Using AI Safely

There can be many positives to the use of AI in helping to find information, making creative content, and getting support quickly through chat functions. However, as with other areas of online use, it comes with risks to children as well.

For example, the content that children see might not be age-appropriate, legal, or promote healthy behaviours. They can also experience harms such as bullying and sexual abuse through the misuse of AI content generators to create realistic-looking content intended to cause harm.

Marilyn Hawes of Freedom From Abuse offers some common sense guidance for teachers and parents on how AI can be used safely by children.

Educate Children About AI

Discuss Benefits and Risks: Have conversations about what AI is, how it can help with creativity and learning, and also its potential risks, such as the spread of misinformation or privacy concerns.

Teach Critical Thinking: Show children how to question AI-generated information by asking if it's true, checking for missing information, and verifying facts with other reliable sources.

Explain What AI Isn't: Help them understand that AI chatbots are not real people or friends and cannot provide the same kind of emotional support as a human.

Set Clear Boundaries and Rules

Establish Age Restrictions: Many AI tools have age restrictions, so check these before allowing children to use them.

Set Ground Rules: Just as with other technology, set specific rules for when, where, and how AI tools can be used.

Encourage a Balanced Approach: Balance screen time with offline activities, like play and family games, to ensure they don't become over-reliant on AI.

Prioritise Safety and Privacy

Protect Personal Information: Teach children never to share personal or identifying information, such as their address or financial details, with AI tools.

Be Aware of Data Use: Explain that many "free" services collect user data, which might be used for training the AI or for advertising purposes.

Report Concerning Content: If any child encounters worrying or inappropriate content from an AI tool, encourage them to report it and come to a trusted adult.

Promote Ethical and Healthy Use

AI as a Helper, Not a Shortcut: Emphasise that AI is a tool to support, not do, their work for them.

Model Integrity: Discuss academic honesty and the importance of doing their own work, even when using AI for inspiration or assistance.

Seek Support from Trusted Adults: Remind children that they can always talk to , a teacher, a parent or another trusted adult if they are worried, confused, or have seen something concerning online.

How to Support Your Children to Use AI Safely

1) Talk about where AI is being used

A good place to start is by having open conversations with children about where they are seeing AI tools and content online. This is an opportunity to talk about the risks and benefits they are experiencing.

2) Remind young people not everything is real

You can remind them that not everything online is real and much of what we see may have been edited. AI is continually evolving, but there can be common indicators to show something is AI-generated — though remember it is not always obvious. Some of these indicators can be an overall ‘perfect’ appearance, or body parts or movements appearing differently or not looking ‘true to life’.

3) Discuss misuse of generative AI

It’s important to address the misuse of generative AI to create harmful content in an age-appropriate way. Make sure that children know it’s not OK for anyone to create content to harm other people.

If they ever experience this or are worried about someone doing it, then they can report that. If you are concerned about how someone is behaving towards a child online, this can be reported to the law enforcement agency CEOP. If a sexual image or video has been created, this can be reported via Report Remove.

4) Remind them to check sources

AI summaries and chatbots can be helpful tools to get quick answers to a question, but it’s important to know it’s coming from a reliable source. Sources should be listed and will often have links so they can be checked. If the source is not listed or is not a reliable source, it’s good to encourage them to check a trusted site for themselves.

5) Signpost to safe sources of health and wellbeing advice

We know young people will use the internet to get advice and answers to questions, which could mean they come across advice from an AI bot or summary. It’s important they access safe information from reliable sources, so it can be helpful to make sure they know of child-friendly, safe sites such as Childline.

6) Make sure they know where to go for help

Ensure your students know they can talk to you or another safe adult if anything worries them online or offline. They can also contact Childline 24/7 on 0800 1111 or via email or online chat — there are lots of ways they can get support.

www.internetmatters.org is worth checking for advice and resources

Who is Marilyn Hawes?

Marilyn Hawes is a British educator, author, and prominent child protection campaigner who has dedicated her life to transforming how society understands and prevents child grooming.

Originally working as a primary school head of music, Hawes’s life changed focus in 2002 when police revealed that her three sons had been groomed and sexually abused by a trusted family friend and church headteacher. Compelled by this experience, she left her teaching career to rigorously research how perpetrators exploit trust and operate in plain sight.

In 2004, she founded Freedom from Abuse (originally Enough Abuse), a community interest company dedicated to child protection. Rejecting what she views as a "soft-touch" safeguarding curriculum, Hawes delivers blunt, hard-hitting training directly to teachers, parents, and children across the UK. Her work focuses on the emotional mechanics of abuse and uncovering how predators extract personal data—both offline and through online gaming.

By replacing passive policies with active behavioural training, Hawes equips communities to spot the warning signs of a predator before harm occurs. Her direct, raw approach has been widely credited with empowering children to come forward, successfully breaking cycles of abuse.