Online Safety

The successful delivery of the Northern Ireland Curriculum places an increasing emphasis on Internet access and ICT use. The use of innovative ICT tools in school and at home has been shown to raise educational standards and promote pupil achievement. However, the use of these new technologies can put young people at risk both within and outside school. Many of these risks reflect situations in the off-line world and it is essential that our Online Safety policy is used in conjunction with other school policies, such as the Anti-bullying Policy, Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy and Positive Behaviour Policy.

Belfast Royal Academy embraces the use of ICT and is committed to educating all pupils and members of staff on the importance of eSafety. We have a range of systems in place to support and educate all within the school community on the issue of eSafety:

• Form 1 eSafety Presentation at the start of their first term
• Weekly updates to parents on relevant issues via Pupil Notes
• eSafety updates in assemblies and form assemblies throughout the year
• General information via the Pastoral Intranet
• Pupil eSafety committee
• Safer Internet Day assemblies presented annually by the Pupil eSafety Committee
• Designated eSafety display area in school
• Various eSafety events e.g. competitions, external visitors
• eSafety is taught as a topic via the ICT curriculum and LLW programme

The Department of Education has recently launched a Safer Schools App. This is a free App that can be easily downloaded from the App store or Google play. We would encourage members of our School community to download this safeguarding app as it provides support to parents and carers by ensuring the children in your care are safer online. This is especially important in the current circumstances that we find ourselves in, with pupils using technology daily for personal and social reasons , as well as for online learning. This app is designed to equip families, staff and members of the wider community with expert advice on safeguarding and eSafety issues, including up to date subjects , current online trends and threats and risks to your child.

For further information on the Safe Schools App please visit https://saferschoolsni.co.uk/parent-carer/