Online Safety
Government guidance across the UK highlights the importance of safeguarding pupils from harmful and inappropriate online material. This includes material accessed through devices such as computers, laptops, tablets and mobile phones, as well as platforms such as social media and online games.
A whole school approach to e-safety helps ensure staff, governors and parents are able to teach children about staying safe when using internet technologies. It also helps make sure pupils themselves know how to behave responsibly online.
We have provide a monthly online safety newsletter and support parents in helping to keep children safe online. Please click on the video to see how you can set up parental controls:
We are planning to hold workshops for parents to highlight the risks and provide support in setting up security features on devices.
Online Safety Guides for Parents & Carers
April 2026- Online Gaming Safety Guide
https://www.knowsleyclcs.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Online-Gaming.mp4
Photographs & Social Media
If you've been part of the Tilston family for a while, you'll know how much we love celebrating our children.
Whether it's a residential visit, a sporting success, World Book Day, a science investigation or simply a wonderful afternoon of learning, we've always enjoyed sharing photographs that capture the life of our school. We know how much parents, grandparents and extended family enjoy seeing these snapshots of childhood, particularly when children are away from home or taking part in exciting experiences.
Over the past few months, however, you may have noticed something a little different. We are sharing fewer photographs on our public social media platforms than we have done in the past.
This isn't because we're any less proud of our children—quite the opposite. It is because the digital world is changing rapidly, and as a school our first responsibility will always be safeguarding.
A Changing Online World
Technology has transformed the way we communicate and celebrate children's achievements. Unfortunately, it has also created new safeguarding challenges that simply didn't exist a few years ago.
Recent guidance for schools, produced by the UK Online Harms Early Warning Working Group—a partnership including organisations such as CEOP, Childnet, the NSPCC, the Internet Watch Foundation and SWGfL—encourages schools to carefully review how images of children are shared online. The guidance highlights that publicly available photographs can be copied, manipulated, shared without permission or combined with other information to identify children.
While these risks remain relatively uncommon, they are nevertheless real. As safeguarding evolves, schools must evolve with it.
Just as we regularly review our approaches to online safety, cyber security and data protection, we are also reviewing how we use children's images in public spaces.
Celebrating Children Safely
Photographs remain a wonderful way to celebrate learning and capture special memories. We have absolutely no intention of stopping that.
However, we are increasingly asking ourselves an important question:
Do we need to show a child's face publicly on social media in order to tell the story of their learning?
Often, the answer is no.
A photograph of children investigating, performing on stage, building a den, planting flowers or working together can tell a wonderful story, even if every face isn't clearly visible.
The latest guidance encourages schools to think carefully about the images they choose, suggesting alternatives such as wider shots, photographs taken from different angles, avoiding unnecessary identifying information and limiting the public visibility of children's images wherever possible.
What Might Parents Notice?
You may begin to notice that:
- We share more photographs of activities than close-up portraits.
- Group photographs become more common than individual images.
- Some photographs are taken from behind or over the shoulder.
- Residential updates may include fewer live photographs than in previous years.
- We sometimes wait until children have returned before sharing highlights.
- We continue to celebrate achievements while thinking carefully about what is appropriate to share publicly.
These decisions are never about reducing communication with families. They are about balancing celebration with safeguarding.
Why This Matters
One of the things we teach our children is to think carefully before sharing anything online. We encourage them to consider privacy, consent, kindness and their digital footprint.
As adults, we should model exactly the same behaviours. If we expect children to pause before posting, it is only right that we pause too.
Safeguarding is not something that stands still. It changes as society changes, and schools have a responsibility to respond to emerging risks thoughtfully and proportionately.
We Know Photographs Matter
We know how reassuring it is to see your child smiling on a school trip.
We know grandparents love seeing special moments.
We know that photographs help tell the story of school life and preserve precious memories.
That isn't changing.
What is changing is how we protect those memories in an increasingly digital world.
Our commitment remains exactly the same as it has always been: to provide wonderful experiences for every child, celebrate their achievements and share the life of our school wherever it is safe and appropriate to do so.
Thank you for your understanding and continued support as we place children's wellbeing, dignity and safety at the heart of every decision we make.
New Parental Consent Forms
At the beginning of the new academic year, updated parental consent forms will be sent home. Parents and carers will have the opportunity to give or withhold consent for photographs of their child to be used by the school.
We fully respect and support every family's decision, and your preferences will always be followed.
Further Reading
If you would like to explore this subject further, the following organisations provide excellent guidance for families and schools:
- Childnet – Digital citizenship and online safety resources: https://www.childnet.com
- NSPCC – Advice for parents on keeping children safe online: https://www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/online-safety/
- CEOP Education – Information for parents and carers about online safety and digital safeguarding: https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents/
- Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) – Guidance on emerging online harms and protecting children online: https://www.iwf.org.uk