Children at a Royton primary school have been learning about the risks and dangers posed by online social media platforms.
Oldham police have been delivering crucial talks to pupils at Thorp Primary School on Westerdale Drive, after it came to light that children as young as six were being exposed to various web apps such as TikTok and YouTube at home with their parents’ consent.
Headteacher Lisa Jayne Graham, who was appointed as head at the school in September 2024, hailed the presentation, by PCSO Andy Bigland and his team, as a huge success.
She said: “We found that in the summer of last year, children were being exposed to something very unpleasant on WhatsApp.
“Children are very naive and so we wanted to get officers in uniform into school to speak to them, so they get another perspective on this and get to understand the risks about online use.
“It could be that they are on ROBLOX, and a meme pops up and children are then inclined to look at it.”
About the police presentation, she added: “We had 100 participants from Years 2 to Year 6, and they asked a lot of questions.
“We will also educate parents about online safety by handing out leaflets at the next parents' evening. We have devices that children use at school with content filters on them but there isn’t the same level of security at home.”
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