Dear Parent/Guardian

Most of you will, no doubt, be aware of the social networking site ‘Facebook’ and the possibilities it provides for people to communicate on a global scale. Whilst we recognise that this is a positive development in the use of the World Wide Web and the opportunities it provides, we understand that you, as parents and guardians, may have some well-founded concerns over the kind of access to your children that it allows other people.

Many children prefer to conduct their Facebook activity in private. This may be done on a pc or laptop, but it is also possible to be active on Facebook on any mobile phone with an internet browser. Some phones come installed with an application specifically for direct access to Facebook. Clearly there are dangers involved with conducting personal communication in a virtual world, especially with teenagers who may lack the kind of experience that is necessary to make sound judgements. These dangers are more likely to threaten when children are secretive or private about their Facebook activity.

Our PSE programme at school presents both the dangers and the benefits of the internet. On rare occasions, the school experiences the fall-out of issues that arise during Facebook activity and we are therefore actively seeking to find further ways to prevent this from happening. We feel, initially, that the best way of doing this is to inform you of ways to protect your child from abuse and other unwanted attention. To this end we have produced a simple guide to help you and/or your child adjust the privacy settings of your their Facebook profile, if you consider this to be the appropriate action to take. The guide is available in hard copy on request or can be downloaded from our website.

For parents of younger teenagers, we would encourage you to discuss their Facebook activity with them (if at all possible!) and assure them that they have someone to talk to if any issues arise. We would also recommend that any time spent on Facebook should be done on a computer in a communal area where adult supervision is possible. More recommendations and advice can be found at www.facebook.com/safety . A selection of the important ones are:

1. Never share your password with anyone

2. Adjust your privacy settings to match your level of comfort, and review them often

3. Be cautious about posting and sharing personal information, especially information that could be used to identify you or locate you offline, such as your address or telephone number

4. Report users and content that violate Terms of Use

5. Block and report anyone who sends you unwanted or inappropriate communications



Finally, please be assured that we remain confident that the majority of activity conducted through the pages of Facebook is carried out entirely innocently, and remains a healthy way of communication and interaction. However, if you have any concerns whatsoever, we hope that the advice and guidance provided here will help you to prevent unwanted or abusive activity directed at your child.

Yours faithfully,

Mr J.B. Robb

Download the guide