Social careWeaving a web of protection for looked-after children
Today’s internet offers a highly educational and cultural experience for children of all ages and backgrounds; adults too for that matter. But consider this: would you allow your child to wander around a town or local village, alone, where adult shops are a plenty and potentially threatening situations could arise? Allowing a child to surf the internet unsupervised is just that. Over 60,000 children are currently in foster care nationwide. Whether the child lives with a foster family or in a children’s home, whose responsibility is it to keep an eye on their access to technology and the internet? Socialising on the World Wide Web has become the communication pathway for technology-lovers of all ages. But how does a foster carer keep track of sites that the child may be accessing or the range of personal details that the child might be uploading onto the internet? Robert Fitzgerald of OLM Systems explains. December 2009 E-safety is of absolute importance with the recent advances in technology. The World Wide Web opens countless doors for today’s digital generation. A wide array of information can be discovered, but with this arrives an ingredient of risk; the internet is universally unregulated, children can view unlimited sites and material which may be inappropriate, but more worryingly can open themselves to cyber bullying and at worst, predator grooming. No matter their living situation, whether the child lives with their birth parents, foster family or in a children’s home, children are equally at risk the world over. But let’s take a moment to understand how e-safety may differ slightly for looked-after children. The term ‘looked after children’ (LAC) refers to those in public care; children who are placed in foster homes, residential homes or with other relatives. When a child enters ‘looked-after’ status there are a number of categories that they may be placed under. The child may have suffered sexual, physical, mental abuse or a form of neglect from their birth family. On the other hand, the child may have been the abuser towards his or her family. The abuse, from either side (family or child), could have originated through the internet, and this is something that the foster family or children’s home must be aware of. Of late it has become headline news that many local authorities are not providing sufficient information to foster carers about the children they are looking after. Sadly, one high status case has highlighted that a lack of knowledge about the child’s background has led to that child going on to abuse his new ‘foster brother and sister.’ Knowledge is key here and something that could reduce the risks of such resulting behaviour. There are guidelines in place at present for foster carers, but no mandatory regulations for local authorities to implement e-safety solutions throughout foster homes and children’s homes under their remit. The most forward thinking councils have placed e-safety on the top of their agenda and, as a result, employed computer monitoring solutions. Derek Allen, managing director at Securus, an organisation that provides computer monitoring solutions to the public sector reveals: “Surrey County Council is certainly leading the way with e-safety. Not only has the council offered extensive training and guidelines to foster carers, but it has insisted that monitoring solutions be installed in all homes that looked-after children reside in.” The lack of mandatory requirements for e-safety solutions in foster care placements raises much concern in the sector. “When a child is placed in a children’s home or in foster care, they will undeniably have access to modern technologies. Whilst this creates innumerable opportunities, it also presents a threat, and with over 60,000 children in foster care in the UK, many of whom have already suffered abuse, this group desperately needs protection,” comments Derek. Technologies should be embraced, not restricted Today’s youth may be street-smart but are they net-smart? Children should be encouraged to embrace the powers of technology, in every corner of their life. Naturally inquisitive, children have the world at their finger tips; they love to delve into the depths of the internet. Unknowingly though, this exposes children to huge risks; an additional concern for those looked-after children that move from placement to placement. “The implementation of a robust e-safety solution provides peace of mind for local authorities, carers and the children as alerts can be activated to flag up instances of bullying or threatening behaviour, and inappropriate internet activity. From a child’s point of view, this provides protection and offers early warning of harmful situations such as signs of depression or suicide, predator grooming, racial or religious harassment, drugs or gambling,” explains Derek. Kent County Council (KCC), another forward thinking authority, takes e-safety very seriously. Acknowledging that information technology skills are a hugely important aspect of a child’s education, KCC has therefore ensured that every looked-after child has access to a computer within their home. In order to ensure that these children are safely surfing the net, the council has adopted guidance issued by the National Children’s Bureau, Internet Safety: A Parent’s Guide. This has also been distributed to all foster carers in their remit. The council stresses that monitoring a child’s access to the internet will help to prevent that child being targeted for exploitation. But let’s take a step outside the box and look at this issue from an alternative angle. Technology should also be embraced by adults; for some though it may still seem like a jungle out there. Nowadays it’s not only the tech-savvy youth generation that are au fait with today’s preferred social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Foster carers may also use this method of communication to keep in touch with fellow foster carers, former school friends, relatives and even their looked-after children; implementing computer monitoring solutions therefore not only helps to protect the children, but the carers too. But how can this usage be managed? Solutions alone cannot simply address e-safety issues; they will help to ensure e-safety but there must also be an underlying knowledge and understanding. Within the education sector computer monitoring software such as Securus is now recognised by the Government as an important element of a successful e-safety strategy and more effective than banning internet access. These solutions perform a number of tasks, namely monitoring inappropriate language, bullying or threatening behaviour and inappropriate internet sites. Education and training must be on tap for foster carers to access. Derek explains: “The wellbeing of foster children is not just a duty of the local authority; it requires the efforts of everyone involved. Safeguarding young people in both the real and virtual world is part of the duty of care that applies to everyone working with young people.” Implementing an e-safety agenda within a local authority may seem a daunting prospect for some but consider the following advice for foster carers under your remit. Here, Derek and I offer our top ten tips for local authorities:
For a long time now, e-safety has been believed by many to be an ICT issue. But in fact, it goes much further than simply a matter of concern with technology; it is in fact a child safety issue that should take top priority on a local authority’s agenda. Robert Fitzgerald, children’s services product manager of OLM Systems, part of OLM Group. 
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