Bower Grove School

Digital Wellbeing and Safety Wednesday Online Safety Starts at Home – Parental Controls Matter Did you know most devices, games, and apps already have builtin safety and privacy settings? Setting these up can make a big difference in keeping your child safe online. Here are a few helpful tools depending on your child's age Google Family Link (ages 5–12) A great free starting point for younger children. You can manage screen time, approve apps, and set basic web filters on Android devices. Qustodio (ages 8–16+) Ideal for older children. It offers stronger screen time controls, app blocking, web filtering, location tracking, and even some call/text monitoring across devices. Bark (ages 13+) Especially helpful for teenagers, using technology to flag emotional warning signs such as cyberbullying, anxiety, low mood, selfharm language, or unsafe contacts in texts, emails, and social media, and alerting parents when a young person may need extra support. This service requires an ongoing subscription. Remember: No app can replace open, honest conversations. These tools work best alongside trust, listening, and regular checkins.

On Friday 15th May Rebecca Dowling will be running our next guided talk on 'understanding emotional regulation', from 10am to 11:30am. The session will cover; understanding emotions, how it can present in children and adolescent and strategies to support moving forward. If you would like to book onto the session to either join us online or in person please email us at connectionsgrouptalk@bower-grove.kent.sch.uk or phone 01622 726773

Competition Time! Got a book that inspired you? Tell us in 200 words or a 2-minute video Share your ideas, get creative, and you could be a winner! Entries close Friday 22nd May 2026 Ready... set... READ!

Archery finished, and now our PGL'ers will return to school.