Online safety and social media

Creating a safe environment can help keep children safer online whilst keeping in touch and staying up to date with the goings on in your organisation.

We have developed the following steps to help your sports club or activity to create a safer and more supportive online environment for children and young people within your setting:

• firstly create a clear tone for your online content which is - welcoming and accepting of all young people and their differences
• have an online safety policy and an acceptable use statement - which includes the use of social media channels for staff, volunteers, parents, children, and young people
• reference your online safety policy within your safeguarding policy and make sure all staff are aware of your reporting procedures for online abuse
• have specific procedures and specific codes of conduct for young people and staff to follow that outline what’s acceptable behaviour online and what is not

Policies and procedures

> Use our sample online safety and social media policy, to make sure your organisation is including everything that it needs to.

What to include in your online safety and social media policy?

• ensure that everyone involved including coaches, volunteers, administrators, parents and children, understands and complies with their responsibilities and what's expected of them
• managing your online presence, by outlining what your organisations will adhere to
• address any instances of misconduct online in accordance with your online safety and social media policy, and deal with these appropriately (as outlined within your policies and codes of conduct)

Acceptable use statement

Having clear guidelines in place for the use of social media, should include an acceptable use statement and include having online behaviour expectations written into your codes of conduct for children and young people.

> Use our sample online acceptable use statement

Your acceptable use statement should include an agreement which outlines the expected and acceptable online behaviour for children and young people whilst in your care. This helps to ensure everyone within your setting knows what is acceptable use and agrees to uphold this.

Codes of conduct

It’s important to develop codes of conduct that use age and role appropriate language and example behaviours for each audience to cover:

• children and young people
• parents or carers
• staff and volunteers

> Use our samples codes of conduct for parents, children and staff to help promote positive behaviour and to manage poor behaviour in your sport or activity.

What to include in your codes of conduct?

• the expected behaviours that you want all staff and volunteers to adhere to
• outline the rights of all staff and volunteers working with children in your setting

Dealing with online safety concerns

If any online safeguarding concerns arise these should be dealt with same way as any other safeguarding concerns, by following your organisations safeguarding policies and procedures that have been put in place.

For further information see our dealing with a concern guidance.

Social media best practice

There are several ways in which sports organisations and activity providers can reduce the risk of harm to children and young people whilst using social media platforms to communicate.

• you can include guidance in your online safety and social media policy and in codes of conduct for staff
• any online engagement with children and young people should be carried out as publicly as possible
• avoid using encrypted networks such as WhatsApp and snapchat to communicate with young people, as these platforms are not public
• agree parameters for staff and volunteers on accessing and communicating with young people on online platforms, to detail:

- will this be limited to normal office hours or outside of this?
- work devices and/or personal?
- parameters may also be different when events are held

• ensure that your organisation has at least 2 members of staff with access to your social media accounts
• equip young people with knowledge about the risks to them and how to deal with and report any concerns by referring them to Childline’s resources
• develop clear guidelines on social media use for young people. This should include an acceptable use statement and writing online behaviour expectations into your codes of conduct for children
• inform young people who they can contact if they need help or have any questions or concerns about social media

Video conferencing platforms

Video streaming and conferencing platforms such as Microsoft Teams and Zoom are increasingly being used by sport to deliver online sessions to young people. It is important that organisation and clubs think about these platforms when writing your online safety policies and procedures to help address any additional safeguarding concerns that may arise.

This could include the following guidance:

• children and young people use video platforms with a parent present
• staff and volunteers have two members of staff dial in to virtual or video sessions (even if one is only observing)
• young people are kept safe from exposure to inappropriate content by password protecting sessions
• only the presenter can share their screen
• meeting invites should not be shared publicly

We’ve developed some guidance on remote teaching and coaching.

Instant messaging apps

Online messaging apps such as Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp can pose an increased risk to young people due to their private nature. Like text messages, content, images and videos can be shared privately, or in groups set up by users. These private messages could be used to bully or intimidate young people, expose them to inappropriate content or groom them for abuse.

Sports organisations and activity providers need to think about how they use these apps alongside public pages and profiles and how the use differs from those on public platforms. Messages should never be sent privately by a staff member to a young person.

It’s important that clear boundaries are set for adults on how they can use these apps to communicate with young members, and also how to respond to reports of bullying from other children. This guidance should be written into your online safety and social media policy and your acceptable use statement for children.

The digital world is rapidly evolving – here, we highlight sport-specific resources for safeguarding children online, and point you towards the parts of the NSPCC website where you can keep up with what you need to know about online safety.

CPSU resources

• The impact of social media use on young athletes' body image - 2024 podcast
• Online safety series podcast
• Photography – guidance and advice on risks, policies and procedures
• Sample online acceptable use statement – ask children to sign-up to and follow this statement to help them understand the risks online
• Sample online safety and social media policy – use this sample policy to create your own for your club or organisation
• WhatsApp go to guide for sport - a guide to help support sports if you're thinking of using or are already using WhatsApp

Resources for young people and parents

• NSPCC's online safety hub – information on talking to children about staying safe online
• NSPCC's preventing online harm and abuse - useful information on how you can prevent online harm and possible abuse taking place
• NSPCC's responding to online abuse - advice on how to respond to any online abuse 
• NSPCC's social media, online communities and safeguarding - this guidance highlights the benefits and risks of social media and online communities
• Online and mobile safety – Childline's advice for children and young people on using the web
• Report Remove – Childline tool to help young people report a naked image of themselves online
• Sexual abuse online – helping my autistic child – Ann Craft Trust resource to help parents and children understand various online risks
• Thinkuknow's home activity packs – to help parents learn about online safety at home with their children 

Further NSPCC resources

• Enhancing online safety for children - an NSPCC Learning podcast
• Keeping children safe online course – an online introductory course for anyone working with children, developed by the NSPCC and CEOP
• Online abuse – guidance on identifying abuse, and where to access relevant support and resources to help
• Sexting – advice on talking to children about the risks of sexting and what you can do to protect them
• Taking "online" out of online safety - NSPCC Learning blog

Other useful resources and websites

• Child Exploitation and Online Protection command (CEOP) – a UK law-enforcement command dedicated to tackling sexual exploitation of children, which also provides education and awareness resources on the CEOP Education website

• Internet Watch Foundation - helps to protect child from sexual abuse by tracking down and removing any online record of the abuse.

• Sexting in schools and colleges – responding to incidents and safeguarding young people – a guide produced by UKCCIS on responding to disclosures, handling imagery, preventative education and working with parents
• UK Safer Internet Centre – offers a wide range of advice and resources on how to stay safe online, whether you are a young person, a parent or carer, or are working with children

Publications

• Cyberbullying and its impact on young people’s emotional health and well-being research. The Psychiatrist 37(5): pp 167-170 – Helen Cowie (2013)
• Victims’ voices – the impact of online grooming and sexual abuse research (PDF). Universal Journal of Psychology 1(2): pp 59-71 – Helen C Whittle, et al (2013)