Pupils give positive review of online safety play

The NSPCC have held the play across primary schools in the island

Schoolchildren have praised a new performance for helping teach them about online safety.

The Net play, organised by NSPCC Jersey, is to wrap up later after it was performed for Year 6 pupils in 28 primary schools across the island.

It follows the story of a popular girl who shares images on platforms "inappropriate for her age".

Pupils at Les Landes Primary School said the play taught them about online safety including the importance of parental guidance.

Pupils Ava, Bella and Bertie said the play taught them about online safety

Ava, Bertie and Bella, all 10, praised the performance after watching it on Thursday.

Ava said: "I think it's really important for children to know about online safety so that it doesn't happen to them."

Bertie said he was aware to "always be safe online and chat with your parents".

"I learned so much from all the actors showing what happens in real life," he said.

Bella said she did not want to get Instagram until she was at least 15.

"I don't really want it right now anyways, because I'm just a kid," she said.

Alex Rogerson, who played a confident teenager in the play, said children had engaged with the performance

In the play Alex Rogerson played Ryan, a confident teenager who did not want to talk about the dangers of social media.

"I think they kind of see a bit of a side of Ryan that they can relate to," he said.

"It also shows the children a clear message of what someone might look like when they are just putting on a bit of an act.

"I think it's really important to obviously spread the message to all the schools, more so the primary schools, but it would be really nice to do it to other schools across the island."

The play was put on by from Deep Dive Productions Limited and featured local actors.

Head teacher Vicki Charlesworth said the performance was making a difference

Vicki Charlesworth, head teacher at Les Landes School, said the performance did make a difference for her pupils.

"They could imagine themselves in that position and that was quite a powerful message for them," she said.

"That really can empower children to think if they've got the skills and the knowledge to understand the risks.

"We teach them to cross the road safely but we also need to teach them how to navigate the online world because that is the world that they're living in."