Source: Department for Education published on this website Thursday 29 May 2025 by Jill Powell

Around 300,000 children, including those with conditions such as autism, ADHD, and dyslexia, will be better supported to achieve and thrive as the government expands successful programme to help boost attendance and behaviour.

Backed by £9.5 million in government funding, the Partnership for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools (PINS) programme – which supports neurodiverse students by training teachers to identify and better meet their needs and improves parental engagement – will be extended for another year across a further 1,200 schools.

One in seven children are estimated to be neurodiverse, and a lack of specialist training and awareness to support them means they often face bullying, higher rates of suspensions due to challenging behaviour, absence, and poor mental health.

The positive impact of the PINs programme is already being seen in 1,600 primary schools which have previously taken part, with staff reporting increased attendance, improved behaviour, and better pupil wellbeing – which in turn benefits the entire school community.

It ensures mainstream primary schools are more inclusive, enabling more children with SEN to thrive with their peers, meaning special schools can cater to those with the most complex needs - in line with the Government’s vision for a reformed SEND system as part of its Plan for Change.

Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson said:

“The impact on life chances when there is a lack of appropriate support for neurodivergent children can be devastating. We want a different future for children with SEND: inclusive and tailored to meet their needs, so everyone has the chance to achieve and thrive, and excellence is for every child.

“As part of our Plan for Change, we are determined to fix the broken SEND system and restore the trust of parents by ensuring schools have the tools to better identify and support children before issues escalate to crisis point.”

Some neurodivergent children are highly sensitive to loud noises or bright lights, leading to sensory overload which makes it difficult to learn, while others have difficulty understanding social cues or communication, leading to feelings of isolation.

Others can find skills such as managing time difficult, impacting their ability to complete tasks, and some may experience hyperactivity or difficulties with emotional regulation, which make behaviour challenging. On top of this, some pupils ‘mask’, which can lead to increased anxiety and burnout.

Through the PINS programme, specialist education and health professionals provide vital training to school staff to better identify conditions and access interventions tailored to their specific needs, and to better understand how to interact with neurodivergent children in a supportive way.

Schools are also expected to host termly meetings with parents and carers, allowing them to feedback on the school’s approach to supporting children’s needs, increasing parental confidence.

Carfield Primary School in Yorkshire received support from a speech and language team and occupational therapist through the PINS programme which helped teachers better identify and support children’s needs.

They now open the school gates earlier and stagger their lunch time for pupils to ensure there is a calmer, more regulated school environment to avoid overstimulation. Plus, each child has a profile for teachers to understand their individualised needs.

The Government established its Neurodivergence “Task and Finish Group”, led by Professor Karen Guldberg, which brings together a group of experts to drive understanding of how to improve inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools, in a way that works for neurodivergent children and young people.

Professor Karen Guldberg, the Chair of the Neurodivergence Task and Finish Group, said:

“I welcome the expansion of the Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools (PINS) programme. It focuses on strengthening the knowledge, understanding and skills of those who support neurodiverse children and young people in mainstream schools. It is an excellent example of strong partnership work between education, health and parent carers to meet the needs of neurodiverse children and young people.”

This comes as £740 million has been invested to encourage councils to create more specialist places in mainstream schools, driving inclusivity and enabling more children to achieve and thrive at their local school.

Source: National Crime Agency published on this website Tuesday 27 May 2025 by Jill Powell

A Nigerian national who duped elderly victims - including an 80-year-old - into smuggling class A drugs has been jailed, following a National Crime Agency investigation.

“Callous” Tonny Iheoma Ezeh, 51, convinced innocent drugs mules they were entitled to huge, legitimate windfalls and they had to travel abroad to get paid.

Ezeh, who holds Nigerian, Canadian, and Jamaican passports, fooled two German men aged 80 and 67 into carrying methamphetamine hidden in sweets into the UK for onward flights to Hong Kong.

The 67-year-old was stopped on 18 October last year and three days later the 80-year-old was stopped. Both had flown into Heathrow Airport and were each unwittingly carrying around 3kg of methamphetamine.

Both men were charged with smuggling class A drugs but the charges were dropped once investigators established that Ezeh had scammed the pair.

On 13 May Ezeh pleaded guilty to smuggling class A drugs when he appeared at Isleworth Crown Court. He was jailed for nine years and three month.

Ezeh was based in Mexico where he organised drug shipments with other Nigerian contacts based internationally.

His mobile phones revealed that he was part of a West African crime group responsible for transporting Class A drugs internationally via air passenger courier and fast parcels.

Elderly and vulnerable couriers were singled out and recruited via email finance scams.

Ezeh’s crime group told the victims they were the beneficiaries of large sums of money. To obtain the money – millions of Euros or dollars - they travelled to Mexico and signed fake paperwork and were given gifts of ‘Elvan Chocolate Truffles’. These were to be given to hosts in Hong Kong where the money would be paid to them.

But before the men could catch connecting flights from the UK to Hong Kong, they were arrested by Border Force officers.

NCA officers arrested Ezeh when he flew into the UK on 23 December last year.

NCA operations manager Peter Jones said:

 “Tonny Ezeh is an extremely callous criminal. He and his crime group singled out and took advantage of elderly, vulnerable victims. He didn’t care at all about the trauma the men would experience when stopped, arrested and remanded in a foreign land. If an offer is too good to be true, it very likely is and we urge anyone who is approached and asked to transport goods to think very carefully. The NCA and partners at home and abroad continue to fight the threat of class A drugs entering the UK.”

Source: UK Safer Internet Centre (UKSIC) published on this website Wednesday 28 May 2025 by Jill Powell

Following a public consultation earlier this year, the UK Safer Internet Centre (UKSIC) has now published the updated Appropriate Filtering and Monitoring Definitions for 2025. These definitions continue to support education settings and providers across the UK in understanding what should be considered ‘appropriate’ in the context of statutory safeguarding responsibilities—particularly in light of evolving technologies and updated government guidance.

Updated Guidance for Schools and Providers

UKSIC first published the definitions in 2016 to support the implementation of digital safeguarding responsibilities across the education sector. The 2025 definitions continue to align with national safeguarding guidance frameworks including, for example:
Keeping Children Safe in Education (England), (England), Keeping Learners Safe (Wales), (Wales), The 2025 version builds on the previous year’s guidance and reflects wider statutory expectations, technological developments, and the growing use of generative AI in education.

Summary of Changes for 2025

Accompanying the updated definitions are:

– A summary of substantive changes introduced this year,
– A consultation summary outlining stakeholder feedback and UKSIC’s formal response.

Some of the key updates include:
– Enhanced definitions of illegal content categories, including coercive control and intimate image abuse;
– Stronger emphasis on the role of filtering in managing access to AI-generated content;
– Clarification that mis/disinformation should be considered within the scope of filtering (not monitoring);
– Revised expectations for monitoring system identification and mobile device testing;

Reference to the DfE’s Generative AI: Product Safety Expectations for schools in England, while noting that all four UK nations have published or are developing frameworks to support safe and effective AI use in education.

“Filtering systems must effectively and reliably prevent access to harmful and inappropriate content generated by Generative AI systems. Monitoring systems must maintain robust activity logging procedures that capture interactions with generative tools.” — 2025 Definitions

Consultation and Sector Engagement

The 2025 update followed a formal public consultation involving responses from technology providers, safeguarding professionals, local authorities, and national stakeholders.

Feedback focused on issues such as:

– Monitoring encrypted app-based activity,
– Timelines for implementation and SME readiness,
– Clarity around filtering definitions, AI risks, and user identification,
– Ensuring consistency with national safeguarding guidance across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

In response, UKSIC has updated its filtering system accreditation cycle and committed to earlier engagement with providers in future consultation cycles.

Access the 2025 Definitions and Supporting Documents

You can view the full 2025 guidance:
📄 [Appropriate Filtering – UK Safer Internet Centre (2025)]
📄 [Appropriate Monitoring – UK Safer Internet Centre (2025)]
📄 [Summary of Substantive Changes – PDF]
📄 [Summary of Consultation responses – PDF]

Schools and providers across all nations of the UK can also contact the Professionals Online Safety Helpline for support:  helpline@saferinternet.org.uk
 

Source: Gloucestershire Constabulary published on this website Friday 23 May 2025 by Jill Powell

Gloucestershire Police are taking decisive action to bring about rapid change to how we safeguard children at risk following an inspection by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS).

In a report published today on Wednesday 21 May HMICFRS said they were ‘inadequate’ at responding to children at risk; investigating reports of abuse, neglect and exploitation of children; and in their leadership of child protection arrangements.

The inspectorate rated them as ‘adequate’ at working with safeguarding partners and ‘requires improvement’ at assessing risk to children and making appropriate referrals.

HMICFRS inspectors provided feedback on conclusion of their visit in December last year, identifying areas they could improve. This information has since been used to develop an improvement plan which lays out how they are addressing their concerns.

Among the actions taken or are in the process of taking are:

• Launching the Gloucestershire Rapid Improvement Plan (GRIP) – a plan for the whole workforce which sets out how they intend to improve our performance over the next 12 months. Keeping children and young people safe is one of the GRIP’s priorities.

• Ensuring greater scrutiny and oversight of how they safeguard children at risk by introducing a monthly Crime and Vulnerability Performance Board chaired by an Assistant Chief Constable.

• Increasing the number of investigators they have in their specialist investigation teams, including the Child Abuse Investigation Team.  This has seen 20 additional officers commencing in those roles on 12 May.

• Introducing a dedicated missing person team which will audit missing people cases regularly to ensure appropriate risk assessments are carried out and relevant investigative actions implemented.

• Providing specialist training to hundreds of officers and staff. More than 600 officers have received training on evidence-led prosecutions while all frontline officers and staff continue to receive training on domestic abuse. They are also planning to deliver training which will ensure the voice of the child is always considered when they encounter a case or incident where one is involved.

• Forging even closer working relationships with partners, specifically with those working in education and social care. In March this year Gloucestershire Police hosted a national missing person conference in Gloucestershire and last month brought together multi-agency colleagues to explore how we can address gaps in identifying and responding to adolescent domestic abuse. We’re also planning a multi-agency child protection conference bringing together key stakeholders to discuss Gloucestershire's approach to protecting children from harm.

• Reaching out for specialist advice and national excellence from the National Police Chief’s Council leads and the Vulnerability Knowledge and Practice Programme.

• Issued comprehensive internal and external communications to inform and educate the workforce and the public on child protection matters. In February this year, they  worked with the Internet Watch Foundation to deliver an external campaign on behalf of the Gloucestershire Safeguarding Children's Partnership to tackle online grooming and the distribution of indecent images of children in Gloucestershire via social media apps.

In addition to highlighting areas for improvement, HMICFRS recognised how Chief Officers and senior leaders have made efforts to help officers and staff provide a child-centred service and how all employees have been made aware of the need to avoid using victim-blaming language.

Its report also commented on how the Constabulary has social workers embedded alongside officers and staff in its child exploitation team, saying this provides a good opportunity for effective sharing of information and responding to children’s needs more quickly.

Assistant Chief Constable Richard Ocone, lead for Crime, Justice and Vulnerability, said: “Children and young people are some of the most vulnerable members of society and it’s essential we do everything we can to keep them safe.

“We accept HMICFRS’ findings and recognise we have work to do to address the concerns identified in its report and to deliver the improvements required.

“The steps we’ve already taken will help us ensure we’ve the necessary specialist skills and resources in place to protect children from harm; to respond to and investigate incidents involving them; and that appropriate leadership and oversight is maintained for all child protection matters.

“The safeguarding of children in Gloucestershire is a key priority for the Constabulary and we’ll continue to work with HMICFRS, as well as with our partners, to improve.”