to decide whether they should:

• Delete that material, or
• Retain it as evidence (of a criminal offence or a breach of school discipline), and/or
• Report it to the police

Any searching of pupils will be carried out in line with the DfE’s latest guidance on screening, searching and confiscation.

Any complaints about searching for or deleting inappropriate images or files on pupils’ electronic devices will be dealt with through the school complaints procedure.

7. Acceptable use of the internet in school

All pupils, parents, staff, volunteers and governors are expected to sign an agreement regarding the acceptable use of the school’s ICT systems and the internet. Visitors will be expected to read and agree to the school’s terms on acceptable use if relevant.

Use of the school’s internet must be for educational purposes only, or for the purpose of fulfilling the duties of an individual’s role. 

We will monitor the websites visited by pupils, staff, volunteers, governors and visitors (where relevant) to ensure they comply with the above.

7a. Unacceptable use of the internet in school

The following is considered unacceptable use of the school’s ICT facilities by any member of the school community. Any breach of this policy may result in disciplinary or behaviour proceedings.

  Unacceptable use of the school’s ICT facilities includes:

   Using the school’s ICT facilities to breach intellectual property rights or copyright

   Using the school’s ICT facilities to bully or harass someone else, or to promote unlawful discrimination

   Breaching the school’s policies or procedures

   Any illegal conduct, or statements which are deemed to be advocating illegal activity

   Online gambling, inappropriate advertising, phishing and/or financial scams

   Accessing, creating, storing, linking to or sending material that is pornographic, offensive, obscene or otherwise inappropriate or harmful

   Consensual and non-consensual sharing of nude and semi-nude images and/or videos and/or livestreams (also known as sexting or youth-produced sexual imagery)

   Activity which defames or disparages the school, or risks bringing the school into disrepute

   Sharing confidential information about the school, its pupils, or other members of the school community

   Connecting any device to the school’s ICT network without approval from authorised personnel

   Setting up any software, applications or web services on the school’s network without approval by authorised personnel, or creating or using any program, tool or item of software designed to interfere with the functioning of the ICT facilities, accounts or data

   Gaining, or attempting to gain, access to restricted areas of the network, or to any password-protected information, without approval from authorised personnel

   Allowing, encouraging or enabling others to gain (or attempt to gain) unauthorised access to the school’s ICT facilities

   Causing intentional damage to ICT facilities

   Removing, deleting or disposing of ICT equipment, systems, programs or information without permission by authorised personnel

   Causing a data breach by accessing, modifying, or sharing data (including personal data) to which a user is not supposed to have access, or without authorisation

   Using inappropriate or offensive language

   Promoting a private business, unless that business is directly related to the school

   Using websites or mechanisms to bypass the school’s filtering mechanisms

   Engaging in content or conduct that is radicalised, extremist, racist, anti-Semitic or discriminatory in any other way

This is not an exhaustive list. The school reserves the right to amend this list at any time. The headteacher will use professional judgement to determine whether any act or behaviour not on the list above is considered unacceptable use of the school’s ICT facilities.

8. Pupils using mobile devices in school

Children are not allowed to bring mobile phones to school.

9. Staff using work devices outside school

All staff members will take appropriate steps to ensure their devices remain secure. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Keeping the device password-protected – strong passwords are at least 8 characters, with a combination of upper and lower-case letters, numbers and special characters (e.g. asterisk or currency symbol)
• Ensuring their hard drive is encrypted – this means if the device is lost or stolen, no one can access the files stored on the hard drive by attaching it to a new device
• Making sure the device locks if left inactive for a period of time
• Not sharing the device among family or friends
• Installing anti-virus and anti-spyware software
• Keeping operating systems up to date – always install the latest updates

Staff members must not use the device in any way which would violate the school’s terms of acceptable use.

Work devices must be used solely for work activities.

If staff have any concerns over the security of their device, they must seek advice from the ICT Manager.

10. How the school will respond to issues of misuse

Where a pupil misuses the school’s ICT systems or internet, we will follow the procedures set out in our policies on behaviour and ICT and internet acceptable use policies. The action taken will depend on the individual circumstances, nature and seriousness of the specific incident, and will be proportionate.

Where a staff member misuses the school’s ICT systems or the internet, or misuses a personal device where the action constitutes misconduct, the matter will be dealt with in accordance with the staff disciplinary procedures and staff code of conduct policies. The action taken will depend on the individual circumstances, nature and seriousness of the specific incident.

The school will consider whether incidents which involve illegal activity or content, or otherwise serious incidents, should be reported to the police.

11. Training

All new staff members will receive training, as part of their induction, on safe internet use and online safeguarding issues including cyber-bullying and the risks of online radicalisation.

All staff members will receive refresher training at least once each academic year as part of safeguarding training, as well as relevant updates as required (for example through emails, e-bulletins and staff meetings).

The DSL and Deputy DSL will undertake child protection and safeguarding training, which will include online safety, at least every 2 years. They will also update their knowledge and skills on the subject of online safety at regular intervals, and at least annually.

Governors will receive training on safe internet use and online safeguarding issues as part of their safeguarding training.

Volunteers will receive appropriate training and updates, if applicable.

More information about safeguarding training is set out in our child protection and safeguarding policy.

12. Monitoring arrangements

The DSL logs behaviour and safeguarding issues related to online safety using My Concern.

13. Links with other policies

This online safety policy is linked to our:

• Child protection and safeguarding policy
• Behaviour policy
• Staff disciplinary procedures
• Data protection policy and privacy notices
• Complaints procedure
• Computing Policy
• Remote Learning Policy
• Social Networking Policy