Technology News
St Cecilia's Primary School
Keeping our kids safe online: A partnership with families
Dear Parents and Carers,
You may have heard about upcoming government changes in the law regarding social media accounts for children under the age of 16, which will take effect on 10 December 2025.
We are committed to understanding these new changes and working with you to ensure our students have a safe and positive digital life.
Why are these changes happening?
The new rules are all about protecting our under-16s. Many social media platforms have inbuilt design features that can:
- encourage too much screen time (like non-stop notifications or content that disappears)
- expose children to upsetting, inappropriate or difficult content through their feeds.
- learning about the positive aspects of being online and the things they need to be careful of
- building their digital, social, and emotional skills so they can navigate the online world confidently and safely
- knowing where to seek help if they see or experience anything that worries them.
Experts have linked these features to problems for young people, including increased stress, less sleep, and trouble concentrating.
What is the goal?
These changes give us all a chance to help our children by:
Are you ready to partner with us?
While social media platforms have the main responsibility to enforce the age restriction, we all play a part in teaching our children to be safe online.
The best strategies are:
- Clear communication – talking openly with your child about their online activities
- Effective teaching – helping them understand online safety rules
- Positive modelling – showing what responsible and kind online behaviour looks like
- Mindful timing – holding off purchasing your child a smart phone.
Quick facts about the upcoming changes
We will continue to update you as more guidance is provided. In the meantime, we encourage every family to subscribe to the eSafety Commissioner alerts so you can remain informed about the legislation change and ongoing digital trends.
The page linked below from the eSafety Commisioner website has some more detail and resources secifically about the restrictions designed to support families.
Let’s work together to help our children become safe, skilled and responsible digital citizens, who can navigate the online world with confidence and care.
Kind regards,
Matthew Mooney
Deputy Principal and Technology Leader
TERM 4 ONLINE SAFETY WEBINARS
Our Term 4 Webinars focused on how students can keep their information safe online and how to be on the look out for potential scams and other online dangers. The parent information sheets below are a great resource and conversation starting tool between you and your children.
