TATTON MP Esther McVey took part in a Be Internet Legends event at Peover Superior Primary School.

The aim of the programme, which Google and Parent Zone have collaborated on, is to teach internet safety to primary school children.

Last year Google conducted research with more than 200 teachers to learn about their experience with online safety in the classroom.

It found that teachers believed children should start learning about online safety as early as the age of seven, and 99 per cent felt this should be a part of the curriculum.

To help teachers educate their pupils about staying safe online it launched Be Internet Legends with family internet safety experts Parent Zone.

Be Internet Legends is an educational programme aimed at seven to 11-year-olds to help them be safe, confident explorers of the online world, through online platforms, teaching resources, face-to-face workshops and assemblies, and free training resources to UK teachers.

Ms McVey said: “I was really pleased to be able to join part of the session on being an Internet Legend at Peover Superior School.

“It was a great, fun way to get across a really serious message.

“The internet plays an increasing role in all our lives, and whilst it opens a gateway to vast knowledge we need our children to know how to keep themselves safe in that world. This is a positive step in that direction.”

The Be Internet Legends programme has reached more than a million children across the UK.

Children at Peover were also shown Interland, a fun-filled adventure game to make learning about online safety fun and informative.

“We are delighted to visit Peover to help teach children about how to Be Internet Legends,” said Rosie Luff, online safety public policy manager at Google.

“By getting acquainted with what we believe are the five core areas of online safety, we want to prepare children to have a safe and positive experience online.”

“It is essential that, from a young age, children learn to think carefully and critically about what they see and do online,” said Vicki Shotbolt, founder and CEO of Parent Zone.

“Parent Zone has teamed with Google to teach children the tools they need to keep them safer, spot scams and unkind behaviour and to understand how their online actions can affect others.”