# What should school staff do when nudes or semi-nudes are shared?

Source page: https://pupilprotect.co.uk/glossary/sharing-nudes  
Last updated: 2026-10-20  
Publisher: Pupil Protect (Glacier Labs Ltd)

> Any member of staff who learns that a pupil has made or shared a nude or semi-nude image should tell the designated safeguarding lead (DSL) straight away, and should not view, copy, forward, delete or save the image. The DSL then holds an initial review and decides whether to refer to the police or children's social care, which must happen immediately if, for example, an adult is involved or a child has been coerced. Keeping children safe in education 2026 says this applies to AI-generated and digitally altered images too, and that every incident needs a safeguarding response.

## What the term covers

Keeping children safe in education (KCSIE) 2026 now uses one phrase throughout: **making or sharing nudes and semi-nudes**. It means the creation, sending or posting of nude or semi-nude images by young people under 18, and "images" includes photos, videos and livestreams.

KCSIE 2026 adds that images may be taken by the child themselves or "taken or created by another person", and may be "digitally altered or wholly generated using artificial intelligence, including what are sometimes described as 'deepfakes' or 'deep nudes'". Older terms such as "sexting" and "youth produced sexual imagery" have been replaced.

The main how-to document is the UK Council for Internet Safety (UKCIS) advice, *Sharing nudes and semi-nudes: advice for education settings working with children and young people*, last updated in March 2024. It is non-statutory, but KCSIE points schools to it repeatedly. There is also a one-page overview for all staff.

The UKCIS advice is about children. An adult sharing nudes of an under-18 is child sexual abuse and must be referred to the police urgently.

## The law

Making, possessing or sharing an indecent image of anyone under 18 is an offence under the Protection of Children Act 1978, and this includes images of yourself if you are under 18. The UKCIS advice explains that this covers "pseudo-images": computer-generated images made with editing software, deepfake apps or AI text-to-image generators. KCSIE 2026 says the same in a footnote: taking and sharing nude images of under-18s, "including those generated using AI", is a criminal offence.

The law was written to protect children, not criminalise them. The UKCIS advice says children "should not be unnecessarily criminalised", and that even when police are involved a formal sanction would only be considered in exceptional circumstances.

## What every member of staff should do

From the UKCIS overview for all staff:

**Do:**

- report it to the DSL, or a deputy, straight away
- explain to the pupil that you have to pass it on, and reassure them they will get help and support
- tell the DSL if you have already seen the image by accident, and ask for support

**Don't:**

- view, copy, print, share, store or save the image, or ask a pupil to show, send or download it
- delete the image or ask the pupil to delete it
- question the pupils involved about the image. That is the DSL's job
- share information about it with other staff, pupils or parents
- say or do anything that blames or shames the young people involved

KCSIE 2026 repeats the core rule: staff "should not view or forward illegal images of a child" (paragraph 558).

## What the DSL does

### Initial review

The UKCIS advice says the DSL should hold an **initial review meeting** with the right staff. It should establish whether any child is at immediate risk, whether to refer to the police or children's social care, whether anyone needs to view the image (usually not), how widely it has spread, and whether to contact parents.

### When to refer straight away

The DSL should refer immediately to the police or children's social care, usually through the multi-agency safeguarding hub (MASH), if:

- an adult is involved, including an adult posing as a child
- a child has been coerced, blackmailed or groomed, or there are concerns about their capacity to consent, for example because of special educational needs
- what is known about the content suggests sexual acts unusual for the child's development, or violence
- the images involve sexual acts and any child in them is under 13
- a child is at immediate risk of harm, for example presenting as suicidal or self-harming

If none of these apply, the DSL may decide the school can manage the incident through pastoral support and the behaviour policy. That decision should involve the headteacher, be recorded, and be revisited if more comes to light.

### Viewing and deleting

Viewing is a last resort. The DSL may decide to view only if it is the only way to decide whether to involve other agencies, if it is needed to get an image taken down, or if it is unavoidable. Viewing should happen on school premises, with another senior member of staff present, and be recorded. Any device going to the police should be switched off and locked away.

Later, once the DSL has assessed the incident, the UKCIS advice says pupils will usually be asked to delete the images and confirm they have. That is the DSL's decision, recorded, not something to do in the moment.

### Parents

Parents and carers should be told and involved early unless that would put the child at risk. Any decision not to tell them should be made with children's social care or the police.

### Recording

All incidents should be recorded, including those not referred on. Where the school decides not to refer, it should record why and have that signed off by the headteacher or leadership team. Never keep copies of the image.

## A safeguarding response every time

KCSIE 2026 makes clear that **every** incident needs a safeguarding response, whether or not the sharing was consensual. The response should be proportionate, taking account of the children's ages, development and circumstances, and any coercion, exploitation or vulnerability (paragraph 530). It notes that consensual sharing between older children of a similar age may need a different response. It might not be abusive, but children still need to know it is illegal (footnote to paragraph 193).

The school's child protection policy should set out its approach to consensual and non-consensual sharing, "including those generated using AI" (paragraph 193).

## Getting images removed

- **Report Remove**, from Childline and the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), lets a young person report a nude image of themselves shared online.
- **Take It Down**, from the US National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, creates a digital fingerprint of an image so that some platforms can find copies.
- Adults can report to the IWF where a platform has no public reporting route.

The UK Safer Internet Centre runs a helpline for professionals on 0344 381 4772.

## Questions

**Should staff view a nude image shared by a pupil?**  
No. The UKCIS overview tells all staff never to view, copy, print, share, store or save the imagery, or ask a child to share or download it. In exceptional cases the DSL alone may decide that viewing is necessary to safeguard a child, following strict conditions. If you have seen an image by accident, tell the DSL and get support.

**Do schools have to tell the police about sexting?**  
Not always. The UKCIS advice says the DSL must refer immediately to the police or children's social care if, for example, an adult is involved, a child has been coerced, blackmailed or groomed, the content is unusual for the child's development or violent, a child under 13 is involved in sexual acts, or a child is at immediate risk. Otherwise the DSL may decide the school can manage it, and must record why.

**Are AI-generated nudes of pupils illegal?**  
Yes. Indecent images of under-18s include computer-generated pseudo-images, such as those made with deepfake apps or AI image generators. Keeping children safe in education 2026 says taking and sharing nude images of under-18s, including those generated using AI, is a criminal offence.

**Do schools have to tell parents?**  
In most cases, yes. The UKCIS advice says parents and carers should be told and involved early unless that would put the child at risk of harm. Any decision not to tell them should be made with children's social care or the police.

**What is Report Remove?**  
Report Remove is a free tool from Childline and the Internet Watch Foundation that lets a young person report a nude or sexual image of themselves that has been shared online, to try to get it removed. KCSIE 2026 lists it as a source of support.

## Sources

- [Sharing nudes and semi-nudes: advice for education settings working with children and young people (UKCIS, updated March 2024)](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sharing-nudes-and-semi-nudes-advice-for-education-settings-working-with-children-and-young-people/sharing-nudes-and-semi-nudes-advice-for-education-settings-working-with-children-and-young-people), checked 2026-10-20
- [Sharing nudes and semi-nudes: how to respond to an incident (overview for all staff, UKCIS, updated March 2024)](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sharing-nudes-and-semi-nudes-advice-for-education-settings-working-with-children-and-young-people/sharing-nudes-and-semi-nudes-how-to-respond-to-an-incident-overview), checked 2026-10-20
- [Keeping children safe in education 2026 (DfE, statutory guidance, in force from 1 September 2026): 'Nudes and semi-nudes, including where generated by AI', paragraphs 23, 165, 193, 530 and 558](https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6ac3c09c11ed58342ad8e4ac/Keeping_children_safe_in_education_2026.pdf), checked 2026-10-20
- [Protection of Children Act 1978 (legislation.gov.uk)](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1978/37), checked 2026-10-20

## Related

- [Safeguarding concern form](https://pupilprotect.co.uk/tools/safeguarding-concern-form): A free form for recording a concern clearly, in the child's words.
- [How to record a safeguarding concern](https://pupilprotect.co.uk/guides/how-to-record-a-safeguarding-concern)
- [Harmful sexual behaviour and child-on-child abuse](https://pupilprotect.co.uk/glossary/hsb)
- [How to make a safeguarding referral](https://pupilprotect.co.uk/guides/how-to-make-a-safeguarding-referral)
- [Filtering and monitoring in schools](https://pupilprotect.co.uk/glossary/filtering-and-monitoring)

## In Pupil Protect

In Pupil Protect Safeguard any adult in your school can record a worry about a child. The DSL and their team are alerted, see everything that came before, and decide what happens next. [See how Safeguard works](https://pupilprotect.co.uk/safeguard)