From the Wellbeing Team

Cybersafety Parent Night Highlights

On 13 February we had an amazing turn-out for our Cybersafety Parent Information evening with Susan McLean. Last year, we had SAPOL visit to share with our Middle and Senior School students about cybersafety, and we will continue to bring in presenters to speak about this important space across the College. However, this one was for you - our parents! We also wanted to provide a space for parents to engage with such an important topic.

Susan was able to offer us such valuable information, so we’d like to take a minute to share a few highlights for those who missed her presentation. Some of Susan’s material was confronting but the sad reality that Susan shared, is that young children are being targeted because they are the easiest option. I share this to bring attention to the importance of this heavy topic.

Many of our children have social media on their phone, but one thing that SAPOL and Susan have highlighted to parents and students, is that these social media apps have terms and conditions that state that you must be aged 13. 

 I want to highlight Susan's three top tips for childrens' protection:

• No phones in bedrooms or bathrooms
• Check your child’s phone regularly for apps and friends
  • There shouldn’t be any name in your child’s friends lists that you couldn’t/wouldn’t have in your home
• It’s a good strategy to lock phones up at night

I know that our children feel that it's an invasion of privacy when we check their phones, but Susan recommends that you should know your childrens' passwords and passcodes, that it isn't an invasion of privacy, rather a part of parenting. I hope you find comfort in the fact that some of the things we do that are unpopular with our children, are for their protection.

At the Parent Information evening, we had some questions about online safety contracts. If this is something you think might be appropriate for your family, please find a template here:

This is a brief snapshot of the content Susan shared, but most importantly, I want to leave you with this takeaway: It’s important for children to know that there is nothing so bad that they can’t talk to their parents about. 

If your family is struggling or has concerns in the area of cybersafety, please reach out to our Wellbeing Team. If you would like to request counselling support for your child, you can make a referral on the Wellbeing Support page on the Emmaus Website.  

Blessings,

Erin James & Steph Reedman

Counselling Team Leaders