Personal Development at St. Charles – E-Safety

As part of the College’s innovative and exciting Personal Development Programme for our student cohort, the Learning Support Department is running a Personal Development project for all our Level 1 & 2 EHCP students as part of our continued commitment as a Department and College to help build their knowledge, confidence and resilience, enabling them to flourish in society through exposure to a wide and rich set of experiences including workshops, speakers and visits tailored to their needs. The activities will, throughout this term, focus on the 4 main Preparing for Adulthood themes; Preparing for Employment/Further Study, Independent Living, Maintaining a Healthy Lifestyle and Participating in the Community/Social Interaction.

The programme which is both educational and fun kicked off on Wednesday 8th January 2025 with an introduction to the Preparing for Adulthood themes from the Department through an engaging Q&A session led by Mr Aundrieux Sankofa from the team. This was followed by a lively and thought provoking discussion session led by Mr. Chris Gyakyi, supported by colleagues on the important issues facing young people in society today. It was no surprise that the top 4 issues that emerged were Knife Crime, Mental Health, Social Media and lack of employment opportunities. Other issues such as loneliness and negative stereotyping of young people were also hotly debated.

This led on nicely to the main event of the day which was a workshop on the crucially important topic of E-Safety delivered by an external speaker, Charlotte (Charlie) Witherspoon from ECP (Education Child Protection) Safeguarding Limited, a specialist safeguarding company who deliver training designed to cultivate a safter society for our vulnerable young people. The workshop, whose aim was to raise awareness and develop digital resilience, explored a range of topics including the challenges and pressures young people face on social media such as the risks of harmful trends; the danges of oversharing online and how to develop safer habits when using digital platforms; strategies for staying in control online, the overlap between gambling and gaming and how these elements can impact young people, the laws surrounding intimate image abuse and exploitation, the forms these issues can take and how young people can protect themselves and/or seek help.

Charlotte stated she was “especially impressed by the level of engagement throughout with students contributing meaningful insights and thought provoking questions during the whole and small group discussions and activities. Their genuine willingness to learn and reflect on these important topics was inspiring and the group were a joy to present to.”

Thank you Charlotte for a meaningful and productive workshop as our students continue to navigate the ever evolving digital world, making positive decisions and safely. Students left feeling empowered with up to date knowledge and tools of how to keep safe online.

Feedback from participants also highlighted what a success the workshop had been. When asked to identify at the end by Miss McHugh, Head of LS, key things they had learnt from it, responses included (sample of):

• “I learnt a lot more about how easily I can be scammed!” L.M
• " I learnt how easily you can be deceived on social media.” Z.A
• “I learnt to balance in my head the positives of using social media and the dangers’” J.W
• “I learnt how we can stay in control online to keep us safe.” J.M
• "I learnt about apps such as Reddit, Monkey & Telegram, that they are dangerous.” R.Q
• I learnt that not everyone online is who they say they are!” I.A

Nabul and Zaid from L1 Vocational Studies said they really enjoyed listening to and learning the facts Charlie shared. This informative and inspiring session which was the perfect launch to our project!