Angellica Bell has given her tips for helping parents keep their children safe online over the summer holidays.
The mum of two, who not wish to name her children, tells us that since lockdown has eased, she’s taken to reducing the amount of time they spend online by planning outdoor activities to keep her children occupied.
And like most parents, Angellica is concerned about how much time children have already spent online over the last four months of lockdown.
She said, ‘My other half [Michael Underwood] is a teacher and we’re both ex-CBBC presenters so life is quite varied anyway but they want to do what their friends are doing. They’ve just come out of a period where they’ve been online a lot - they’ve had to use a lot of resources online to help them with their schooling but at the back of my mind I have lots of questions like most parents. How much time are they spending online, it’s not great that they’re on it all the time. We have to make sure that when children are online they’re using it safely.’
READ MORE: Best family days out in Yorkshire
Angellica explains that the new BT Skills for Tomorrow campaign helps parents learn about the new trends such as TikTok and how to monitor screen time.
She explained, ‘It’s all about helping all the generations understand the online world. We are moving into a different era, children are doing things differently and watching things differently.’
When asked what steps she’s put in place for her own children she replied, ‘I try to set a plan for the day. I’m quite an outdoorsy person so it helps so i might say half an hour in the morning and again in the evening.'
READ MORE: Where to buy school uniforms online
She continued, ‘I’d advise parents to go to the platform, look at it, and apply it to their own life - everybody’s life is different. Think about how you can incorporate it so that you’re across what they’re doing, you have your time as well and also that they are off the computer so you’ve got quality time as well.’
And when it comes to using technology herself, Angellica admits she limits her own time online. She said, ‘I like to use a phone to ring people - I'm not on it. I don’t want to be a slave to the phone. If you’re on the train you see people on their phone and not looking around. I like to look out of the window and take things in. I don't want to have a contraption to have control over me and I don’t want to compare myself [to people I see on social media], if you’re always thinking life could be better you’re never enjoying what you’ve got.’
Get answers at BT Skills for Tomorrow and help your child explore and enjoy the online world safely this summer. Make the most of life in the digital world by clicking here
