Social Media
We would like to provide you with information about online social networks.
The terms on Facebook's website state: "You will not use Facebook if you are under 13" and "You will not use Facebook to bully, intimidate or harass any user".
We at school want to do all we can to educate our children to the dangers of any social networking tool. Although we can become involved in helping to prevent issues, we cannot take responsibility for many of the actions which happen on Facebook, as they happen off school premises and out of school hours. To help our parents and carers with this, we have different documents available to download which can help keep children safe at home, particularly if they have a Facebook account.
Tik Tok
TikTok is a video-sharing social media app which lets people create, view and download looping 15-second clips. Typically, these are videos of users lip-syncing and dancing to popular songs or soundbites (often for comic purposes), enhanced with filters, effects and text. Designed with young people in mind, TikTok skyrocketed in popularity in 2019 and has featured near the top of download charts ever since. It now has around 1 billion active users worldwide.
In the below guide, you'll find tips on a number of potential risks such as age-inappropriate content, addiction and in-app spending.
As shown below, Instagram has many inherent dangers in its use, especially if children do not have all issues discussed with them.
Please note that Instagram require all children to be at least 13 to have an account.
Snapchat
We would like to advise that Snapchat's use regulations say that a person must be 13 to use it.
Also, please be aware of a potentially dangerous feature called 'Snap Map'. If the location services within Snapchat are not turned off, then the user's exact location will be made public to other users. This is a most concerning feature.
We advise that all our children do not use Snapchat. However, if you are consistently supervising their use and have explained all dangers associated with Snapchat, please could you ensure that the location feature is switched off.
