🎯 1. Purpose
This resource helps:
- Staff
- Parents/carers
- Support workers
- Educators
👉 Support people who may:
- Struggle to understand online risks
- Be more vulnerable to scams, abuse, or manipulation
- Need help staying safe online
🧠 2. What Is Online Safety?
Online safety means:
Understanding that the internet can be useful—but also risky—and knowing how to stay safe.
The internet can be used for:
- Learning
- Socialising
- Entertainment
But it can also involve:
- Bullying and abuse
- Scams and fake accounts
- Harmful or misleading information
⚠️ 3. Why Some People Are More at Risk
People with learning disabilities or additional needs may:
- Find it harder to spot danger or “red flags”
- Trust others easily
- Struggle with complex information
- Not know how to report problems
👉 This increases the risk of:
- Online bullying
- Financial scams
- Grooming or exploitation
🚨 4. Key Online Risks to Understand
👤 Fake people
- People pretending to be someone else
- Fake profiles used to trick or scam
💬 Online bullying
- Hurtful messages
- Threats
- Being excluded
🧾 Scams
- Fake offers or requests for money
- Requests for personal details
📰 False information
- Fake news or misleading posts
👉 Not everything online is true or safe.
🔐 5. Personal Information Safety
People should never share personal information with strangers, such as:
- Full name
- Address
- Phone number
- Bank details
- Passwords
👉 Sharing personal information can lead to harm or exploitation
🔑 6. Safe Online Behaviour
Teach and support people to:
✔ Use privacy settings
- Only allow trusted people to see posts
- Limit who can contact them
✔ Use strong passwords
- Different password for each account
- Keep passwords private
✔ Be careful who they add
- Only accept people they know
- Be cautious with strangers
✔ Think before posting
- Once something is online, it can be saved or shared
👉 Online actions can have long-term consequences.
🛡️ 7. The Role of the Online Safety Act
The Online Safety Act aims to:
- Make the internet safer, especially for children
- Reduce harmful content (e.g. self-harm, abuse material)
- Require companies to remove harmful content quickly
- Introduce age checks for certain content
👉 Companies must take responsibility for user safety.
⚠️ 8. Understanding Age Checks & Privacy
Some websites may:
- Ask for ID
- Use photos or facial checks
- Request personal details
👉 This is to protect users, but some people may feel worried about sharing information.
Support people to:
- Understand why checks happen
- Only use trusted websites
- Ask for help if unsure
👀 9. Signs Someone May Be Unsafe Online
Look for:
- Anxiety after using devices
- Secretive behaviour
- Sudden contact with strangers
- Unexplained spending or requests for money
- Receiving upsetting messages
👉 These may indicate risk or harm.
💬 10. How to Support Someone (Step-by-Step)
✔ Step 1: Start conversations
- “Who do you talk to online?”
- “Has anyone upset you online?”
✔ Step 2: Use simple explanations
- Avoid technical language
- Use examples and visuals
✔ Step 3: Set clear rules
- Who they can talk to
- What they can share
- When to ask for help
✔ Step 4: Encourage reporting
- Tell a trusted adult
- Block or report users
- Save evidence (messages/screenshots)
✔ Step 5: Stay involved
- Regular check-ins
- Support with settings
- Monitor risks appropriately
🧑🏫 11. What Staff & Carers Should Do
✔ Educate
- Teach online safety regularly
✔ Supervise (appropriately)
- Support without removing independence
✔ Create safe environments
- Open conversations
- No judgement
✔ Act quickly
- Report concerns
- Follow safeguarding procedures
🤝 12. Emotional Support
People affected by online harm may feel:
- Scared
- Embarrassed
- Confused
- Guilty
👉 Remind them:
- It is not their fault
- Help is available
- They did the right thing by telling someone
📘 EASY READ VERSION
Staying Safe Online
💡 What is the internet?
The internet is used for:
- Talking to people
- Watching videos
- Learning new things
⚠️ But it can be unsafe
- People can lie
- People can be unkind
- Some things are not true
🔐 Keep your information safe
Do not share:
- Your name
- Your address
- Your passwords
- Your bank details
👀 Be careful online
- Only talk to people you know
- Do not trust strangers
- Think before you post
💬 If something feels wrong
- Tell someone you trust
- Show them the message
- Ask for help
🌟 Important message
You are not alone.
Help is always available.
🧭 TRAINING CHECKLIST (FOR STAFF & CARERS)
✔ Awareness
- Understand risks for vulnerable users
✔ Communication
- Use simple, clear language
✔ Prevention
- Teach safety skills
- Set boundaries
✔ Monitoring
- Watch for warning signs
✔ Response
- Act quickly
- Record concerns
- Follow safeguarding procedures
🧩 PRACTICAL TOOL: “SAFE ONLINE MODEL”
S – See risks
Notice warning signs
A – Ask questions
Start simple conversations
F – Fix safety settings
Privacy, passwords, controls
E – Escalate concerns
Report and protect
📊 KEY MESSAGE
- The internet can be positive but also risky
- Vulnerable people need extra support
- Online harm includes bullying, scams, and exploitation
- Education + supervision + trust = safety
- Early intervention prevents serious harm
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