Fife leads way in new internet guidance for people with autism

Council works with group to help people with learning disability stay safe online

New guidance making it easier for people with autism or a learning disability to navigate the internet safely and legally has been produced in Fife.

To support them, their carers and family members, Fife Council’s adult support and protection committee has joined forces with child protection charity Stop It Now! Scotland to produce a new resource pack – the first of its kind in Scotland – to provide vital advice on the issue in an easily-accessible format.

Alan Small, committee chairman, said: “Internet safety, accessing inappropriate child imagery and the risk of grooming is a very sensitive subject.

“It is important we educate and guide all adults on this topic – in particular ensuring those who may be more at risk or susceptible to the misuse of the internet because of an additional vulnerability are given guidance and advice how to keep themselves and others safe. This includes providing guidance around the inappropriate and unlawful sharing or use of child images.

“The resource is a suite of documents which uses direct and simple language supported by photographs and simple line drawings, so they are very accessible and easy to read.”

Stuart Allardyce, national manager for Stop it Now! Scotland, explained: “Our focus has always been to prevent children from being sexually abused, both online and offline. That’s why we work tirelessly to make people aware that accessing sexual images of anyone under 18 online is both illegal and harmful to the children in the images.

“But until now there has been no resource specifically for adults in Scotland with learning disabilities so we were delighted to work with colleagues on the Fife Adult Support and Protection Committee to produce this resource that fills a real gap in child safeguarding. The resource pack will play a vital role in keeping children in Scotland safe from online abuse. Just as importantly, it will help keep vulnerable adults in Scotland safe from getting into trouble online.”

Copies of the new resources are available online at: https://www.stopitnow. org.uk/easy-read-resources.htm

The resource pack will play a vital role in keeping children in Scotland safe from online abuse