Barnardos Calls for Schools and Parents to Register for their Online Safety Workshops

Barnardos children’s charity is calling for primary school teachers and parents to sign up to their Online Safety Programme to support children in Ireland.  Parents have reported that excessive personal screen time is causing difficulties between children and parents at home. The Barnardos Online Safety Programme addresses these issues in an age appropriate way through engaging, interactive workshops.

Since September 2019, the Barnardos Online Safety Programme supported by Google.org has been able to help more than 16,400 children and their families across Ireland. The programme is available face to face or online for primary (3rd – 6th class) students and through live webinars for parents.  The workshops take a positive approach to online safety with the aim to help children and young people navigate the internet in a safe and resilient way.  Schools can register for this workshop for the new academic year here: book   

Parents and guardians can register themselves individually on Barnardos website - they will then be sent a zoom link which they can simply click on to join at the time of the webinar. 

Parent Webinar dates:
Wed 29 September – 7pm
Wed 20 October – 7pm
Wed 17 November – 7pm
Wed 8 December – 7pm

Barnardos CEO Suzanne Connolly said “As children settle back into the classroom we hope this is an excellent time for teachers and parents to check in with children regarding online safety - after 18 months of them doing their school work primarily online, on top of their usual screen time.  We have called for online safety to be part of the curriculum, but until then we want to remind primary schools and parents about our Online Safety Programme supported by Google.org offering both virtually and face to face. Through this programme we will equip children and parents with the skills, resources and knowledge to ensure they can safely explore and experience the positive opportunities the internet offers”.

Ryan Meade, Public Policy Manager, Google Ireland said, "We are delighted to support Barnardos Online Safety Programme and reach so many families over the last two years. We recognize our responsibility as a company to ensure that the internet is accessible and used in a positive way. By supporting the Barnardos Online Safety Programme and creating Be Internet Legends, we want to help make the internet a safer place for young people in Ireland.”