The DfE digital and technology standards, explained

On this page

At a glance

• There are 12 standards. Six are core: broadband internet, wireless network, network switching, digital leadership and governance, filtering and monitoring, and cyber security.
• Schools and colleges should be working towards the core standards by 2030. They are guidance, not law.
• Filtering, monitoring and cyber security are different: schools have statutory duties under Keeping children safe in education, and the standards are DfE’s recommended way to meet them.
• DfE’s free “Plan technology for your school” service lets you check your school against the standards.

The Department for Education (DfE) publishes Meeting digital and technology standards in schools and colleges. It sets out what good looks like for the technology a school runs on — from the internet line coming into the building to the switches, the wifi, filtering and cyber security. The page was last updated on 16 September 2026.

The standards apply to all schools and colleges in England. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own arrangements: see schools in Wales, schools in Scotland and schools in Northern Ireland.

The 12 standards

There are 12 standards in all. Six are core standards:

• Broadband internet
• Wireless network
• Network switching
• Digital leadership and governance
• Filtering and monitoring
• Cyber security

The other six cover cloud solutions, digital accessibility, IT support, laptops, desktops and tablets, network cabling, and servers and storage.

Which ones are targets, and which are duties?

DfE says schools and colleges should be working towards the six core standards by 2030. The standards themselves are guidance — DfE doesn’t describe them as mandatory.

Filtering, monitoring and cyber security work differently. Schools and colleges have a statutory responsibility under Keeping children safe in education (KCSIE) to have appropriate filtering and monitoring, and cyber security measures. The DfE standards for those areas describe the recommended way to meet that duty.

Digital leadership and governance

This core standard matters to anyone buying connectivity, because it puts someone in charge. It says schools should:

• appoint a digital lead on the senior leadership team — this person doesn’t need to be a technical expert;
• keep three registers up to date: a contracts register (licences, subscriptions and suppliers), an asset register and an information asset register;
• include digital technology in disaster recovery and business continuity plans, and test the recovery plan at least once a year;
• have a digital technology strategy covering at least two years, reviewed every year.

Your broadband contract and its end date belong in the contracts register. Knowing when it ends is what gives you time to move to full fibre or add a backup line at the right moment.

Checking where you are

DfE runs a free service, Plan technology for your school. You sign in with a DfE Sign-in account linked to your school, answer questions about your technology — including broadband, wifi and the network — and get recommendations against the standards. KCSIE 2026 also points schools to it for filtering and monitoring.

Where next

Read about the broadband internet standard, then use the bandwidth estimator and the provider checklist.

Questions people ask

Are the DfE standards compulsory?

The six core standards are targets to work towards by 2030. Filtering, monitoring and cyber security are different: KCSIE places statutory duties on schools, and the standards describe DfE’s recommended way to meet them.

Sources

Checked 25 October 2026. We wrote this guide from these sources, in our own words:

1. DfE: Meeting digital and technology standards in schools and colleges (gov.uk)
2. DfE: Digital leadership and governance core standard (gov.uk)
3. DfE: Plan technology for your school (plan-technology-for-your-school.education.gov.uk)
4. Buying for schools blog: Plan technology for your school (July 2026) (buyingforschools.blog.gov.uk)

Broadband for Schools is an independent guide. We are not a broker, a reseller or a supplier, and we are not connected to the Department for Education, any local authority or any provider. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.