Gaming Consoles

It's worth bearing in mind that many modern games consoles and devices can allow access to the Internet through wireless or wired connections. This allows children and young people to play games with their friends or other people online without the need to be in the same room as each other. It also often allows them to send messages, speak or see each other whilst gaming. This adds a new dimension of fun when used with friends and family, but can also mean that children and young people may be playing games with people they don't know. It's worth looking at the game devices and consoles your children have, and see whether they allow your child to connect to the Internet.

Most games devices will allow you to set parental controls restricting the age rating of games they play, and also regulating how the devices can access the Internet. Refer to the documentation that came with the games console for more information.

Ofcom Parental Controls for Games Consoles Ofcom have produced a useful guide to parental controls for games consoles. This will give you more information on the types of parental control available for common games consoles that children use.

YHGfL have also produced a series of short video tutorials on how to set parental controls on a number of common gaming consoles, which you might find useful.

Setting Parental Controls on a Nintendo Wii

Setting Parental Controls on a Sony PSP

Setting Parental Controls on a Sony PlayStation3

Setting Parental Controls on an Apple iPod Touch