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Online Safety

At Family Fund, we want to support your family's digital wellbeing. We offer a wide range of trusted resources and online guides to help you get the most from technology, use it safely, and build your digital skills with confidence.

A mum sitting on a sofa with her feet up using a laptop, next to her a boy on a tablet

We understand how difficult it can be to keep your child safe online. The digital world is constantly changing, and it can be hard to keep up with new trends, platforms, and online risks.

Families of disabled children report that being online brings many benefits. It can help children find communities, make friends, and take part in activities that may be harder to access in person. However, disabled children are also more likely to experience online risks and harms.

To help you navigate this we are putting together guidance and a workshop that’s made specifically made for families raising disabled children. You can sign up below:

Helping your child stay safe online

We also wanted to share our favourite accessible and child-friendly resources that can help you keep your family safe online.

Resources For Parents

If you’d like to learn more about online safety, understand what’s happening online, or find resources tailored to disabled children’s needs, explore the resources below:

An independent, not-for-profit organisation providing information and advice to parents and carers to help their children navigate the ever-changing digital landscape. They can help you with:

My Family’s Digital Toolkit helps parents build a personalised online safety plan for their family. It provides advice based on your child’s age, needs and online activities, making it easier to know where to begin.
Keeping children with additional needs safe online is guidance on supporting your child’s additional needs, whether they’re diagnosed with a specific condition or face barriers online. They provide advice and accessible resources for you and your child.
Apps and platforms safety hub provides expert advice and guidance on the latest
apps and platforms children and young people use. This ranges from communication apps like WhatsApp to popular mobile and console games, and social media.

Gov.uk campaign for parents promoting online safety and support in the UK. They can help you with:

Online safety: how to get started is a beginner’s guide to online safety with guides on using their first device, becoming more independent and preparing for young adulthood.
Speak to an expert – Kids Online Safety Speak to an expert to get more support with questions about staying safe online. Includes helpful advice, where to get local support from designated safeguarding leads, and hotline numbers.

They work to identify threats and harms online and then create and deliver critical advice, resources, education and interventions that help keep children and young people, and adults, safe. They can help you with:

Parents and Carers – UK Safer Internet Centre A dedicated space for parent and carer support guides that cover all devices and includes how to broach difficult online conversations.
SEND – UK Safer Internet Centre Specific SEND support for exploring the challenges that neurodiverse young people may face online with regards to rigid thinking, discerning who or what is truthful online and situations that can lead to strong emotions.

Resources For Children

Children often learn lots about online safety in school, and you can find out what they should be learning in the classroom here: Teaching online safety in schools – GOV.UK

If you think your child could benefit from more at-home support and learning around online safety in a way that’s fun, engaging and age-appropriate, check out the resources below.

We have broken down the content into education-based Key Stages, but we understand that every child’s learning and development is different so we advice choosing resources that work for your child’s needs.

Smartie the Penguin – Childnet – Interactive stories aimed at 3-5 year olds with downloadable activities that introduce online safety topics including seeing upsetting content, unreliable information, being asked for personal information, adverts, searching online, and online bullying.

Smartie the Penguin – Childnet – Interactive stories aimed at 5- 7 year olds with downloadable activities that introduce online safety topics including upsetting or frightening content, pop-ups, screentime, contact from strangers, inappropriate games, being asked for personal information including passwords, downloading apps, fact versus opinion, being asked to meet up, and online bullying.

Jessie and Friends – CEOP Education – Animated videos that help young children learn about online safety. Topics include watching videos, sharing pictures, and playing games online. Available with subtitles and BSL interpretation.

Connect with Respect SEND – Childnet – A resource designed for children with SEND. Covers online respect, friendships, in-app purchases, and online bullying.

Interland (Be Internet Legends) – Google and ParentZone – An interactive game that teaches online safety through four themed worlds covering kindness, scams, misinformation, and personal information.

BandRunner – CEOP Education – A dedicated online safety hub with games, videos, interactive activities, and advice for parents. Helps children learn how to stay safe online through engaging stories and challenges.

ReelLife: Spot the Risk – Childnet – Interactive activities that encourage children to identify online risks, make safe choices, and develop digital resilience.

Balanced Digital Play – Lego – Gaming-related activities for families with children aged 6-12. Each activity is designed to help your family explore gaming together, foster open conversations and build better gaming routines that support your child’s safety and well-being. They also have online games that encourage positive online behaviour (Zeros Quest), overcoming digital challenges (Gloom Busters), and how to spot scammers, bullies, and other online risks (Doom the Gloom).

The internet, relationships, & you – CEOP Education – Resources for older children and teenagers covering complex online safety issues.

Trusted Reporting and Helpline Support

If your child experiences problems online, these trusted organisations can help.

If a child is in immediate danger, call 999.

For non-emergency online crime or serious online abuse, contact the police via 101.

CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection Command)
Report concerns about online sexual exploitation, grooming or abuse involving children and young people. CEOP Safety Centre

Internet Watch Foundation (IWF)
Report child sexual abuse images or videos found online Report online child sexual abuse imagery or ‘child pornography’

Childline Report Remove
Young people under 18 can confidentially report sexual images or videos of themselves and get help to have them removed from the internet. The service is provided in partnership with the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF). Report Remove | Childline

Childline
Children and young people can get free, confidential support by calling 0800 1111. Info and advice | Childline

NSPCC Helpline
Parents and carers can contact the NSPCC for advice about a child’s safety and wellbeing on 0808 800 5000. Keeping Children Safe Online | NSPCC