§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make it his policy to allow local education authorities to act as monitors of minimum standards for internet service providers to schools and to stop non-monitored access of chatrooms in schools. [140785]
§ Mr. Wills[holding answer 29 November 2000]: Policies on students' access to chatrooms and the services provided by internet service providers are a matter for each school. However, access to unsuitable materials is something we take very seriously and we have issued advice to schools and local education authorities on all aspects of internet safety. The Department's Superhighway Safety Guide includes advice on filtering software, monitoring student access, acceptable use policies and the use of chatrooms.