Children 'must know web limits' says Wales commissioner

Adults must impose the necessary checks and balances to keep children safe online, says the children's commissioner for Wales.

Keith Towler said young people are "much more savvy" than parents sometimes think but they need to know what the boundaries are.

He launched a research project on Safer Internet Day, which aims to raise awareness of risks for children.

The project will look at ways children use the internet and digital media.

The commissioner is working alongside Wise Kids, a non-profit organisation which promotes innovative and safe internet use, and the National Digital Learning Council.

"All children and young people don't seem much of a distinction between their online and offline lives," Mr Towler told BBC Radio Wales.

"It's all just one thing and they get really excited by the opportunities the internet affords and sometimes parents get a little scared about that and worried about what their children are accessing."

'Crossing the road'

Mr Towler said he talks to children in lots of different settings and they "still enjoy playing outside as much as they ever did".

He said we need to recognise that the internet provides fantastic opportunities for education and learning and its making sure that children access that safely.

He said that was a real challenge for parents and carers.

"It's a bit like crossing the road, you try to teach your children the best way of crossing the road well. We need to teach our children the best way of using this fantastic resource.

"I think too many parents are very very scared of the internet and because they're so scared they will say 'Oh I don't understand it'".

Handheld computers

The commissioner also praised Hwb, the virtual learning environment, which he said provides protection for children using the web in schools.

Mr Towler said: "We've got to get parents and carers to recognise that children do operate in the digital world. They're all running around with handheld computers these days, they're not just on phones.

"They can access whatever they want whenever they want and parents need to engage on that. "

"We need to remember that children and young people are much more savvy than sometimes we think they are, and they are much more responsible than sometimes adults think they are so its not all doom and gloom.

"What we need to do is put the right checks and balances in place and what children always want from parents and carers is to understand what the boundaries are, and that's our job to do that."

Sangeet Bhullar, executive director of Wise Kids, added that the digital landscape was "evolving rapidly" and up-to-date data was needed on how children and young people in Wales related to it.