Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is everyone’s responsibility. Technology in schools is ever evolving, with online educational resources becoming used more and more every day in the classroom. Protecting children from dangers when connected to the internet and using their devices offline, whilst not restricting their learning and development, is a key priority.
Safeguarding in Education
Safeguarding and Ofsted
Online safety is a top priority within Ofsted. As of September 2016, new guidelines surrounding online safety provision in schools came into place. This guidance covers how staff are educated about risks, how children are educated about risks, how parents are kept informed of how to keep children safe online, protection methods used and what measures are in place in the event of an issue.
The Prevent Duty
This new duty outlines that as part of wider safeguarding duties it is essential for staff and childcare providers to be able to identify the risks of radicalisation and extremist behaviour and know what to do once identified. Monitoring for extremist behaviour and having the measures to intervene in place are a further addition to a school’s safeguarding remit.
Smoothwall for Education
Smoothwall are M-Tech’s preferred safeguarding education partner of choice. With many years’ experience in the field, Smoothwall understand that as the internet becomes more of a key learning tool and resource for children to learn academically, it can be difficult knowing which tools to choose when adhering to Government legislation and implementing appropriate web filtering and monitoring solutions in your school.
Their expert solutions are built specifically around the needs of the Education Market, which is why over 10,000 schools and 40% of educational organisations in the UK alone rely on their technologies.
Smoothwall Monitor
Smoothwall Monitor is a real-time, digital monitoring solution that flags incidents as they happen. Monitoring both keystrokes and screen views, safeguarding staff are informed, through a variety of means, when users try to view or type harmful content.
Smoothwall Filter
Smoothwall Filter – Secure Web Gateway categorises web content in real-time, without dependence on unreliable and outdated URL blocklists. Review and control what students see online.
Smoothwall Firewall
Smoothwall’s Firewall & Filter solution has all the features of the Smoothwall Secure Web Gateway solution paired with a next generation firewall to give you total protection.