ARToday (26th June), Safe Online have published their latest funded projects for 2024, supporting those organisations who are striving to keep the internet a safe and secure space for all. We are delighted to announce that SWGfL has been chosen to collaborate with Safe Online to explore child friendly reporting as part of a new initiative to combat online abuse.
Child-Friendly Online Reporting
Utilising SWGfL's decades of expertise, we aim to adapt existing infrastructure into child-friendly reporting for online abuse. This will empower children to report harmful content safely, enhance digital safety and trust in reporting mechanisms, and foster a secure online environment for all.
Our already established helpline Report Harmful Content has seen first hand the impact of online harm with reports to the service increasing by 31% during 2023 alone, totalling 5,101 reports compared to 3,884 in 2022 with Bullying and Harassment being the most common type of harm reported.
We are aware that online harm affecting young people is rife but the routes for support are sometimes blurred and the understanding around how to effectively report something can be challenging, particularly for younger generations. We aim to research and explore the most effective ways to support young people online as part of this new project.
David Wright CBE and CEO of SWGfL said:
"We are excited to collaborate with Safe Online on this essential initiative. This project will allow us to deepen our understanding of how best to support young people online. By working with the wider network, we can develop innovative strategies and resources that resonate with and benefit the younger generation, furthering our mission to ensure everyone can benefit from technology without harm."
Carmel Glassbrook Project Lead and POSH Helpline Manager said:
‘’With our helplines supporting a wide range of online harm, we are determined to broaden our knowledge of child friendly reporting and work towards a solution that is accessible and promotes a positive space. This project will work towards the widening of support networks available and will further instil across the world that online abuse should not be tolerated.’’
Safe Online
Safe Online is a global organisation dedicated to promoting digital safety for children and young people. Through investments towards innovative solutions, technologies and programmes, its mission is to ‘foster a digital environment where every child feels safe and empowered.’ Through their investments, they ‘build a global evidence base, seed and grow partnerships and facilitate advocacy and collective action for the rights and safety of children in the digital world.’
