The Prompt – (Issue 10)

Welcome to Issue 10 of The Prompt! We hope you had a restful, well-deserved summer break. As a new school year begins, our mission is to ensure South Tyneside schools stay ahead of the curve. Whether you are an AI novice or an AI expert, this is your weekly home for the tools and digital principles defining the future of education. Each week, we’ll deliver three or four essential updates ranging from DfE policy shifts to time-saving classroom hacks specifically curated to reduce teacher workload and enhance learning across our South Tyneside community as safely as possible.

Save the Date: Apple RTC Autumn Conference 2026

We are thrilled to announce that the Apple RTC Autumn Conference will be hosted live at The Word, South Shields on Thursday, 22nd October 2026!

This whole-day event will focus on two of the most critical topics in EdTech today: AI & Accessibility.

Join us to connect with educators and experts, discover innovative ideas and practical strategies, and explore inclusive approaches that empower every learner.

👉 Click Here To Book A Place

AI Champions Work Group

Haven’t nominated an AI Champion yet? Click the link to access our nomination form: CLICK HERE

⚠️ CHANGE TO DATE – NOW Wednesday 18th NOVEMBER

Next meeting: Wednesday 18th November 2026 (16:00–17:30)

Venue: The Word, South Shields

Contact: Julia Small to book a place:[email protected]

Item 1: Schools ‘Crying Out’ for AI Guidance as Major Report Warns System is Unprepared

A landmark report by Sir Anthony Seldon and Tim Bunting, published by Public First and featured on the BBC News, warns that English schools are attempting to educate for an “AI-less world that no longer exists.” Describing the current adoption of AI in classrooms as “chaotic and anarchic,” the authors urge the government to treat AI integration with wartime-level urgency.

  • The Reality Gap: Polling of 4,000 young people shows that 87% of 11–24 year olds have used AI (e.g., 53% for homework and 77% to explain difficult concepts). However, only 30% of pupils report that their school has clear, explainable rules around AI use.
  • The Teacher Literacy Gap: While 38% of pupils believe they are better at using AI than their teachers, Education Society research shows only 14% of educators feel confident in their AI literacy.
  • Core Recommendations: The report calls for a vaccine-style “rapid response unit” outside the DfE, governor-approved school AI strategies by September 2027, staff and student “AI Champions” in every setting, and Ofsted inspections that evaluate AI innovation. It also advocates reforming qualifications into a hybrid assessment model that combines traditional exams with continuous, AI-supported evaluation of unique human competencies.

Click here for full article

Item 2: GenAI Misconceptions Guide

What we think we know about Generative AI shapes how we use it, and common myths can lead to misplaced trust, privacy risks, or missed errors. To help educators and students start the school year on the same page, AI for Education has released the GenAI Misconceptions resource.

The guide dismantles common myths—clarifying that GenAI is not a search engine (it predicts statistically likely text rather than retrieving facts, which is why it can hallucinate) and reminding us that a confident, polished response is no guarantee of accuracy. It serves as an ideal, quick-read resource for staff CPD sessions or early classroom discussions around academic integrity.

🔗 Access the free resource at: aiforeducation.io

Item 3: The Good Future Foundation AI Quality Mark

As schools look to embed AI safely and strategically this year, leaders should explore the Good Future Foundation’s AI Quality Mark.

Created by school leaders and reviewed by AI specialists, this developmental framework is far more than a tick-box exercise. It provides a structured self-assessment process to audit current AI usage, mitigate risks, and establish an ethical roadmap forward. Achieving the Quality Mark is a clear signal to staff, students, governors, and parents that your institution is committed to responsible innovation.

🔗 Learn more and start your self-assessment at: goodfuture.foundation/ai-mark

Question of the Week

“Given that 87% of pupils are actively using AI for learning but only 30% report clear guidance at school, does your setting currently have an explicit, pupil-facing AI policy in place for this term?”

Contact Us

If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact:

Steve Robert:[email protected]

Five minutes on Friday – 4th September 2026

Welcome to this week’s Five Minutes on Friday digest! As the new academic year gets underway, staying ahead of statutory safeguarding expectations, updated recruitment guidelines, and parental digital safety tools is essential.Grab a quick coffee and take five minutes to get fully up to speed with what you need to know for Friday, 4th September 2026.

📑 1. Statutory Guidance: KCSIE 2026 Now In Effect

As of 1st September 2026, the Department for Education’s updated statutory guidance, Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) 2026, has officially come into force across all schools and colleges in England.

Leadership teams and Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) must ensure their school policies, staff briefing materials, and induction workflows reflect the new requirements:

  • Removal of Annex A: Schools can no longer rely on shortened safeguarding summaries for non-teaching or support staff. All members of staff, regardless of their role, are now required to read Part One: Safeguarding Information for All Staff in full.
  • Generative AI & Deepfakes: The guidance explicitly expands online safety definitions to address emerging generative AI risks, including deepfakes, AI-generated nude or semi-nude imagery, and interactive AI chatbots.
  • Annual Filtering & Monitoring Review: Schools must conduct and formally record an annual review of their digital filtering and monitoring effectiveness, led by the SLT and supported by IT leads.

🏛️ 2. Martyn’s Law: What Schools Need to Know

Under the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 (widely known as Martyn’s Law), all UK schools and colleges fall into the Standard Tier. This requires education settings to have clear, practical, and documented public protection procedures in place:

  • Core Response Plans: Schools must maintain documented procedures for Lockdown, Evacuation, Invacuation, and Communication during critical incidents.
  • No Costly Infrastructure Required: Standard Tier obligations focus strictly on staff preparedness and response workflows—not expensive hardware or physical alterations.

How ICT in Schools Can Help

Navigating digital emergency procedures, mass alert systems, and communication channels shouldn’t be overwhelming.

The ICT in Schools Team can support your school in auditing current communication channels, configuring rapid-response alert systems on staff devices, and ensuring your technical infrastructure supports fast, reliable lockdown and invacuation procedures.

📞 Get in Touch: If you would like guidance or a review of your tech solutions for Martyn’s Law compliance, please contact the ICT in Schools helpdesk or speak directly to your designated technician!

📱 3. Online Safety Hub Weekly Highlight: Creating a Family Tech Agreement

In this week’s feature from the South Tyneside Online Safety Hub, we are highlighting the benefits of creating a family tech agreement.

A family tech agreement is a set of rules and expectations regarding online behavior and device use for all family members.

  • Digital Wellness: Digital wellness experts recommend tech agreements as a way to plan and outline expectations, fostering communication between parents and children about the risks and responsibilities of online activities.
  • Positive Boundaries: When rules are broken, the family tech agreement serves as a clear reference for consequences, fostering learning opportunities for children and encouraging positive online behaviors.

👉 Access the Resource: Creating a family tech agreement on South Tyneside Online Safety Hub

🍂 Save the Date: AppleRTC Autumn Conference 2026

We are thrilled to announce that the AppleRTC Autumn Conference will be hosted live at The Word, South Shields on Wednesday, 22nd October 2026!

This whole-day event will focus on two of the most critical topics in EdTech today: AI & Accessibility.

Event Schedule:

  • Morning Session (9:30 – 12:30): Designed specifically for the Senior Leadership Team (SLT).
  • Lunch (12:30 – 13:00): Lunch is included for all attendees!
  • Afternoon Session (13:00 – 15:30): Open to Teaching Staff and SLT.

Location: The Word, Market Place, South Shields

Date & Time: Wednesday, 22nd October 2026 | 9:30 – 15:30

Keep an eye on your inbox—booking details and full workshop agendas will be released soon!

Thank you for reading this week’s edition of Five Minutes on Friday! Stay tuned for more EdTech news, practical classroom tools, and leadership advice in next week’s issue.

Have a great start to the term and a restful weekend!

Phillippa Chippendale

ICT in Schools Team

The Prompt: (Issue 7)

Your AI Newsletter

Issue 7

Please share this newsletter with colleagues in your setting!

Welcome to issue 7 of your weekly briefing on all things AI. As AI continues to reshape the educational landscape, our mission is to ensure South Tyneside schools stay ahead of the curve. Whether you are an AI novice or an AI expert, this is your weekly home for the tools and digital principles defining the future of education.

Each week, we’ll deliver three or four essential updates—ranging from DfE policy shifts to time-saving classroom hacks—specifically curated to reduce teacher workload and enhance learning across our South Tyneside community as safely as possible.

🚀 AI Champions Work Group

Haven’t nominated an AI Champion yet? Click the link to access our nomination form:

👉 CLICK HERE TO NOMINATE

  • Next Meeting: Wednesday 11th November 2026, 16:00-17:30
  • Venue: The Word
  • Contact to Book: Email Julia Small at [email protected] to secure a place.

🌐 Item 1: Global Crackdown: The Under-16 Social Media & AI Ban

The momentum for youth digital bans has peaked. Following legislation in Australia, Indonesia, and Malaysia, the UK has announced a sweeping ban on social media for anyone under 16, set for full enforcement by Spring 2027.

The intersection with artificial intelligence is twofold:

  • The 18+ Rule for AI Companions: Regulators are looking past traditional feeds to target generative AI. The new rules strictly enforce an 18+ age minimum for AI romantic companions, roleplay bots, and “intimate functionalities” to prevent algorithmic manipulation and emotional dependency.
  • Enforcement via AI (Facial Estimation): To enforce the ban without hoarding passports, tech companies are turning to Highly Effective Age Assurance (HEAA). This relies heavily on AI facial age estimation—scanning a live selfie to verify a user’s age bracket without storing their identity.

The Catch: Critics and tech giants warn that the required AI face-scanning creates a massive privacy checkpoint for all internet users, while tech-savvy teens will likely bypass it entirely using VPNs or go to the darker parts of the web.

🧠 Item 2: Can Your Pupils Spot the AI Fake?

After last week’s Real or AI quiz from Britannica Education, we have curated some more excellent activities from other sources you may want to use with your pupils:

1. BBC Bitesize: Artificial Or Real?

Can you tell the difference between a real video or picture, or one that has been generated by artificial intelligence (AI)? Have a go and let’s see if you can spot the REAL from the AI!

2. Sightengine: Which Image Is AI?

Here are 2 images. One is AI-generated, the other one is real. Can you tell which one is AI? Test your skills!

3. Google Arts & Culture Experiments

Google Arts & Culture offers incredible interactive experiments to test your AI literacy:

  • Odd One Out: Can you spot the odd one out? Guess the AI-generated “imposters” hidden among the artworks on Google Arts & Culture. One of these images is not like the other—it is created by Google AI.
  • Say What You See: Learn the art of the prompt and improve your image-reading skills by looking at Google AI-generated images and describing what you see, in this experiment created by artist Jack Wild.

📬 Item 3: Food for Thought: The “Ghost in the Inbox”

With the rise of advanced AI email agents, we are rapidly approaching a weird milestone: Within the next year, it is highly likely you will receive an email written entirely by an AI agent, which will then draft a reply and archive it—without either human ever knowing the exchange took place.

So the question is:

If two machines have a meeting in the woods and no human is around to read the transcript… does the meeting actually happen?

Drop a reply using our feedback form below and tell us if this sounds like a productivity paradise or a dystopian nightmare!

Contact Us

If you have any questions or further suggestions, please get in touch: 📧 Steve Robert: [email protected]