Resources, tools and services

In collaboration with SWGfL we have commissioned a review of the 360 safe Cymru tool. This will enhance and streamline the existing self-review aspects from 28 to 21, and will also include updated sample policy templates for schools to use based on the latest guidance. The new tool is due to be launched in January 2021 as part of a new 360 safe Cymru tool suite that will also include the 360 Cymru digital learning self-review tool.

Ninety-five per cent of maintained schools in Wales are currently registered with the existing 360 safe Cymru tool, with over 66 per cent of these having completed all 28 aspects. Schools receive termly e-mail reminders promoting the benefits of completing the self-assessment review as well as encouraging ongoing appraisal. Currently 89 per cent of registered schools have used the tool within the past twelve months.

Action status: Closed (see action 6.16).

In November 2018 the 360 safe Cymru tool received a major update, introducing a new design and adding functionality for users. The home page of the tool now features a graph which illustrates the school’s current progress in the tool, and benchmarks its performance against national standards and that of other schools. Further reports allow schools to check on their progress history in the too, over time.

Alongside, all template policies and tool content was updated, and new guidance was included around data management and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The tool is currently used by 1,426 schools, with the majority having completed all the tool’s aspects. Schools are encouraged to revisit their review, and currently nearly 60 per cent of registered schools have used the tool within the past twelve months.

Action status: Ongoing.

360 safe Cymru is a bilingual online safety self-assessment tool which has been designed to allow all maintained schools, local authorities and other education settings in Wales to assess and review their online safety policy and practice. The tool guides schools through 28 aspects of online safety, helping them to collaborate, report and progress their online safety provision.

The 360 safe Cymru self-assessment tool provides:

• information that can influence the production or review of online safety policies and develop good practice

• a process for identifying strengths and areas for improvement

• opportunities for commitment and involvement from the whole school

• a continuum for schools to discuss how they might move from a basic level provision for online safety to practice that is aspirational and innovative.

The content of the tool and associated policy templates was updated in January 2017.

During the summer of 2024 we worked with the UK Safer Internet Centre to publish bilingual Safer Internet Day education packs. These packs were published in November 2024. These packs are for primary and secondary learners and are full of online safety lesson activities.

Primary education packs

• Safer Internet Day 2025 education packs for 3 to 7 year olds

• Safer Internet Day 2025 education packs for 7 to 11 year olds

Secondary education packs

• Safer Internet Day 2025 education packs for 11 to 14 year olds

• Safer Internet Day 2025 education packs for 14 to 18 year olds

Through our partnership with Common Sense Education, in June 2024, we published 8 AI literacy learning activities, designed to support learners to think critically about how they can be responsible and ethical users of AI.

Action status: ongoing

In July 2022 we published the re-purposed Safer Internet Day education packs to enable these packs to be used throughout the year to help practitioners deliver online safety lessons.

Action status: Ongoing.

During 2021-22 we developed and published a new series of resources providing lesson plans for primary and secondary learners tackling the following issues.

Online racism

• Online racism – lesson plan - Primary

• Online racism – lesson plan - Secondary

Infinite scroll

• Infinite scroll - lesson plan - Primary

• Infinite scroll - lesson plan- Secondary

Children and young people’s rights to be safe and secure on line

• Your right to be safe and secure online – lesson plan - Primary

• Your right to be safe and secure online - lesson plan- Secondary

Be cyber smart to avoid cyber crime

• Be cyber smart to avoid cybercrime - lesson plan - Primary

• Be cyber smart to avoid cybercrime - lesson plan – Secondary

Action status: Ongoing

In 2020-21, we continued to build on the suite of bilingual resources on a wide range of online safety issues. This included the creation and publication of playlists on the following topics.

• Fraud, finance and online crime

• Loneliness, social isolation and social media

• Ethical behaviour online

• Impersonation

• Self-harm and social media

• Healthy relationships and technology

For each playlist there was a version suitable for primary school learners and a separate one for secondary school learners.

During 2021-22 will develop and publish a new series of resources tackling the following issues.

• Online racism

• Infinite scroll

• Children and young people’s rights to be safe and secure on line

• Becoming cyber smart to avoid cyber crime

Action status: Ongoing

In 2019–20, we continued to build on the suite of bilingual resources on a wide range of online safety issues. This included the creation and publication of playlists on the following topics.

• Screen time, technology and mental health

• Misinformation

• Online consent

• Illegal and offensive content

• Online hate

For each playlist there was a version suitable for primary school learners and a separate one for secondary school learners.

Our Online Safety Programme 2020–21 will develop and publish a new series of playlist resources tackling the following issues.

• Fraud, finance and online crime

• Loneliness, social isolation and social media

• Ethical behaviour online

• Impersonation on social media (coming soon)

• Self-harm and social media (coming soon)

• Healthy relationships and technology (coming soon)

Action status: Ongoing.

During 2018–19, we continued to build on the suite of bilingual resources of different online safety topics. This included the creation and publication of playlists on the following topics:

• The insta effect: Body image and self-worth in a digital age

• Mental health and the internet

• Live streaming – Going live on social media

• Privacy and data

• Darker side of the internet

• Online reputation

• Inappropriate material online (primary only)

• Pornography and young people (secondary, and parents and carers only)

• Addressing pornography (education practitioners and governors only)

For each playlist there was a version suitable for primary school learners and a separate one for secondary school learners.

In 2019–20, we will develop and publish a new series of playlist resources tackling the following issues:

• Screen time, technology and mental health

• Misinformation

• Online consent

• Illegal and offensive content

• Online hate

For each topic, two playlists will be developed – one for primary school learners and another for secondary school learners.

Action status: Ongoing.

We recognise the importance of providing reliable information on the broad range of online safety issues to provide support and guidance for children and young people. We also recognise the importance of these resources being engaging, age appropriate and pitched to the appropriate age group.

There are many good quality, online safety resources created by various experts across the sector, however most are available in English only. To help address this, we have contracted a specialist provider, SWGfL, to develop a range of high-quality, bilingual online safety resources for primary and secondary learners.

We will explore what online safety resources are available and how they can be tailored for home-educating parents and carers. The Keeping safe online area on Hwb provides education stakeholders with access to a wide range of online safety resources. Content in the area is regularly reviewed and gaps in provision identified and prioritised for future development.

The numbers of home-educated children continue to increase and many parents and carers will rely on the internet and online resources and tools to support home educating their children. We want to ensure we raise awareness of the potential risks with parents and carers as well as how to mitigate against these risks.

Through the Keeping Safe Online area of Hwb, we have produced guides on a range of online safety issues to support parents and carers in educating learners at home including dark web explained and the metaverse. We also continue to provide an extensive suite of digital resilience educational resources available publicly, that can be utilised for teaching and learning within schools or as part of home education.

Action status: Ongoing.

Through the Keeping safe online area on Hwb we have continued to provide an extensive suite of digital resilience educational resources available publicly that can be used within schools or as part of home education.

Action status: Ongoing.

Due to the impact of COVID-19, it has not been possible to progress this action in 2020. Developing the national response to COVID-19 has had significant implications for us, leading to the work on home education being paused. However, we have created a solid foundation for future work in this area and, as soon as resources allow, we will be able to progress this action.

A draft handbook for home educators is available that provides advice and information for home-educating families or those thinking of home-educating. Parents and carers can also access a wide range of resources through Hwb to support with home education.

The Keeping safe online area on Hwb is available publically to all, ensuring learners and their parents and carers have access to the extensive suite of digital resilience educational resources. In addition during the COVID-19 pandemic we, working with partners, produced specific resources to support distance learning and, more recently, blended learning.

Action status: In progress.

We will create a page for home-educating families to use on Hwb, which will include information on how to access examinations and universal services, as well as links to learning resources such as Welsh language, English, mathematics, science and online safety.

Action status: In progress.

The Keeping safe online area on Hwb provides education stakeholders with access to a wide range of online safety resources. Content in the area is regularly reviewed and gaps in provision identified and prioritised for future development.

The numbers of home-educated children continue to increase and many parents and carers will rely on the internet and online resources and tools to support home-educating their children.

We want to ensure we raise awareness of the potential risks with parents and carers as well as how to mitigate against these risks.

In March 2024, supported by the UK Safer Internet Centre, we published new non-statutory guidance to support schools, their governing body and education settings in the safe and responsible use of social media.

To complement this, we published a 10 minute video designed to help schools develop policies and practice and understand current trends in the online behaviour of children and young people and where to find further sources of support through the Keeping safe online area of Hwb

In April 2024 we published a 10 minute training video designed to help schools understand the latest image sharing developments and safety concerns with preventing and responding to incidents.

In June 2024 we published a series of Common Sense Education AI literacy lesson activities for secondary schools:

• What is AI?

• How is AI trained?

• AI chatbots: who's behind the screen?

• AI chatbots and friendship

• Understanding AI bias

• How AI bias impacts our lives

• AI algorithms

• Facing off with facial recognition

In September 2024 we published two guidance documents for schools:

• Cyber response plan for schools, designed to bolster schools' resilience against cyber threats

• Responding to online reputational issues and harassment directed at schools and school staff

In January 2025 we published Generative AI: Keeping learners safe online guidance. Developed with the UK Safer Internet Centre, this advice supports schools to understand current safeguarding concerns of generative AI and embed these as part of safeguarding practice and policy.

Action status: Ongoing.

In March 2023 we published a factsheet for practitioners explaining the Dark web to help inform conversations and support a young person if a practitioner is concerned they may be going on the dark web.

Action status: Ongoing.

During 2021-22,in an ongoing commitment to supporting education practitioners deliver online safety education in the classroom and to provide resources for the wider range of practitioners and professionals working with children and young people in Wales. Our latest series of published guides cover the following topics:

• A practitioner’s guide to online racism

• A practitioner’s guide to infinite scroll

• A practitioner’s guide to children and young people’s rights to be safe and secure online

• A practitioner’s guide to avoiding cybercrime

In December 2022, we published a guide on the metaverse for education practitioners and families. These guides aim to provide a clear understanding of the emerging metaverse and what it means for young people’s digital lives.

Action status: Ongoing.

During 2020-21, we developed new resources to support education practitioners deliver online safety education in the classroom.

Continuing to build on the existing suite of bilingual resources addressing a range of online safety issues our fourth series of guides, renamed to ‘A practitioner’s guide to … ’ to provide resources for the wider range of practitioners and professionals working with children and young people in Wales have been published on the Keeping safe online area on Hwb.

The guide topics covered are as follows.

• A practitioner’s guide to understanding risks of the dark web

• A practitioner’s guide to bias and misinformation

• A practitioner’s guide to body image and social media

• A practitioner’s guide to responding to incidents of nudes and semi-nudes being shared

• A practitioners guide to using social media

In 2021-22 our fifth series of guides, will cover the following topics.

• A practitioner’s guide to online racism

• A practitioner’s guide to infinite scroll

• A practitioner’s guide to children and young people’s rights to be safe and secure on line

• A practitioner’s guide to becoming cyber smart to avoid cyber crime

Action status: Ongoing

During 2019–20, we developed new resources to support education practitioners deliver online safety education in the classroom.

Continuing to build on the existing suite of bilingual resources addressing a range of online safety issues the third series of ‘A teacher’s guide to … ’ have been published on the Keeping safe online area on Hwb.

The guide topics covered are as follows.

• A teacher’s guide to sources of support for online safety problems

• A teacher’s guide to use online safety playlists in the classroom

• A teacher’s guide to the impact of the internet on mental health

• A teacher’s guide to understanding the role of the internet in radicalisation and extremism

• A teacher’s guide to recognising and challenging online bullying

For our 2020–21 fourth series of guides, we have renamed the guides to ‘A practitioners guide to … ’ to provide resources for the wider range of practitioners and professionals working with children and young people in Wales. The resources created and published on the Keeping safe online area on Hwb will cover the following topics.

• A practitioner’s guide to understanding risks of the dark web

• A practitioner’s guide to bias and misinformation

• A practitioner’s guide to body image and social media (Coming soon)

• A practitioner’s guide to responding to incidents of nudes and semi-nudes being shared (Coming soon)

• A practitioners guide to using social media (Coming soon)

Action status: Ongoing.

During 2018–19, we developed new resources to support education practitioners deliver online safety education in the classroom.

This included continuing to build on the existing suite of bilingual resources on addressing a range of online safety issues including the publication of the following playlists on Hwb.

• The insta effect: Body image and self-worth in a digital age

• Mental health and the internet

• Live streaming – Going live on social media

• Privacy and data

• Darker side of the internet

• Online reputation

• Addressing pornography (education practitioners and governors only)

In 2019–20, we will develop and publish a new series of playlist resources tackling the following issues:

• Screen time, technology and mental health

• Online consent

• Misinformation

• Illegal and offensive content

• Online hate.

Playlists provide a way of collating content from a range of web sources, along with your own materials and quiz questions, into a single resource that can be shared with other users. These can also be turned into an assignment, which will collect the quiz scores from any user who completes the assignment, and display these for the teacher in a markbook.

Using playlists effectively can offer education practitioners and their learners a reliable, safe and easily accessible way of organising and sharing resources on Hwb.

To further support education practitioners, we have issued another series of

‘A teacher’s guide to … ’. These publications aim to provide an insight on a focused issue in online safety.

During 2018–19, the following issues were made available:

• A teacher’s guide to the General Data Protection Regulation and what it means for your school

• A teacher’s guide to understanding how to support young people with the risks of watching and broadcasting live

• A teacher’s guide to managing your professional online reputation

• A teacher’s guide to using peer mentoring in online safety

• A teacher’s guide to new and emerging technologies, apps and platforms

During 2019–20, the third series of ‘A teacher’s guide to … ’ will be issued covering the following titles.

• A teacher’s guide to sources of support for online safety problems

• A teacher’s guide to use online safety playlists in the classroom

• A teacher’s guide to the impact of the internet on mental health

• A teacher’s guide to understanding the role of the internet in radicalisation and extremism

• A teacher’s guide to recognising and challenging online bullying

Action status: Ongoing.

We will ensure practitioners have access to a range of high-quality bilingual resources to support the delivery of online safety education in schools.

We will continue to produce guides for practitioners and professionals working with children and young people in Wales. Each guide covers a different topical issue in the current online safety landscape and includes useful hints and tips. The guides also signpost to other sources for further reading and provide a range of practical suggestions and ideas.

The audit tool has been included in the Keeping learners safe guidance and Estyn will use the tool when undertaking inspections.

Action status: Delivered.

During 2019–20, the safeguarding audit tool will be included in the revised Keeping learners safe guidance as a matter of effective practice for all education settings. The purpose of the safeguarding audit tool is to support all education settings to review their safeguarding arrangements. The audit tool is intended to help education settings to identify strengths and areas for improvement in their safeguarding arrangements, and to ensure they are exercising their legal safeguarding obligations in line with Keeping learners safe statutory guidance.

The toolkit should be used to support a whole-setting approach to safeguarding and provide a benchmark against which to work to continually develop and improve.

Action status: In progress.

We have commissioned the development of a safeguarding assessment and audit tool. The audit tool will support education settings to develop their safeguarding processes and promote national consistency in exercising duties in line with the Keeping learners safe guidance. The audit tool will be rolled out in 2018–19 and we will commission an evaluation of the tool at the end of the first year. The long term-intention, following this evaluation, is to embed the toolkit into the 'Keeping learners safe' guidance.

The School and community-based counselling operating toolkit was published in June 2020 and includes a chapter on online service delivery.

In April 2020, the Minister for Education announced an additional £1.252 million for counselling including funding to support the delivery of the service online during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Action status: Delivered.

In 2018–19, a draft counselling toolkit has been informally developed and consulted on with key stakeholders including local authority counselling providers and the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy. A formal public consultation is planned for later in 2019 and final publication in 2020.

Action status: In progress.

Local authorities in Wales are required to make reasonable provision of counselling services for children and young people aged between 11 and 18 in their area, and for learners in Year 6 of primary school. Some local authorities also choose to offer online counselling to complement their face-to-face counselling service.

We are working with stakeholders to update the School-based Counselling Operating Toolkit (2011), which is aimed at counsellors, managers of counselling services, local authorities and schools. The revised toolkit will include advice on online counselling services, making it clear that when online counselling is offered it takes into account:

• the need to operate on a safe and secure platform

• child protection and safeguarding requirements

• the client’s suitability for the requested platform and their age, including Gillick competency (a term used to decide whether a child (under 16) is able to consent to their own medical treatment, without the need for parental permission or knowledge), and in-depth understanding of issues around consent and confidentiality

• protocols and technical mechanisms for supporting clients in an emergency

• use of social media.

We invited a special school to capture ALN learners’ views on what they use the internet for, what’s good about being online and what worries them and shared this through Keeping safe online as part of Safer Internet Day 2024 celebrations. We have sought feedback from practitioners on how lesson activities can be adapted for learners with different needs and will build on this engagement during 2024.

Action status: Ongoing.

We are currently exploring the opportunity of working with the NSPCC to host some of their online safety resource for families of children with Additional Learning Needs (ALN) on Hwb.

Action status: Ongoing.

Following the survey conducted in 2020-21 we are currently exploring opportunities with stakeholders to develop a range of online safety tips, advice and activities to support families of children with additional learning needs.

Action status: Ongoing.

During 2019–20, we commissioned SWGfL to create six online safety lesson plans for learners with additional learning needs (ALN). Based on Childnet’s STAR resource, the lessons provide activity ideas for learners with ALN to find out more about how to stay safe online, trust people online and respect others online. The lessons are designed for learners with abilities broadly similar to those in primary school (Key Stage 2) and were published on the Keeping safe online area on Hwb in February 2020.

To establish the requirements for further ALN resources, we have developed a survey to inform further resource development in this area. The survey has been distributed through key stakeholder groups including North Wales Adult Services Heads (NWASH), South Wales Adult Services Heads (SWASH) and the Third Sector Additional Needs Alliance (TSANA). We will conduct analysis of the results to contribute to further resource development.

Action status: In progress.

In 2019–20, we, in partnership with SWGfL, will undertake a gap analysis to establish requirements for an online safety resource for learners with additional learning needs (ALN). Following scoping work and analysis, six online safety lesson plans for learners with ALN will be developed – three for primary school learners and three for secondary school learners in Wales.

We have published the 'Online safety toolkit for early years practitioners' on Hwb. The toolkit consists of guidance, supporting documents and an information sheet. The overarching aim is to support early years provisions to develop a culture where children and staff use technology safely.

The toolkit includes exemplar policies to support the development and review of online safety policies and procedures as part of the early years provision’s safeguarding arrangements. A key aim is to raise awareness of some of the potential risks to children linked to online technologies and to promote good practice. The toolkit also outlines the importance of data security and adhering to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and provides guidelines and acceptable use agreement templates to support this.

Action status: Delivered.

In 2019 to 2020, we will develop and publish an online safety toolkit for practitioners working in early years settings. This toolkit will be based and adapted from SWGfL’s early years toolkit. It will aim to highlight and endorse best practice for professionals working with very young children and managing the risks associated with online technologies. The toolkit will contain templates for acceptable use policies and procedures that early years settings can customise to their needs.

During 2019–20, we took a digital approach to reach parents, carers and their extended family members. Working with a range of experts in their prospective fields, SWGfL created a series of short films .This ‘Start the conversation’ film series aims to offer advice and tips to parents, carers and their extended family members.

• Start the conversation – Let’s talk about screen time

• Start the conversation – Let’s talk about pornography

• Start the conversation – Let’s talk about sexting

• Start the conversation – Let’s talk about online grooming

• Start the conversation – Let’s talk about online bullying

• Start the conversation – Let’s talk about radicalisation and extremism

These short films complement the ‘A family guide to … ’ series (see Action 1.1) and will be available on the Keeping safe online area of Hwb.

Action status: Delivered.

In 2019–20, we will take a digital approach to reaching parents and carers. Working with a range of experts in their prospective fields, SWGfL will create a series of short films for parents and carers to offer help and support on some of the most concerning online safety issues. The ‘Start the conversation’ film series aims to offer advice and tips to parents and carers on the following topics:

• screen time

• pornography

• sexting

• grooming

• online bullying

• radicalisation and extremism.

These short films will complement the ‘A family guide to … ’ series (see Action 1.1) and will be available on the Keeping safe online area on Hwb.

In May 2021, we published on the Keeping safe online are of Hwb, the refreshed and updated suite of bilingual Digital Citizenship resources from Common Sense Education. The resources have been adapted for Wales providing education practitioners with access to the latest online safety and digital citizenship resources.

The resources include 73 dedicated lesson plans and supporting lesson slides, handout activities and knowledge check quizzes in addition to family activities that can be undertaken in a home learning environment.

Action status: Delivered.

Common Sense Education are specialists in providing guidance and resources to support online safety and digital citizenship. In 2017, we worked with Common Sense Education to adapt and translate their globally recognised Digital Citizenship Curriculum forming the Online Safety Resource for Wales. In 2019, Common Sense Education refreshed and updated their suite of resources.

We will work with Common Sense Education to ensure education stakeholders in Wales continue to have access to the latest online safety and digital citizenship resources.

Working with Childnet International we have published bilingual teaching toolkits, ‘Step up, speak up’ (13-17 year olds) and Just a joke? (9-12 year olds) on Keeping safe online. These toolkits, informed by comprehensive international research, include a series of lesson plans and activities that address online sexual harassment in an age-appropriate way, as well as guidance for education settings on how they can understand, prevent and respond to online sexual harassment.

To support the need for greater integration of discussions about online sexual harassment across school and home contexts, Just a joke? includes leaflets and a film aimed at parents and carers.

This aim of the toolkits are increase reporting of online sexual harassment amongst young people and improve multi-sector cooperation in preventing and responding to this behaviour. To accompany the launch of ‘Step up, speak up’ Will Gardner, CEO of Childnet International, provided an expert article as part of our ‘Views from the experts’ focussing on research undertaken in developing the toolkit and the issue of online sexual harassment facing young people.

Action status: Delivered.

We have published the ‘Step Up, Speak Up’ toolkit for practitioners on Hwb. The toolkit includes a series of lesson plans and activities designed to address the issue of online sexual harassment amongst young people 13-17 year olds.

This aim of the toolkit to increase reporting of online sexual harassment amongst young people and improve multi-sector cooperation in preventing and responding to this behaviour. To accompany its launch Will Gardner, CEO of Childnet International, provided and export expert article as part of our ‘Views from the experts’ focussing on research undertaken in developing the toolkit and the issue of online sexual harassment facing young people.

We are continuing work with Childnet to make the ‘Just a joke?’ toolkit aimed at supporting 9-12 year olds available bilingually on Hwb later in 2021.

Action status: In progress

Project deSHAME provides resources for schools and the police on addressing online sexual harassment among young people. It aims to increase reporting of online sexual harassment among minors and improve multi-sector cooperation in preventing and responding to this behaviour.

Project deSHAME is a collaboration between Childnet (UK), Kek Vonal (Hungary), Save the Children (Denmark) and UCLan (University of Central Lancashire, UK), co-financed by the European Union.

We will work with Childnet to develop bilingual versions of the Project deSHAME resources to be made available to support education stakeholders in Wales.

The NSPCC Net Aware resources were decommissioned in 2021 and have subsequently been removed from the Keeping safe online area on Hwb. For information on the latest on apps, social media and games for families please see our ‘In the Know’ area on Hwb.

For Safer Internet Day 2022, the NSPCC offered a free gaming workshops for parents and carers which was promoted on Hwb. We continue to work closely with the NSPCC and promote their resources and training.

Action status: Delivered.

We have continued to work with NSPCC to create a series updated playlists of summarising the Net Aware resources. The resources cover areas such as privacy, age and safety ratings.

The following resources are hosted on the Keeping safe online area on Hwb.

• Houseparty

• Roblox

• Snapchat

• TikTok

• YouTube

• Among us (coming soon)

• Honk (coming soon)

• Netflix (coming soon)

• Omegle (coming soon)

• Signal (coming soon)

Action status: In progress.

The Net Aware resources are guides created by the NSPCC and O2 for parents and carers of the most popular sites, apps and games that young people use. The content is based on reviews from young people, parents and carers. It provides parents and carers with the information they need to understand their child’s online world and help keep them safe.

In 2018, we worked with the NSPCC to create a series of bilingual playlists summarising the Net Aware resources.

We will work with the NSPCC to review and update the bilingual Net Aware playlists available through Hwb.

During 2021-22 we have developed the following resources for learners, practitioners, governors and families:

• Be cyber smart to avoid cybercrime (Primary)

• Be cyber smart to avoid cybercrime (Secondary)

• Be cyber smart to avoid cybercrime - A practitioner’s guide to avoiding cybercrime

• Be cyber smart to avoid cybercrime - A governor's guide to avoiding cybercrime

• Be cyber smart to avoid cybercrime - A family guide to avoiding cybercrime

Action status: Delivered.

Education settings are increasingly becoming the target for cyber attacks. Ensuring our education practitioners and professionals have access to appropriate training in cyber security is essential.

Our Digital Resilience in Education Branch will work with trusted organisations including the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and Tarian to develop support and resources for education stakeholders providing information and guidance on practical steps to ensure cyber resilience is embedded within education in Wales.

During 2021-22 we have worked with Promo Cymru, an organisation with experience and expertise in creating content specifically for children and young people in order to develop bespoke information and advice on a range of online safety issues. Focus groups were conducted and a questionnaire issued to children and young people to ensure that the project was informed by their experiences and the information is as relevant, accessible and engaging as possible for this audience.

In March 2022, we published our ‘Advice for children and young people: online issues and worries’ in the Keeping safe online area on Hwb.

Action status: Delivered (see action 1.4).

We will seek to work with partners to create bespoke digital resilience content for children and young people. Working with a range of experts, an innovative approach will be taken to create content that is specifically designed for and appeals to children and young people offering help and support on some of the most concerning digital resilience issues. This will be made available bilingually through Hwb.

As part of the Hwb Programme we continue to review and evaluate all Hwb tools and services to ensure compliance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) and the Children’s Code standards.

We continue to monitor UK Government proposals to amend Data Protection Regulation.

Action status: Ongoing.

During 2022 we have continued to ensure all Hwb tools and services comply with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) and the Children’s Code standards.

Action status: Ongoing.

During 2021 we have continued to ensure all Hwb tools and services comply with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) and the Children’s Code standards.

Action status: Ongoing.

Hwb is the digital platform for learning and teaching in Wales. It is our strategic digital channel to support the delivery of the curriculum in Wales. In addition to Curriculum for Wales and a comprehensive bilingual suite of resources, Hwb provides a range of digital tools for maintained schools in Wales.

Our Digital Resilience in Education Branch will work with current and new service providers to review Hwb tools and services to ensure they are fit for purpose and compliant with appropriate regulations, and designed with safeguarding and information assurance at their core.

360 safe Cymru continues to be available to all maintained schools in Wales through Hwb. The self-evaluation content and associated policies are updated at least annually to reflect changes in the online safety landscape and to ensure advice and guidance is consistent across Hwb, the last update was completed in May 2024. Schools are encouraged to undertake regular reviews of their self-evaluation to keep their online safety policies and practice up to date.

We are updating aspects of the tool and developing a new policy template to support schools with updating their policies, procedures and practice to reflect the latest online safety concerns and challenges, including generative AI.

A Computer misuse and cyber choices policy is also being added to the suite of supporting policy templates.

360 digi Cymru continues to be available to all maintained schools in Wales through Hwb. 65% of schools across Wales have engaged with the tool. Schools are encouraged to undertake an initial review as well as regular updates of their self-evaluation supported by the Regional Educational Consortia to keep their digital policies and practice up to date. The content of the tool remains aligned to the Digital Professional Learning Journal (DPLJ) and the Education Digital Standards (EDS) and will be updated to reflect the National Approach to Digital in Education.

Action status: Ongoing.

The Welsh Government continues to work with SWGfL to promote and provide access to 360 safe Cymru. 97 per cent of maintained schools in Wales are registered with the 360 safe Cymru tool, 69 per cent of these schools have completed all 21 aspects of the self-evaluation. Schools continue to receive regular e-mail reminders promoting the benefits of completing the self-assessment review and the tool is promoted at relevant events and campaigns. The content of the tool continues to be regularly updated.

360 digi Cymru has been made available to all schools in Wales to enable them to self-evaluate their digital practices. The roll out of the tool has been supported by the Regional Education Consortia. 46 per cent of maintained schools in Wales are registered to use the tool. The content of the tool will be updated to reflect changes to the Education Digital Standards (EDS) and Digital Professional Learning Journey (DPLJ).

Action status: Ongoing.

The Welsh Government continues to work with SWGfL to promote and provide access to 360 safe Cymru, a bilingual online safety self-review tool that is available to all maintained schools in Wales, through single sign-on (SSO) with Hwb. Ninety-seven per cent of maintained schools in Wales are currently registered with the 360 safe Cymru tool, with 66 per cent of these having completed all aspects. Schools continue to receive termly e-mail reminders promoting the benefits of completing the self-assessment review.

Action status: Ongoing.

In March 2021, an updated version of the 360 safe Cymru online safety self-review tool was launched. The updated tool streamlined the existing self-review aspects and provided additional functionality and reports. The updates were designed to save time, reduce workload, and make the self-review process more efficient for schools.

Over Ninety-five per cent of maintained schools in Wales are currently registered with the existing 360 safe Cymru tool, with over 66 per cent of these having completed all aspects. Schools receive termly e-mail reminders promoting the benefits of completing the self-assessment review as well as encouraging ongoing appraisal. Currently 89 per cent of registered schools have used the tool within the past twelve months.

Action status: Ongoing.

360 safe Cymru is an interactive online safety self-review tool developed by SWGfL for schools and education settings in Wales. The tool allows schools or settings to review their online safety provision, benchmark it against good practice and other schools, produce action plans, and access a range of relevant resources and policy templates.

Currently under development, the new 360 Cymru tool suite will incorporate the updated 360 safe Cymru tool as well as the new 360 digi Cymru tool that is being developed in partnership with regional consortia and SWGfL.

360 digi Cymru is a self-review tool to help schools and settings evaluate how well they are planning, applying and sustaining digital learning. Aimed at school leaders and digital champions in schools, the tool will provide a holistic view covering aspects such as the vision for digital learning in school, procurement of equipment, online safety, pedagogy, digital competence and more.