KCSIE 2026: filtering, monitoring and safeguarding technology

Keeping children safe in education 2026 is now in force, replacing the previous version of the statutory guidance for schools and colleges.

The guidance covers a wide range of safeguarding responsibilities. This article focuses on the areas most closely linked to school technology: filtering, monitoring, online safety, safeguarding reporting and the evidence schools may need to keep.

KCSIE 2026 sets out the expectation that schools and colleges should have appropriate filtering and monitoring in place. The Department for Education’s separate Filtering and Monitoring Core Standard gives more detail on how those arrangements should be reviewed, including who should be involved, what should be recorded, and whether the school’s provision needs to address real-time, dynamic, personalised or AI-generated content.

For schools and trusts, the start of the academic year is a useful point to check what is in place, who is responsible, and whether any gaps need follow-up.

Filtering and monitoring review

KCSIE continues to make clear that schools and colleges should have appropriate filtering and monitoring systems in place.

The DfE’s Filtering and Monitoring Core Standard says provision should be reviewed at least once every academic year. That review should involve senior leaders, the designated safeguarding lead, IT support and the responsible governor.

Schools should also record the outcome of the review and any actions taken.

AI-generated content

The DfE’s Filtering and Monitoring Core Standard now refers to digital content in formats including text, images, audio, video and AI-generated content.

It also says schools and colleges should consider whether their filtering and monitoring solution can handle real-time, dynamic, personalised and AI-generated content.

This gives schools another reason to look at how AI tools are being used, what access is allowed, and where existing filtering and monitoring arrangements may need review.

Questions for safeguarding, IT and governance teams

The annual review is likely to involve both safeguarding judgement and technical detail. For IT and network teams, that may mean checking the systems behind the assurance: which users, groups, devices, networks and locations are covered; how guest access is handled; whether backup connections follow the same controls; and how reports or alerts reach safeguarding leads.

Useful questions include:

Who is responsible for filtering and monitoring at senior leadership and governance level?
When was the last annual review completed, and where is it recorded?
Are all relevant users, devices, sites and locations covered?
Do safeguarding leads receive reports and alerts in a form they can act on?
How are filtering changes, temporary exceptions and safeguarding concerns recorded?
How are AI tools and AI-generated content considered within policy and technical controls?
If filtering is provided as part of broadband or firewall provision, has the provider explained how the service works across users, locations, backup connections and different device types?

These prompts should be read alongside the full guidance and adapted to each school or trust.

Where Wave9 supports schools

Wave9 supports schools and trusts with the technology behind online safety, including managed connectivity, firewalling, filtering, monitoring, safeguarding reporting and resilient network design.

For some schools, this is delivered as a fully managed service. For others, especially larger schools and trusts, a co-managed approach gives internal IT teams visibility and control, with Wave9 providing specialist support where needed.

Wave9 can help schools and trusts review how those systems are set up, where responsibilities sit, and whether the service still fits the way they work.

KCSIE 2026 and safeguarding technology