31/03/2021 - Government launches review into sexual abuse in schools 

A new helpline to support potential victims of sexual harassment and abuse in education settings has been announced today by Education Secretary Gavin Williamson.  The dedicated NSPCC helpline number is 0800 136 663 - further details available on the NSPCC website.

08/09/2020 - A message from our Safeguarding Unit to all parents/carers:

It has come to our attention that there is a graphic video circulating on social media. Please can you make sure that you are monitoring your child's online activity to ensure they are not exposed to any upsetting, harmful or inappropriate content. 

If your child has seen the video, or any upsetting content, or you yourself have any concerns, please feel free to speak to staff in school who are happy to help. Take care and stay safe.

23/06/2020 - Cyber Crime Information from Merseyside Police - staff/parents/carers and students are asked to read the following received from DS John Black, from the Cyber Dependant Crime Unit at Merseyside Police.

As part of my role here I look after Cyber Prevent which comes under “Cyber Choices”.  “Cyber Choices” exists to ensure that the Government's National Cyber Prevent Strategy is represented across each Region and into local police forces.

The main aims of Cyber Choices are to deter people from getting involved in Cyber Crime and to prevent re-offending for those who have been involved with cyber crime. 

Young people are immersed in communications and computing technology, including phones, tablets, laptops, PCs, game consoles, TVs, devices and of course the internet.  The Cyber Choices Network was created to help people make positive choices and use their cyber skills in a legal way, please find link to the  NCA webpage re Cyber Choices.  https://nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/what-we-do/crime-threats/cyber-crime/cyberchoices

The below is a link is a link to Parent Info.org website. Parent Info partners with the NCA (National Crime Agency), Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) team. It is a standalone website for parents and is embedded as a ‘newsfeed’ on over 8,000 school websites. 
https://parentinfo.org/article/help-your-child-make-positive-cyber-choices New content is written on a weekly basis and articles currently have a COVID-19 focus.

The NCA were asked to write Prevent-focused article with advice for parents/carers/guardians/teachers during the lockdown and the NCA identified this as a good opportunity to promote Cyber Choices, provide direct Prevent messaging for our secondary target audience and signpost them to some resources.  Contained within the above is explanation of ‘Cyberland’, this is where Young people aged 12-18 can now get involved in protecting the virtual city ‘Cyberland’ from a cyber-attack.

Within Cyberland there are 16 interactive exercises which include the fundamentals of cyber security such as firewall configuration and a module on the Computer Misuse Act (1990). Individuals can also explore career opportunities linked to their digital skills, it can be found here: https://cybergamesuk.com/

Access is free until September 2020 to help mitigate the potential increased risks of young people becoming involved in cybercrime over the summer, either knowingly or by mistake.