A TEACHER from Selby has designed a social networking site which protects children.

Rebecca Mullan, 31, originally of Westbourne Grove and a former student of Selby High School, entered the Idea Tank competition to discover the next big idea which could revolutionise the internet.

Her website idea, Cyber Buddies, is a secure social networking site for seven to 13-year-olds, which uses a unique verification and validation process to ensure the safety of children’s accounts.

Rebecca, who now lives in Swansea, said: “As an ICT educator I have seen with my own eyes the dangers children can face on the internet, especially with social networking sites.

“Fortunately there are some parents that won’t give their child permission to join older social networking sites, but sadly there are others who allow their child to lie about their age to gain access to an account.

“Children will always want to be involved with the latest craze, let’s give them a safe and secure craze of their own. I haven’t seen anything that specifically targets this age range.” The Idea Tank, run by national creative and development agency Caboodle Media, saw thousands of entries whittled down to a final ten, including Cyber Buddies.

Other entries included a website which rewarded people for predicting the future.

Several of the finalists are also currently on their way to becoming a reality.

Paul Morgan, Caboodle Media managing director, said the Idea Tank was a great success: “With so many excellent ideas presented to us, we are not only building Cyber Buddies, but are also in talks with a number of the other entrants with a view to making their ideas a reality too.”

Daniel Hughes, Rebecca’s father, said the Caboodle team were amazed. “They couldn’t believe nobody had thought of this before.”