Experts Say It’s Time to Remove Student Faces from School Websites
In an age where celebrating student achievement online has become second nature for schools, a deeply concerning digital threat is forcing a major rethink of safeguarding policies.
In a recent Guardian article, child safety experts and the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) are urging educational institutions to urgently review their digital footprints. The warning is stark: criminals are increasingly targeting school websites and social media accounts to steal photos of children's faces, using generative artificial intelligence (AI) to manipulate them into sexually explicit images for financial blackmail.
What the Government’s School Food Overhaul Means for Your School
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.
Using AI Safely
REMINDERS
In the hustle and bustle of other responsibilities, you may have overlooked some articles from Compliance Matters Issue 57. Below are some of the things that made the news in the world of compliance in April 2026.
An historic shift is coming to school canteens across the UK. The Department for Education, alongside Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson, has announced the most ambitious overhaul of school food standards in over a decade. Driven by a worsening childhood health crisis and overwhelming demand from parents, the government is executing a sweeping plan to remove high-sugar, deep-fried, and ultra-processed foods from school menus entirely.
Who Must a School Notify After a Data Breach?
A data breach in a school setting can be incredibly stressful, particularly when it involves sensitive pupil records. Managing the fallout requires clear headspaces and swift action. When it comes to informing individuals about a breach involving a child's data, the rules are distinct, balancing statutory data protection laws with a school's parental duties.The measures include mentoring for high-risk students, "chaperoned" school routes, and the deployment of a specialist school self-assessment tool to identify where and when pupils feel most vulnerable.
Ofqual Fines OCR £270,000 Over 2025 Physics Exam Blunders
Exam regulator Ofqual has fined Cambridge OCR £270,000 following significant errors in its summer 2025 A-level and AS-level physics assessments. The watchdog ruled that the exam board failed to ensure its paper content was fit for purpose, resulting in widespread anxiety and a number of students being issued the wrong grades.
The penalised errors were contained in assessment materials delivered to over 14,000 students. Between April and October 2025, a total of 12 errors were identified across OCR’s physics exam papers and the mark schemes used by examiners.
The HSE confirmed that CLEAPSS Hazcards serve as a model COSHH assessment. However, the HSE emphasized—and CLEAPSS agreed—the importance of users understanding that the provided guidance must be adapted to meet the needs of specific situations as part of the risk assessment process. The CLEAPSS guide About Hazcards (GL120) details how Hazcards should be used and adapted, while also outlining the various assumptions and calculations made by CLEAPSS during their creation and updates.
Hazcards, COSHH, and Risk Management
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