Following the strong engagement and positive feedback from our February 2026 webinar Strengthening Cybersecurity in Schools, SWGfL and Secure Schools are hosting a follow-up session taking place on Thursday 21st May at 14:00pm - 15:00pm aimed at supporting schools with many of the topics and queries that were raised at our last event.
Cyberattacks are evolving in both scale and sophistication and schools must balance the protection of their digital infrastructure with the responsibility of equipping pupils and staff with the knowledge and confidence to stay safe online. This session will build on the insights from the previous webinar.
What Will Be Covered?
- Making MFA work in a school: How to roll out multi-factor authentication without breaking the school day. Personal devices, student MFA and phone bans, local authority restrictions, and the alternatives to the authenticator app.
- VPNs, WhatsApp and free apps: The tools that slip in without IT's blessing. Student VPNs, staff WhatsApp groups, classroom freebies that quietly take data, and unrestricted software installs. Plus the FoI angle.
- Cybersecurity as a leadership issue: How to get governors, trustees and SLT into the conversation. What good questions look like when you're not a specialist. How to shift culture when leadership isn't engaged, and how to make policies actually stick with staff.
- From reactive to ready: A plain-English guide to DfE Cyber Security Standards, the RPA, Cyber Essentials, and cyber score. Where to start, how to benchmark yourself, and what a sensible path to maturity looks like.
Guest Speakers
The webinar will bring back the expert perspectives from our last session:
- Moderator: George Martin (SWGfL – Security Lead)
- Tim Line (Secure Schools)
- Tim Hall (IT Manager, King’s School)
- Paul Salter (School Governor & Security Consultant, SmartDesc)
- Q&A Session
Book Free Tickets
Signing up is free and will support your schools ongoing responsibility to ensure your cyber protections are robust and are meeting expected requirements. We hope to see you on Thursday 21st May 14:00-15:00pm.
