Could your school continue operating if the internet failed today?
Internet connectivity now underpins many of the services schools rely on every day. Even a
short outage can affect teaching, safeguarding, communications and administration.
Use this quick checklist to identify potential single points of failure and opportunities to
strengthen resilience.
Questions to consider:
1. Safeguarding & Online Safety
If your main internet connection failed today…
- Would safeguarding records remain accessible?
- Would your web filtering service continue protecting pupils?
- Would your monitoring system continue generating alerts?
- Do you know how your safeguarding systems behave during an internet outage?
2. Communication & Telephone Services
During an outage…
- Would staff still be able to make and receive phone calls?
- Could parents still contact the school?
- Would email remain available?
- Could urgent safeguarding communications still take place?
3. School Operations
Would these essential business systems remain available?
- Attendance and registration systems
- MIS access
- Payment and catering systems
- Cloud-based administration platforms
4.Teaching & Learning
Could teaching continue effectively?
- Staff could access Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace
- Teachers could access online resources
- Pupils could continue using essential learning platforms
- You have identified which services are critical during an
outage
5. Backup Connectivity
Do you currently have a backup service?
- We have a backup internet connection
- Failover is automatic
- The service has been tested within the last 12 months
- We know how long failover would take
6. Resilience & Single Points of Failure
How resilient is your current setup?
- We know whether our backup uses different infrastructure
from our primary connection - We have assessed potential single points of failure
- We have documented what should happen during an outage
- Staff know who to contact if connectivity fails
Your Results
Look back over your answers to these questions – which of these best describes the overall picture?
Mostly yes
Your school appears to have a strong grasp of its connectivity resilience. Regular testing and
review will help keep it that way.
A mix of yes, no and not sure
You likely have some resilience measures in place, but there are gaps worth a closer look to keep
critical services running during an outage.
Mostly no or not sure
Your school could be vulnerable to disruption if your primary internet connection becomes
unavailable. A resilience review could identify quick, cost-effective improvements.
Want a clearer picture of your resilience?
Get in touch for a free connectivity resilience review – we’ll help you identify the gaps
and close them cost-effectively.
