Safer Internet Day: Tips For Foster Carers

This year, Safer Internet Day 2026 will take place on Tuesday the 10th of February. In today’s blog we’re taking a closer look at what Safer Internet Day is, why it’s so important, and sharing tips for foster carers to help keep children and young people safe online.

What Is Safer Internet Day?

Safer Internet Day started back in 2004, and has grown and developed across the decades, so that it’s now recognised and celebrated in over 170 countries.

 

The aim of Safer Internet Day is to keep children and young people, and our most vulnerable members of society safe online, and to promote healthy digital behaviour and safer internet use.

This Year’s Theme - Smart Tech, Safe Choices

The theme for Safer Internet Day 2026 is: ‘Smart Tech, Safe Choices: Exploring the Safe and Responsible Use of AI’.

 

This feels particularly relevant given the current proliferation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) use in everyday life, and is an opportunity to explore how AI is impacting our lives and how it can be used safely and responsibly.

Why Do We Need Safer Internet Day?

The internet can be a fantastic resource for both adults and children, however, as in other aspects of life, children are particularly vulnerable to its potential harms.

 

The safer internet guide breaks the issues down into four distinct categories: conduct, content, contact and commercialism.

 

In other words, the risks to children online come from:

 

• How they use the internet and the information they share

• The content they look at or engage with

• Who they meet or interact with

• The impact of pop-ups, targeted ads, and marketing

 

Meanwhile, the UK government lists some of the specific risks, such as:

 

• Being exposed to violent, sexual or pornographic content

• Cyberbullying

• Stalking and harassment

• Grooming

• Catfishing

• Body-image pressures

• The promotion of harmful or risky behaviours (for example, content around eating disorders or TikTok trends)

 

In their 2023 Evidence Review of Online Risks to Children, the NSPCC stress that ‘risk is not an inevitable outcome of being online’, and that risks can be decreased.

How Can Foster Carers Help Keep Children and Young People Safe Online?

So how can we help to keep our children and young people safe when using the internet? Here are our top tips for foster carers:

Understand the Issues

In order to be able to protect children and young people about the kinds of difficulties they might encounter online, we, as adults, need to be aware of and understand the issues. Take some time each week to find out more about key internet safety issues so that you’re well-informed and up to date.

 

Many of us adults didn’t grow up with technology, such as smart phones and games consoles, which can make it feel as though the children and young people in our lives are more tech-savvy than we are! Becoming more confident with technology is a great way to ensure that you know how to protect children from harm, as it will mean you have a better understanding about the potential pitfalls and also the harm reduction measures you can put in place such as parental controls and restrictions.

 

Internet Matters offers a Fostering Digital Skills course specifically designed for foster carers. Many councils also now run workshops, drop-in sessions and courses on building digital confidence and learning essential technology skills. Your local library is a great place to start.

Issues Specific to Children in Care

Children in foster care can be especially vulnerable to online risks. This is due to a wide range of reasons, including:

 

• Past trauma

• Low self-esteem

• Seeking validation

• A need for connection - more likely to establish friendships online and be active in online communities as these feel ‘safer’ than real-world relationships that can be disrupted by frequent moves

• Poor understanding of their own vulnerability and risk (feeling or acting older than their age)

• Lack of supervision or guidance around technology or internet use before coming into care

• Early exposure to inappropriate content such as violent or sexual content, leading to desensitisation.

 

There can also be significant issues around foster children being identified online, due to potential harm or disruption from birth families, and this can make it riskier for them to have a social media presence, or for fostering families to share photographs or information online.

 

In addition, the use of social media and online platforms can also present difficulties around unmanaged or unsupervised contact with birth families. The UK Safer Internet Centre offers specific advice for foster carers, including helpful information on how to deal with and manage digital contact with birth families.

Talk About It

One of the easiest ways to help protect children online is to talk to them about the issues they might face. Research shows that talking about online safety little and often, and making the internet a part of your everyday conversations as a family helps to embed online safety into family life. Being open, honest and non-judgemental when talking to children and young people about their online lives also increases the likelihood of them feeling able to come to you when they have questions or concerns.

When Things Go Wrong

Sometimes, the first a parent or carer might know about an issue online is when something goes wrong. Whether you’ve discovered a child accessing inappropriate content, or  they’ve become a victim of cyberbullying, the key is not to panic. How you react will inform how the child or young person views what’s happened, so it’s important not to look for blame or to make them feel ashamed. Instead, try to stay calm and talk to them about what’s happened, and how it’s made them feel.

 

The next steps will depend on the specific issue and level of harm done. You might simply start by tightening parental controls or blocking certain apps or websites, or you might need further support from your child’s school or social worker.

Know Where to Find Help

It’s crucial that foster carers feel supported to promote healthy online behaviour and internet use in the children and young people they care for.

 

Knowing where you can turn to when issues arise is a key part of this.

 

In the first instance, you might talk to your social worker or the child or young person’s social worker, along with any relevant organisations, such as their school or college.

 

Other sources of support, advice and information include:

 

Child Exploitation and Online Protection Agency (CEOP) - a law enforcement agency within the National Crime Agency.

 

The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) - the leading UK’s children’s charity, who hold statutory powers to help safeguard children at risk.

 

Childline (0800 1111) - a national helpline for children run by the NSPCC, who also offer information and advice online.

 

Internet Watch Foundation - for the anonymous reporting of reporting of online sexual abuse images and Take It Down - to have initmate photographs and videos over under 18s removed from online platforms.

 

UK Safer Internet Centre - the organisation behind Safer Internet Day.

 

Internet Matters - providing information and advice to parents and carers to help their children navigate life online.

Olive Branch Fostering

At Olive Branch, we understand how quickly the digital landscape is changing, and how difficult it can be for parents and carers to keep up with the online world in order to keep children and young people safe on the internet. That’s why we support Safer Internet Day.

 

It’s also one of the many reasons why we offer our carers 24/7, 365-days-a-year support, as you never know when issues might arise. Knowing that there’ll be a warm, friendly voice on the other end of the telephone when you most need it can be a lifeline to foster carers when dealing with issues such as online harm in children and young people.

 

We also offer ongoing training and development opportunities to our foster carers so that they can stay ahead of current issues and have the most up-to-date knowledge and skills, enabling them to provide the best possible care to our children and young people.

 

To find out more about fostering with Olive Branch, contact us today or book a call back with one of our fostering advisors for a time that suits you. We look forward to hearing from you.