Keeping Safe Online Conference 2023
A one-day conference for education practitioners and professionals in Wales
These one-day conferences which took place in Llandudno and Cardiff in March 2023 aimed to distil key information about digital resilience and offer some suggestions about how online safety can best be implemented in schools.
The events, which were funded by the Welsh Government, were designed to benefit education practitioners and professionals including teachers, safeguarding leads in local authorities and members of the regional education consortia.
In case you missed the conferences, below is a summary of the activity with links to relevant resources to support you in these key areas.
Keynotes
UK Safer Internet Centre - Will Gardner and David Wright (Directors)
Will and David provided an update on the current landscape of online safety across the UK. They highlighted the key online issues currently affecting children and young people and emphasised the extreme impact they can have. They also signposted delegates to support that is available for them as practitioners and for children and young people themselves, including Step Up Speak Up, Just a joke, 360 Safe Cymru, Report Remove, Test Filtering, Report Harmful Content and the Professionals Online Safety Helpline.
Estyn - Assistant Director, Dyfrig Ellis
Dyfrig highlighted the importance of creating the right culture to support schools’ approaches to keeping learners safe and allowing children and young people to speak out when they need support. Estyn research from 2021 found that 50% of the 1,300 young people they interviewed in schools across Wales had experienced some sort of peer on peer sexual harassment. Dyfrig provided an overview of Estyn’s recommendations for schools, including relevant professional learning for teachers, the need to create a safe and comfortable environment for children and young people and the importance of improving the way schools record and act on cases.
Ofcom - Principal of Regulatory Affairs, Elinor Williams
Elinor provided an update on the forthcoming UK Government Online Safety Bill and in particular the enhanced protections this will afford children and young people in the online world. As the appointed regulator Elinor outlined how Ofcom plan to take forward their new role and the impact that their codes of conduct will have on making the internet a safer place for all. There was also an opportunity to hear about Ofcom’s approach to media literacy and their Making Sense of Media programme to help improve the online skills, knowledge and understanding of UK adults and children.
National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC)
The NCSC, part of GCHQ, is the UK’s lead authority in cyber security. In a recent audit, 78% of schools in the UK that took part said they have experienced a cyber security incident. The NCSC’s academia team highlighted that schools are increasingly becoming a target for cybercriminals due the sensitive data they hold and financial transactions they undertake. This emphasises the importance of cyber resilience for schools. The team highlighted the support available to schools including the collaborative work with Hwb to produce bilingual guidance and training including the recently launched Cyber Security Awareness Training for school staff.