April 16, 2015

NEWS: BT and UNICEF UK hold 100th workshop on Internet safety for children, parents and teachers

15th April 2015 - BT and Unicef UK today hold their 100th workshop on internet safety for schools. The event at St John and St James Primary School in Hackney, London is part of their partnership 'The Right Click: Internet Safety Matters' which aims to empower children and young people to become confident digital citizens and safely enjoy the benefits of the internet. It also aims to better equip teachers and parents to help children achieve this balance. 

To date, over 2,500 teachers, parents and children across the country have taken part in internet safety workshops at Unicef UK Rights Respecting Schools, which supports schools across the UK to embed children's rights in their ethos and culture. The workshops, which have so far taken place across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, give both parents and teachers the tools to discuss internet safety openly with their children. This includes how to stay safe online, and that as well as parental controls, children need to understand the dangers of sharing personal details and images. 

Following the 100 schools reached, nine in 10 parents said they would talk to their children more about internet safety and as many children said they would tell an adult if something upset them online*. 83 per cent of the children who attended felt the workshops had helped them use the internet more safely and 92 per cent of parents said they would work together with their child to address any problems.

Through the three-year partnership both organisations are working with teachers, parents and children across the UK, delivering 'train the teachers' sessions, which are followed by workshops for parents and children on practical ideas and tools to empower them to make the most of what the internet has to offer. The partnership has also enabled Unicef UK to expand its UK based Rights Respecting Schools programme to 50 schools in disadvantaged areas with a further 30 schools joining the programme in 2016. 

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