With the NSPCC reporting a 60% increase in calls last year from parents concerned about their child being abused online, it is more important than ever to become online safe savvy and to protect our children the best we can.

Here are some ways we can do this:

Direct Supervision.

Nothing can beat directly supervising your child while they are online by joining in with their activities. Not only can you see and hear what they are doing in real time, you can also respond to and address any safety concerns immediately.

Make chatting about online safety a regular thing.

Where it is not possible or is impractical to supervise directly, encourage children to be at ease when talking about safety issues. They will feel more comfortable telling you if they have any online worries if discussions are a normal part of daily life. Explain simply to your child what they should do if they see something that worries them. For example, if someone they don’t know tries to contact them, then turn the screen off or put the phone face down and tell you straight away. You can also contact the Police on 101.

Become online safety savvy.

Learn about applying parental controls, setting privacy settings, checking age appropriateness of apps and consider content filtering software. These are just some of the ways you can help to keep your child safe online