Safeguarding Learning:
Cyber Security for Educational Trusts
Supporting Education Since 2015
Keeping Schools Cyber Secure: Protecting the Future of Education
Mitigate the Risks
Schools and academy trusts rely heavily on technology to support teaching, learning and safeguarding. As reliance on digital systems grows, so too does cyber risk.
A successful cyber attack can disrupt learning, compromise sensitive data and damage trust. Effective cyber security is no longer just an IT consideration, it is a governance responsibility.
Trustees, governors and senior leaders must be able to demonstrate appropriate oversight, due diligence and assurance that cyber risks are understood and managed effectively.
The Stakes are High: Why School Cyber Security Matters
Educational organisations hold significant volumes of sensitive data and rely heavily on technology to support teaching, learning and safeguarding. A cyber incident can have far wider consequences than IT disruption, affecting governance, operational resilience, safeguarding obligations and stakeholder confidence.
A successful cyber attack can lead to:
Data breaches: Sensitive student and staff data, including addresses, medical information and academic records, can be exposed, leading to identity theft and potential harm.
Disruption of learning: Ransomware attacks can cripple school systems, preventing access to essential resources, online learning platforms and communication systems.
Financial loss: Schools can incur significant costs recovering from a cyber attack, including remediation, legal fees and regulatory consequences.
Reputational damage: A cyber incident can severely damage confidence among parents, students, staff and the wider community.
Governance and compliance concerns: Leadership teams may struggle to demonstrate appropriate oversight, due diligence and assurance where risks, controls and responsibilities are not clearly understood.
Meeting DfE Requirements: The Importance of Audit and Compliance
The Department for Education (DfE) recognises the importance of cyber security in schools and sets clear expectations around data protection, cyber resilience and system security.
Regular cyber security audits help schools and trusts assess the effectiveness of technical controls, identify areas for improvement and demonstrate alignment with DfE guidance. They also provide leadership teams, governors and trustees with independent assurance that cyber risks are understood, monitored and appropriately managed.
Through evidence-based assessments, schools can strengthen safeguarding, support governance responsibilities and demonstrate due diligence when managing cyber and information security risks.
How We Help
Whether you're looking to undertake a cyber security audit, strengthen assurance arrangements, review cyber risks, or understand how your Trust aligns to DfE expectations, we're happy to help.
Book a complimentary 30-minute discovery call to discuss your current challenges and explore whether an independent cyber security audit would be beneficial.
Independent cyber security audits providing schools and academy trusts with clear visibility of cyber risk, effectiveness and opportunities for improvement.
Evidence-based assessments designed to help leadership teams identify, prioritise and manage cyber risks while demonstrating due diligence and governance oversight .
Supporting trustees, governors and senior leaders with independent assurance, risk visibility and reporting that can be relied upon for decision-making and oversight.
Trusted by Schools and Academy Trusts
Creative Education Trust
A growing multi-academy trust required independent assurance over cyber security arrangements across multiple schools, with a focus on maintaining consistent standards and improving visibility of cyber risk as the Trust expanded.
What We Did
Delivered independent cyber security audits and assurance reviews across the Trust, assessing governance arrangements, technical controls and operational practices against recognised standards and Cyber Essentials principles.
Outcome
The Trust gained improved visibility of cyber risk, stronger governance oversight and greater consistency across schools. The programme supported Cyber Essentials certification across the Trust and provided leadership with ongoing assurance over cyber security, safeguarding and compliance arrangements.
Two Counties Trust
During a period of IT transition and organisational change, the Trust required an independent review of cyber security controls, governance effectiveness and areas of operational risk.
What We Did
Conducted a comprehensive cyber security audit and assurance review, assessing technical controls, cyber risks and governance arrangements across the Trust.
Outcome
The Trust strengthened cyber security controls, improved consistency between schools and gained independent assurance over areas of risk. Findings provided leadership with a clear roadmap for improvement and supported progress towards Cyber Essentials certification.
Central Learning Partnership Trust
The Trust wanted greater visibility of cyber security risks and a more structured approach to demonstrating assurance and due diligence to governors and leadership teams.
What We Did
Implemented a rolling cyber security audit and assurance programme, combining school-level reviews with Trust-wide governance and risk assessments.
Outcome
The Trust improved visibility of cyber risks, strengthened oversight of security controls and established a continuous assurance model. Leadership teams now benefit from ongoing reporting, independent assurance and clearer evidence of risk management across the organisation.
Get in Touch
We work with schools, academies and multi-academy trusts to provide independent cyber security audits, internal scrutiny reviews and assurance reporting that leadership can rely on.
Book a free 30-minute teams call to discuss your current position and objectives.
“ Every school and trust faces different challenges. I'd be delighted to discuss your current approach, understand your objectives and explore how independent cyber security assurance could support your organisation”
Carl Ensor
Cyber Security Director
Delivering Assurance Where It Matters Most
Beyond technical security, our reviews provide trustees, governors and senior leaders with independent assurance, practical insight and evidence-based reporting to support informed decision-making and effective oversight.
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Reviewing how cyber security is governed, reported and managed across the Trust, including leadership oversight, ownership of risk and decision-making responsibilities.
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Providing an independent view of control effectiveness, helping trustees and governors gain assurance that cyber risks are understood, monitored and appropriately managed.
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Identifying, evaluating and prioritising cyber risks affecting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of systems, services and data.
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Assessing alignment with Department for Education cyber security expectations and identifying areas requiring further attention or improvement.
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Reviewing existing controls against Cyber Essentials requirements and identifying practical actions to improve security posture and certification readiness.
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Assessing risks introduced through IT suppliers, cloud providers and external partners that have access to systems, services or sensitive information.
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Reviewing preparedness for cyber incidents, including response procedures, escalation processes, communication plans and recovery arrangements.
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Identifying security weaknesses within systems and infrastructure and validating whether existing controls are operating effectively.
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Providing clear, non-technical reporting that supports governance, oversight, risk management and informed decision-making.
Free Resources for Schools
Discover free resources to enhance cybersecurity in schools and educational trusts. These materials help provide best practices, risk assessment tools and training programs to safeguard sensitive information. Strengthen your trusts security and foster a culture of cyber awareness for a safer learning environment.
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AD Tidy - Search your Active Directory domain for user/computer accounts that are no longer in use by filtering based on last logon time, DNS record timestamp, and much more. You can then perform a number of actions on the accounts that were found - such as moving them to another OU, disabling them, setting a random password, removing them from all groups, and much more.
DOWNLOAD HERE -
Get Local Admins - Ever wanted to see who actually has local Administrator permissions on all of your workstations and servers?Simply enter the names of the computers you want to scan (or import them from Active Directory or a text file), and the application will show you who is a member of the local Administrators group on each of them - optionally including members of nested groups within the Administrators.
DOWNLOAD HERE -
The NCSC has produced free cyber security training to raise awareness and help school staff manage some of the key cyber threats facing schools.
WATCH ON YOTUBE -
Curious about your school's external security posture? Censor Security offers a free, no-obligation external vulnerability scan to help you identify potential weaknesses in your network perimeter. Our scan checks for publicly accessible vulnerabilities that could be exploited by cybercriminals, giving you a valuable insight into your current security risks. Just contract us below