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Digital Safeguarding Conference
9th February 2023 @ 9:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Course outline
Safeguarding in the online space continues to evolve along with technology and how individuals use technology for good or harm. We watch with interest the progress of the online safety bill, seek to learn lessons from some of the tragic consequences of online harm reported in the press in the past year, and continue to develop and implement safeguarding policy and practice in the context of child rights and strengthened requirements in KCSIE22. This year’s Sacpa digital safeguarding conference promises to bring you the latest from experts in the field, perspectives on practice, support and resources for prevention and those affected by online harms and progress updates to help you stay ahead of the curve.
Sessions include how online safety is the golden thread of wider safeguarding activity, the latest information about the threats of online child sexual abuse, exploring the consequences of sharing nudes and preventing online harmful sexual behaviour as well as a dip into the opportunities and challenges of the metaverse. Safeguarding practitioners share their responses to the challenges and impacts of safeguarding different groups in the online space and delegates will gain insights into the top three takeaways for 2023/24.
Training Topics will include:
- The online safety bill: what does this mean for safeguarding practice?
- Online safety: the golden thread in safeguarding
- Lucky boys, perfect girls: the challenges for safeguarding different groups
- Nudes to child sexual abuse images: prevalence, threats, and awareness of recent developments
- Revealing reality: the unequal experiences and consequences of nude image-sharing by young people
- Supporting young people and preventing online harmful sexual behaviour
- The opportunities and challenges of the metaverse
- Top digital safeguarding priorities for 2023
Learning outcomes:
- Delegates will take away some key pointers for future challenges and supports to help future-proof and inform their policy and practice around age verification, child rights and the challenge of monetisation of services
- Delegates will have the opportunity to consider the key stands, current themes and points of learning including recent reviews and inquests and the ongoing debate around harmful but legal content.
- Delegates will have the opportunity to consider what else their organisation may put in place to reduce the prevalence of risk online for groups of children disproportionately affected
- Delegates will have the most up to date knowledge on developing themes and responses as well consider the awareness raising resources for parents, carers and children about online child sexual abuse.
- Delegates will be empowered with evidence-based knowledge that they can take into their PSHE and preventative safeguarding practice.
- Delegates will increase their knowledge of evidence-based programmes that deliver outcomes and practical value for preventing and helping children recover from online harmful sexual behaviour and content.
- Delegates will improve their understanding of the metaverse, enabling informed debates, decisions and pro-active future-proofing of safeguarding and online safety policy to incorporate this evolving area of digital safeguarding.
- Delegates will gain insights into key priorities for action in policy and practice that are critical to continuous development of online safety.
Programme:
09:30 – 10:00
The online safety bill: what does this mean for safeguarding practice?
It has been a politically turbulent year in which the online safety bill has been making its progress. Our speakers unpick the debates on the ongoing influences that will shape the final details of the bill, what progress is being made with businesses providing platforms. What this means for families, and organisations working with people who may be vulnerable to online harm. Delegates will take away some key pointers for future challenges and supports to help future-proof and inform their policy and practice around age verification, child rights and the challenge of monetisation of services.
- Chair: Aileen Kane, COO and Deputy CEO, BSA Group
- Speaker:
- The Rt Hon Nadine Dorries MP, former Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
10:00 – 11:00
Online Safety: The golden thread in safeguarding
As identified in KCSIE, the ever-evolving landscape of e-safety runs through all safeguarding practice. Delegates will have the opportunity to consider the key stands, current themes and points of learning including recent reviews and inquests and the ongoing debate around harmful but legal content and consider how this inter-relates and impacts with all levels of safeguarding and protection activity.
- Chair: Aileen Kane, COO and Deputy CEO, BSA Group
- Speaker:
- Karl Hopwood, Chair, Sacpa and Founder, Esafety Ltd
11:00 – 11:30
Break
11:30 – 12:15
Nudes to child sexual abuse images: prevalence, threats, and awareness of recent developments
Our speaker reviews the latest information on prevalence, current and emerging threats and recent developments in the fight to identify, disrupt and convict perpetrators of child sexual abuse and exploitation across the internet. Delegates will have the most up to date knowledge on developing themes and responses as well consider the awareness raising resources for parents, carers and children to support their practice.
- Chair: Claire Dan, Director, SACPA
- Speaker:
- Susan Stather, Senior Internet Content Analyst, Internet Watch Foundation
12:15 – 13:00
Lunch
13:00 – 13:45
Revealing reality: The unequal experiences and consequences of nude image-sharing by young people
Our speaker explores and uncovers the widespread prevalence of sharing nudes and semi-nudes by young people and looks at the latest insights on how children and young people with different characteristics are impacted more frequently and significantly. Delegates will be empowered with evidence-based knowledge that they can take into their PSHE and preventative safeguarding practice.
- Chair: Claire Dan, Director, SACPA
- Speaker:
- Damon De Ionno, Managing Director, Revealing Reality
13:45 – 14:00
Break
14:00 – 15:00
Supporting young people and preventing online harmful sexual behaviour
Our expert speakers will share their knowledge and perspectives on important preventative education programmes aimed at tackling online harmful sexual behaviour and highlight key support systems for those children and young people who are recovering. Delegates will increase their knowledge of evidence-based programmes that deliver outcomes and practical value.
- Chair: Claire Scrimgeour, Business Executive, BSA Group
- Speaker:
- Will Gardner, CEO, Childnet
- Kathryn Tremlett, Harmful Content Manager, SWGfL
15:00 – 15:15
Break
15:15 -16:00
The opportunities and challenges of the metaverse
Our speakers explore the opportunities for education and recreation that the metaverse creates. How will we support children and young people using virtual reality to get the best from this ever-evolving technology. Delegates will improve their understanding of the metaverse, enabling informed debates, decisions and pro-active future-proofing of safeguarding and online safety policy and practice to incorporate this evolving area of digital safeguarding.
- Chair: Claire Dan, Director, SACPA
- Speaker:
- Simone Vibert, Head of Policy and Research, Internet Matters
- Alison Alexander, Co-Founder & Director of Ethics & Social Policy and Sacpa Executive Committee
16:00 – 16:15
Break
16:15 – 16:45
Lucky boys, perfect girls, alternate identities: the challenges for safeguarding different groups
In this session speakers highlight key topics of online harm exploring the disproportionate impact on particular groups of children, their identity and the consequences for their wellbeing. Delegates will have the opportunity to consider what else their organisation may put in place to reduce the prevalence of risk online for groups of children disproportionately affected.
- Chair: Claire Dan, Director, SACPA
- Speaker:
- Alice Vicary-Stott, Director of Safeguarding and DSL, Eton College
- Jen Ryder, Acting Deputy Head (Academic), Designated Safeguarding Lead, Badminton School
16:45 – 17:00
Top Digital Safeguarding Priorities for 2023
In closing our digital safeguarding conference, our speaker reflects on the range and depth of the online safety agenda and focuses our thoughts on practical application highlighting top takeaways for safeguarding practitioners and leaders. Delegates will gain insights into key priorities for action in policy and practice that are critical to continuous development of online safety.
- Chair: Claire Dan, Director, SACPA
- Speaker:
- David Wright, SWGfL
Venue: Zoom (online) – Conference
Cost:
- Member Rate: £195
- Non-member Rate: £390*
Speakers:
The Rt Hon Nadine Dorries MP, former Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
Nadine Dorries was the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport from 15 September 2021 to 6 September 2022.
She was previously appointed Minister of State at the Department of Health and Social Care in May 2020, having been promoted from Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the department, appointed on 27 July 2019.
She was elected as the Conservative MP for Mid Bedfordshire in May 2005.
Nadine was previously an adviser to the former Shadow Home Secretary and Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer Oliver Letwin MP.
Nadine began her career as a nurse training at Warrington General Hospital, then went on to set up her own business and later became a director at BUPA. She has also published a number of books.
Karl Hopwood
Karl is an esafety expert and a member of UKCCIS (UK Council for Child Internet Safety) and sits on the advisory board for the UK Safer Internet Centre and the education advisory board for CEOP. Karl has worked for a number of key players in the UK and abroad including CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre), BECTA (British Educational and Communications Technology Agency), the European Commission and several Local Authorities within the UK.
Susan Stather, Senior Internet Content Analyst, Internet Watch Foundation
Susan is a Senior Internet Content Analyst at the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), where she has worked for 6 years. In this time she has built up a solid understanding of the online child sexual abuse landscape. The remit of the IWF is to locate and assist in the removal of online child sexual abuse material, working alongside internet service providers, industry members and law enforcement partners. As part of the IWF’s Hotline team, she has daily exposure to online child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Susan’s specialisms within the IWF Hotline are victim identification, and ‘self-generated indecent imagery’.
Damon De Ionno, Managing Director, Revealing Reality
Damon is the joint owner and managing director of Revealing Reality, an insight and innovation agency that takes on challenging projects with social purpose to inform policy, design and behaviour change. He holds over 20 years’ experience working in strategic consultancy and research.
Damon has led numerous research projects on the topics of online harms, young people’s online behaviour and how this is influenced by digital design, for clients such as 5Rights, the ICO, the BBFC, the Office of the Children’s Commissioner, DCMS, the National Crime Agency and Ofcom.
He recently led Revealing Reality’s large quantitative and qualitative study ‘Not Just Flirting’, which captured the experiences of over 5000 schoolchildren across the UK – providing valuable insight into the unequal experiences and consequences of nude image-sharing by young people.
Kathryn Tremlett, Harmful Content Manager, SWGfL
Kathryn is an experienced helpline practitioner with demonstrated history of working to negate safeguarding issues. Online. Kathryn is skilled in Educational Technology, Online Safeguarding, Child Safety, Social Media, Training and Curriculum Development. Kathryn has a strong educational ethos grounded with a PGCE focused on Primary School Teaching with Music Specialism from University of Exeter.
Will Gardner, CEO, Childnet
Will Gardner is the CEO of children’s charity Childnet International. Will joined Childnet in 2000 and was appointed CEO in 2009. He is a Director of the UK Safer Internet Centre (UKSIC), a partnership between Childnet, the Internet Watch Foundation and the SWGfL, and as part of the UKSIC organises Safer Internet Day in the UK, which in February 2021 reached 51% of children and 38% of parents. He is also an Executive Board member of the UK Council for Internet Safety and chairs the Early Warning Working Group of helplines, hotlines and law enforcement. Will also sits on Facebook’s Safety Advisory Board and Twitter’s Trust and Safety Council.
In his time at Childnet Will has led national and international projects, and has led the development of Childnet’s range of award-winning internet safety programmes and resources aimed at children, parents and carers, and teachers and schools.
Will was awarded an OBE in the 2018 Queen’s New Year’s Honour List for his work in the field of children’s online safety.
Simone Vibert, Head of Policy and Research, Internet Matters
Simone is Head of Policy and Research at Internet Matters. She is responsible for stakeholder engagement, developing policy positions and delivering projects which aim to influence Government, industry and more. She leads the organisation’s programme of work on vulnerable children, and is Chair of the UK Council for Internet Safety’s Vulnerable Users Working Group. Simone was previously a Senior Policy Adviser to the Children’s Commissioner, leading on digital policy, and a researcher at the think tank Demos. She started her career working for a children’s autism charity. Simone is safeguarding link governor for a primary school in North London.
Alison Alexander, Sacpa EXCO – Co-Founder & Director of Ethics & Social Policy Co-Founder & Director of Ethics & Social Policy
Alison is CEO of the Cornerstone Partnership, a social enterprise with a mission to improve the lives of children and families touched by the care system and is the former Managing Director and Director of Children’s Services for Windsor and Maidenhead Council. Alison has a breadth of experience in safeguarding and child protection and worked previously in Children’s Services in Southampton City Council and Hampshire County Council.
Alice Vicary-Stott, Director of Safeguarding and DSL, Eton College
Alice takes specific responsibility for all safeguarding and child protection matters in the school.
She exercises her responsibilities in conjunction with six Deputy DSLs, who are currently the Lower Master, the Deputy Head (Pastoral), the Director of Boarding, the Director of Welfare, the Deputy Director of Music and the Safeguarding Coordinator.
Alice has a degree in Social Work, and has worked in Children’s Social Care throughout her career in a variety of Social Care departments. Before joining Eton, Alice was the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) for Kingston, Richmond, Windsor and Maidenhead. In this role she was in charge of child protection services working closely with both maintained and independent schools, the police and other statutory agencies. Alice was also chair of the National LADO Network up until she took up her post at Eton.
Jen Ryder, Acting Deputy Head (Academic), Designated Safeguarding Lead, Badminton School
Jen Ryder is currently Acting Deputy Head (Academic) and DSL at Badminton School, a day and boarding school for girls aged 3-18 in Bristol. She has worked in three different boarding schools over the past 15 years and held positions as Housemistress, Head of Boarding, Head of Mathematics and, when her brief time on the academic side of school life ends at Easter, will return to her permanent role as Deputy Head (Pastoral).
Having studied Physics as an undergraduate she then gained a DPhil in Theoretical Physics and worked in academic research for several years before becoming a Maths teacher. She has always struggled with deciding whether she prefers the academic or pastoral side of school life and has shifted between the two enjoying all the roles she has undertaken. She took on the role of DSL three years ago and finds the challenges presented by safeguarding particularly interesting and may finally have decided that the pastoral side of school life is the one for her.
David Wright, CEO, SWGfL
David is the CEO of SWGfL and one of the directors for the UK Safer Internet Centre. David has worked extensively in the area of online safety for many years not only with children, schools and wider communities but also with partner agencies such as the Police, CEOP and Childnet.
David has presented at online safety conferences both home and abroad and currently chairs the National Education Network Safeguarding Group in the UK as well as a member of the CEOP Education Advisory panel and the National Council for the NetSmartz Workshop in the US.
David has been appointed to the UK Council for Child Internet Safety and actively participates with the Council’s education and public awareness working.
