Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help support schools to (a) identify and (b) manage risks related to children and young people accessing gambling content through (i) websites, (ii) apps and (iii) social media.
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
The department is committed to helping schools in England protect pupils from online harms, including gambling content accessed via websites, apps, and social media.
The ‘keeping children safe in education’ guidance makes clear that schools and colleges should ensure appropriate filtering and monitoring systems are in place and their effectiveness is regularly reviewed. This limits children's exposure to harmful content, including gambling, while on school-managed computers.
To help schools meet their safeguarding obligations, the department has published filtering and monitoring standards. These standards set out how schools can effectively assign roles and responsibilities, review filtering and monitoring annually, block harmful illegal and inappropriate content, and implement monitoring strategies.
Online safety is also embedded in the curriculum through relationships, sex and health education, where pupils are taught about the risks of harmful online behaviours, including gambling.
The department continues to share best practice with counterparts across the UK.