Education Minister launches new digital course to help pupils stay safe online

Date published: 5 February 2026

Provided through the Safer Schools NI platform, the Digital Proficiency Course has been designed to provide the practical tools and knowledge to empower children and young people to stay safe online.

The course has been made freely available to all education settings, pupils and parents across Northern Ireland.

Paul Givan said:

"Our children and young people are engaging daily with technology, social media, and digital platforms at increasingly younger ages, and while some of these technologies offer benefits and create opportunities, they also contain potentially harmful risks.

"It is vital that we provide our schools with the resources that can support teachers and education staff to equip children and young people with the skills to navigate the digital and online world. Educating and empowering school communities is key to ensure pupils know how to access support from trusted adults or to report content when it makes them feel unsafe.

"The Safer Schools Digital Proficiency Course has been developed and designed to address this need."

The Minister continued:

"This new course is part of the wider response to keeping our children safe online and compliments existing advice, guidance and information on a range of safeguarding issues available on the Safer Schools platform. I am delighted to launch the Digital Proficiency Course, and I would encourage all schools to register and sign up for this free initiative."

Colin Stitt, Head of Safer Schools, INEQE Safeguarding Group said:

"Decades ago, 'Cycling Proficiency' taught us to navigate the physical world safely; today, that 'road' has become digital. The Digital Proficiency Course is an age-appropriate, episodic video-based programme based on the five 'Five Cs' of online risk - Content, Contact, Conduct, Commerce, and Cyber Security. This certified course is free to access for parents, carers, pupils and school staff on the Safer Schools NI web and mobile app. The digital 'road' may have changed, but our collective commitment to safeguarding our children should always remain paramount. I urge all schools and families to use these resources to educate, empower and protect our children and young people in the digital world."

The Course was launched during a visit to Braniel Primary School, one of the 400 schools already pre-registered to take part in the initiative, which will go live on Safer Internet Day, marked on 10 February 2026.

Niall Manogue, Principal of Braniel Primary School said:

"We're delighted to be commencing the Digital Proficiency Course in our school. We expect that it will help us identify what our children know and don't know about staying safe online and provide a structured, age-appropriate resource to help them navigate the online world."

To register your school or learn more about the Digital Proficiency Course, visit: https://saferschoolsni.co.uk/digitalproficiency/