Online safeguarding for schools
Schools are required to filter what pupils can reach online and to monitor for signs that a pupil is at risk. Edu24 offers both alongside the school's connectivity, as hardware, software and cloud-based services.
Filtering and monitoring are different things
Filtering controls what can be reached: it prevents access to harmful and inappropriate content. Monitoring watches for signs of risk in what a pupil does, and brings them to the attention of the staff responsible for safeguarding.
A school needs both, and each does a job the other cannot.
- FilteringControls what can be reached
- MonitoringAlerts staff to a pupil at risk
- ComplianceDfE KCSIE guidance and Government standards
Web content filtering
Filtering that assesses a page when it is requested, and not from a list drawn up beforehand.
| Capability | What it means for a school |
|---|---|
| Real-time content analysis | Pages are assessed at the point of request, so harmful content is blocked as soon as it appears |
| Pages blocked, not whole sites | Less overblocking, and fewer useful resources lost to teaching |
| Policies by group, time and place | Rules tailored by user group, content category, time and location, for age-appropriate access |
| Social media controls | Inappropriate content removed while read-only access is kept for research |
| Pupils' own devices | Filtering extended to guest and personal devices on the school network |
| Notifications and reports | Incidents notified promptly, with reporting by individual or group to support investigation |
| Choice of deployment | On-premise, cloud or hybrid |
Safeguarding monitoring
Monitoring that assesses what a pupil types and sees, and alerts designated staff.
| Capability | What it means for a school |
|---|---|
| Real-time alerts | Designated staff are alerted within minutes of an event, with the evidence needed to decide what to do next |
| Human moderation | A trained moderation team assesses the more serious alerts and removes false positives, at all hours |
| Proportionate notification | Low-level alerts wait in the dashboard, medium alerts are emailed, and the highest are telephoned |
| Across the digital space | Covers what a pupil types in documents, web chat, social media and more |
| Online and offline | Risks are captured when a device is disconnected and sent for analysis when it reconnects |
| A broad range of concerns | Including mental health, bullying, self-harm, grooming and radicalisation |
Why it belongs with the connection
Filtering sits in the path between the school and the internet, so the provider of the connection is well placed to provide it. A trust on one private network can apply the same safeguarding to every school, and need not arrange it school by school.
Responsibility for safeguarding remains with the school and its designated safeguarding lead. Edu24 provides the tools, and the connection they run on.
Networks for academy trusts →- ProvidedAlongside the school's connectivity
- Across a trustThe same safeguarding at every school
- ResponsibilityRemains with the school
Discuss filtering and monitoring
Tell us what the school uses today and when it is due for review. We will set out the options alongside its connectivity.
Work with us →