Agenda item

Outline proposals to develop a strategy for safeguarding looked after children, young people and care leavers when supporting and enabling  them to access information and communications technology.

The Committee received a report on  the key issues being considered in the development of a strategy for  safeguarding looked after children , young people and care leavers when supporting and enabling them to access IT and communication technology. It was explained to the Committee that, when considering the access to information networks, this was not solely about controlling access within the home but that it was more about creating external knowledge and awareness among carers and parents about these systems and encouraging personal safety of the users.  The Deputy Director for Children and Families set out the initial principles  of the strategy which were:

• Children and young people have the opportunity to use ICT to enhance their learning opportunities , develop ICT skills and communicate in the virtual environment

• Carers provided opportunities to develop their own knowledge and skills in ICT so that they are better able to monitor use of ICT by young people and support their use of it.

• There was the expectation from the Council that Service providers  will need to demonstrate that they can support appropriate access to ICT and have a clear e – safety policy which was more advanced than the standard security programmes and understandable to carers and children.

• Haringey managed services would need to have local e- safety policies which were communicated effectively to foster carers and other support services that were contracted and work with children and young people in care. These policies would need to be reviewed on an annual basis to ensure that they responded to changes in technology and are able to safeguard users.

Members commented on the initial work completed on the strategy, and sought clarity on the position of schools in this. The Committee advised that it would be worthwhile reminding staff and teachers, of looked after children, of the additional risks attached to vulnerable children and young people accessing social networking sites. It was agreed that this safeguarding element, of access to information technology, be incorporated in the Virtual School policy.

Members remarked on the disparity between section 3 and 4 of the report. Section 3  which communicated that  looked after  children  living in residential settings were not permitted access to technology in their private rooms but  in section 4, which provided  guidance for Foster carers there was no mention of IT access for children  being open or private. It was felt to be a need for the strategy to also keep in mind the mobile access to technology which children and young people in care may have. In response to these points, the Committee were advised that the strategy was only concerned with information technology which is owned or managed by the Council and the Committee agreed that the strategy should make this more explicit. There were however broader issues of how looked after children  and young people are made aware  of the dangers of  internet social networking sites and a need to develop their understanding of what were safe and unsafe situations, particularly with the increased use of mobile technology where there was  not a fixed control over.

 In relation to monitoring the use of mobile information technology as communicated in section 4.1.5, there was a need to also apply this rule to the residential working practices. This was because there were occasions when staff at residential settings would be taking care of the belongings of children and young people living there.

The Committee advised that, when computer equipment was provided to foster carers for use by the children and young people in their care, clarification should be sought on their skills and knowledge of IT and the internet to ascertain any relevant training needs.

The Committee also commented that the implementation of the strategy would be as important as the strategy itself. They recommended that the training provided to staff should be kept fully up to date with the changes in technology continually factored and the training adapted. Foster carers and staff at residential settings should be made to feel that they are confident and understanding of the uses of information technology and what Children and young people can and cannot access. Also they should feel they are able to provide advice to children and young people on what are and are not safe situations to be when online.

The Committee agreed that the forthcoming updated report should clearly distinguish the rules and principles that will be relevant to access to fixed computer technology and mobile technology. It was noted that there would be further consultation with foster carers, residential staff and young care leavers and a final version of the report to return to Committee at a forthcoming meeting.