Responding to racism and violence in current events: Safeguarding
When schools and education settings are open about a rights-based approach and anti-racism work, there is a risk of negative attention from online trolls or far-right individuals or groups. The following reccomend
Avoid real-time posting
Try not to post school activities or events, particularly those linked to sensitive themes. Post about events the day after instead. Consider image guidance for education settings from the UK Safer Internet Centre.
Engage proactively with parent/carer groups and associations
This helps to:
- build understanding of the school’s anti-racist approach
- support respectful, informed dialogue.
Promote consistent, calm messaging with families
Creating this consistency helps to to prevent escalation or misunderstanding, particularly during heightened public attention.
Frame school communications within national guidance
Aligin with national guidance like that from Scottish Government and Education Scotland. This ensures messages are grounded in shared expectations and are not perceived as isolated or individual positions.
Reinforce that anti-racism is a national, rights-based priority
Anti-racism is not a discretionary or localised initiative.
Ensure staff do not respond individually to online incidents
For example, staff should not challenge comments or community posts. Instead, follow agreed school or local authority communication routes.
Report and record online harm
This includes racist content, harassment, or threats, in line with safeguarding and child protection procedures.
Support learners to navigate social media safely
Do this by reinforcing expectations around respectful behaviour, critical thinking, and reporting harmful content. This should be done by following child protection and safeguarding processes.
Escalate concerns appropriately
If you have concerns, seek immediate advice from your establishment’s safeguarding lead. Targeted hate, threats, or expressions of extreme views must be escalated through safeguarding and child protection procedures. These should not be managed at classroom level.
