Email to school DSL about an online safety concern

Calm, factual email to your child's school Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) raising an online safety concern.

When to use this templateUse when something has happened online that involves classmates, school devices, or a school account, and you want the DSL to be aware and to take appropriate safeguarding action.

Tone guidance

Keep it calm and factual. Avoid blaming individual pupils by name in the first email unless essential.
Use "I would like" or "I would find it helpful if" rather than demands.
Stick to what you have seen or what your child has told you. Mark anything uncertain as "I understand that" or "my child says".
Keep it short. One screen of text is usually enough for an opening email.

Template

Subject: [SUBJECT LINE]

Dear [DSL NAME or "Designated Safeguarding Lead"],

I am writing about an online safety concern involving my child, [YOUR CHILD'S NAME] in [YEAR GROUP].

What has happened: [BRIEF FACTUAL SUMMARY]

When this happened: [DATE/TIME]
Platform or device involved: [PLATFORM OR DEVICE]
Other pupils involved (if known): [OTHER PUPILS IF KNOWN]

What my child has done so far: [WHAT YOUR CHILD HAS DONE]

I would like to flag this so the school is aware and can take any safeguarding steps it considers appropriate. Specifically, I would find it helpful if you could: [WHAT YOU ARE ASKING FOR]

I have kept screenshots and notes of what happened and can share them on request. Please let me know the best way to share them securely.

I would be grateful if you could confirm receipt of this email and let me know who will be the main point of contact.

Thank you for your time.

Kind regards,
[YOUR NAME]
[YOUR PHONE / EMAIL]

Fields to replace

[SUBJECT LINE] — Subject line · Short and specific, e.g. "Online safety concern: Year 7 group chat".
[DSL NAME or "Designated Safeguarding Lead"] — DSL name or fallback
[YOUR CHILD'S NAME] — Your child's name
[YEAR GROUP] — Year group / class
[BRIEF FACTUAL SUMMARY] — Brief factual summary · Two or three sentences. Stick to what happened, not interpretation.
[DATE/TIME] — Date and time of incident
[PLATFORM OR DEVICE] — Platform or device involved
[OTHER PUPILS IF KNOWN] — Other children involved (if known and appropriate to share)
[WHAT YOUR CHILD HAS DONE] — What your child has said or done so far
[WHAT YOU ARE ASKING FOR] — What you would like from the school
[YOUR NAME] — Your name
[YOUR PHONE / EMAIL] — Contact details

What to attach

•Screenshots of any messages or posts (clearly dated if possible).
•A simple timeline of what happened and when.
•Any context the school may not have (e.g. group chat name, app used).

What not to include

Other children's full names in the email body if you can avoid it. Offer to share separately.
Speculation about another child's home life or motives.
Threats of legal action, social media exposure, or going to the press.
Sexual or indecent images of any child. Do not forward or attach these. Report to the police and IWF.
Long emotional sections. Keep feelings short; lead with facts.

Sources

Keeping Children Safe in Education — UK Department for Education
NSPCC: Talking to your child's school about safeguarding — NSPCC

Last reviewed: 2026-05-20Next review: 2026-08-20

This is practical educational content to support families. For case-specific concerns about a child's safety, contact the NSPCC helpline on 0808 800 5000 or your local safeguarding team.