AI is moving fast. Faster, arguably, than most schools have had a chance to keep up with. And yet the 2025 RSHE statutory guidance, and the Education White Paper, places a clear expectation on schools to address and embrace it, from deepfakes and online harms to digital citizenship and the responsible use of AI tools.
At Life Lessons, we recently brought together PSHE leads and school leaders for a free CPD session on exactly this. Here’s what we covered, and why it matters for your school right now.
What the 2025 RSE guidance actually says
The 2025 guidance is intentionally broad when it comes to AI, and that’s not a weakness. It’s designed to give schools the flexibility to be responsive as technology continues to evolve. But broad doesn’t mean vague when it comes to expectations.
Schools are expected to teach young people about some of the key safeguarding concerns related to AI, namely AI-generated images and deepfakes – what they are, how to spot them, and why they can be harmful. The guidance explicitly links deepfake pornography and AI-altered content to online harms, including peer-on-peer abuse, misogyny and unhealthy relationship expectations. Students also need to understand the risks posed by AI chatbots, including the potential for harmful advice and fake intimacy.
There is a body of evidence emerging that encourages teachers to use AI too, not just for workload, but as part of a skills-focused, future-proof approach to education. A teacher who critically and considerately uses AI is going to be far better equipped to support students and navigate the associated challenges.
Understanding deepfakes – including the legal picture
One of the most important things young people need to understand is that deepfakes are not always illegal, but they very often are, and can still cause significant harm when not. Creating, sharing or threatening to share an intimate image of someone without consent is a criminal offence, whether or not it’s AI-generated. It is always illegal to create or possess intimate images of someone under 18, even fake ones. Specifics of the legal implications can be found here.
Teaching young people about the law here is important, but so is how we teach it. A punitive, fear-based approach can make students feel worried and guilty, and less likely to seek help if something goes wrong. The goal is to help them understand the reality and purpose of the law, not to frighten them away from talking to trusted adults.
Building the skills that last
Here’s the challenge with deepfakes specifically: our ability to spot them is actually teaching AI how to improve. That means the skill of verification matters more than the ability to identify visual cues alone.
We want young people to ask:
- Where has this come from?
- Can I find it in multiple, diverse places?
- What are the experts saying?
- What is this image trying to achieve?
This kind of critical thinking sits at the heart of the Life Lessons curriculum – alongside oracy, empathy, emotional literacy, and mental strength and resilience. These are the skills that don’t go out of date, no matter how quickly technology changes.
Digital citizenship – more than just staying safe
Digital citizenship isn’t just about avoiding harm online. It’s about ‘actively, continuously and responsibly participating in digital communities, online and offline’ (COE, 2025). That means helping young people form opinions, seek evidence, consider wider viewpoints and understand the real-world consequences of their online behaviour. They are a part of the online community, therefore they play a part in how safe that community is.
It also means addressing something schools are increasingly noticing: young people’s online and offline lives are blended. They start conversations at school and continue them at home. They maintain friendships through gaming. They find it easier to talk about difficult things in chat than face to face. That’s not something to pathologise, it’s something to understand and respond to.
Framing AI positively
It would be easy to make this topic feel overwhelmingly negative. But young people are already using AI – for homework, creativity, fun, even emotional support. The goal isn’t to scare them off it. It’s to give them the critical tools to use it well and safely.
As one resource shared in the session put it: AI should supplement our intellect, not replace it.
Schools that get this right won’t just be meeting a statutory requirement. They’ll be giving young people something genuinely valuable — the confidence and skills to navigate a world that is only going to become more complex.
Want to go deeper?
Life Lessons runs free CPD sessions, covering the topics schools need most right now. Upcoming sessions include Discrimination and Misogyny, Addressing Harmful Content, and Addressing Harmful Sexual Behaviour.
Find out more and register at lifelessons.co.uk/events or get in touch at hello@lifelessons.co.uk.