School Cybersecurity Is No Longer an IT Problem - It’s a Leadership Responsibility

Schools have become some of the most targeted organisations in the UK. They hold sensitive pupil data, safeguarding records, payroll information and intellectual property — yet many still operate with security controls that wouldn’t be accepted in most other sectors.

Recent industry research into the state of school cybersecurity paints a worrying picture. A large proportion of schools still lack formal password policies, incident response plans, and clearly defined cyber leadership. Even basic protections like multi-factor authentication (MFA) are not universally deployed.

For attackers, this creates an irresistible opportunity. For school leaders, it creates a growing risk to learning, reputation and pupil safety.

When schools get breached, learning stops

Cyber incidents in education are no longer theoretical. We now regularly see:

• Trust-wide network outages

• MIS systems becoming unavailable

• Staff locked out of teaching resources

• Safeguarding data exposed

• Ransomware shutting schools for days

The operational impact is immediate: cancelled lessons, delayed exams, lost coursework and huge pressure on staff. The financial impact can run into hundreds of thousands of pounds. The reputational impact lasts much longer.

This is why cybersecurity can no longer sit quietly in the IT office. It is a strategic risk that belongs at leadership and governance level.

Why leadership matters more than technology

Firewalls, filters and antivirus are essential — but they only work properly when leadership sets the tone.

Only senior leaders and governors can:

• Approve budgets for security

• Mandate policies and standards

• Set expectations for staff behaviour

• Ensure accountability when things go wrong

• Embed cyber risk into governance and safeguarding frameworks

When cyber risk is treated the same way as safeguarding, attendance or financial compliance, schools make better decisions and respond faster when incidents occur.

Three practical steps every school should take now

You don’t need a huge budget or a large IT team to dramatically improve your cyber resilience. These three actions deliver outsized impact.

1. Rehearse your cyber incident like a fire drill

If your systems went offline tomorrow morning:

• Who would you call first?

• How would you communicate with parents?

• What systems get restored first?

• Who decides whether to shut down or isolate devices?

  
  

A simple tabletop exercise with SLT and IT can reveal critical gaps and give everyone confidence in what to do under pressure.

2. Keep systems patched and vulnerabilities checked

Unpatched software is one of the most common entry points for attackers. Schools should aim to:

• Install critical updates within two weeks

• Run vulnerability scans at least once per term

• Retire unsupported systems

You don’t have to be perfect — you just have to be harder to break into than the school next door.

3. Put cybersecurity on the governors’ agenda

If safeguarding and finance are standing items at governors’ meetings, cybersecurity should be too.

Appoint a senior leader to own cyber risk. Give them training. Require regular reporting. Make it part of your governance cycle.

When leaders treat cyber risk seriously, staff follow suit.

Culture is your strongest defence

Technology blocks attacks. People prevent breaches.

Strong cyber organisations build simple habits:

• Accounts are disabled when staff leave

• Passwords are protected

• MFA is used everywhere it’s available

• Suspicious emails are reported

• Policies are followed because leadership enforces them

This isn’t about fear — it’s about consistency.

The Foresight Cyber Resilience Programme

With the Foresight Cyber Resilience Programme, your organisation will begin to feel genuinely secure — not just compliant.

Our layered approach to cybersecurity combines:

• Identity and access protection

• Endpoint and cloud security

• Vulnerability management

• Monitoring and alerting

• Incident readiness

  
  

Every quarter, you receive a clear, board-level cyber risk report showing how your security posture is improving and how our controls are reducing your exposure to modern cyber threats. This allows leaders and governors to see progress, understand risk, and make informed decisions.

Cyber First Aid – preparing your people

Technology alone cannot protect an organisation. When something goes wrong, it is people who detect it, report it and respond to it.

That is why Foresight now offers Cyber First Aid — a practical awareness and response course designed for staff who need to understand:

• What a cyber incident looks like

• What to do when something feels wrong

• How to avoid making the situation worse

• How the organisation’s resilience plan works

This course is available to schools, SMEs and large organisations and is ideal for leadership teams, office staff, administrators and anyone who plays a role in protecting your systems and data.

Final thought

Cyber threats are growing, but so is the ability to defend against them — when leadership, culture and technology work together.

At Foresight, we help organisations move from reactive firefighting to measured, resilient security.

Because what’s really at stake isn’t just data or devices — it’s continuity, trust and the ability to keep operating.

If you’d like to learn more about the Foresight Cyber Resilience Programme or Cyber First Aid training, we’re ready to help.