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Defend Digital Me

@defenddigitalme.bsky.social
150 followers 200 following 62 posts

Defend Digital Me is a call to action to protect learners’ rights to privacy. We are teachers and parents who campaign for safe, fair and transparent data processing in education, in England, and beyond. defenddigitalme.org

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Reposted by Defend Digital Me
POLITICO Europe @politico.eu · 02/03/2026
Governments should halt plans to roll out age checks on online services until privacy and security concerns are addressed, hundreds of academics said today. The warning comes as countries around the world move to bar children from social media.
politico.eu
Resist ‘dangerous and socially unacceptable’ age checks for social media, scientists warn
Computer scientists are campaigning against the global march toward age checks online.
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
“This was the plan all along” in Australia's Minimum Age #SocialMediaBan defenddigitalme.org/2026/07/12/t... Expanding on Haidt's 11 July tweet: -making #AV market over 10+ years; -mandatory AV via govt-issued #DigitalID is undemocratic; -starting softly is deliberate towards the final destination
defenddigitalme.org
“This was the plan all along.” Social Media Minimum Age Restrictions #SocialMediaBan — Defend Digital Me
On July 11, 2026, shortly after midnight in the UK early hours of Saturday morning, Jonathan Haidt, the world leading champion of minimum age restrictions to social media, said all the quiet parts out...
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Natalia Krapiva 🕊️👩🏻‍💻 @natynettle.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Former MEP was hacked by the same gov behind the Pegasus attacks we exposed 2 years ago! @citizenlab.ca revealed that Stelios Kouloglou, former EU PEGA Committee member, was targeted by the same operator that hacked several Russian- & Belarusian-speaking journalists + activists living in EU 🧵1/
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
28 #edTech audits carried out by the ICO have found sweeping failures in basic #pupildata practice and legal compliance, as we did in our State of Data 2020 report. Now we need to see 3 things to deliver improvement for families in #education in England. defenddigitalme.org/2026/06/25/e...
defenddigitalme.org
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Shell @risu.bsky.social · 16/09/2024
I wish the ico would do its job because it does nothing when we complain and if and when schools do ask governance questions they often get lied to by edtech vendors
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Lyndsay Grant @lyndsayg.bsky.social · 16/09/2024
Teachers and parents often assume that Ed Tech used in schools protect children's data rights. Worth listening to this podcast on how that these products often fall short. Question is what can teachers/parents realistically do in this space? Policy needs to act on behalf of the sector.
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Open Rights Group @openrightsgroup.org · 10/06/2026
Image scanning for nudes 🤝 digital ID checks This will affect everyone. All adults will have to hand over their ID to turn off the blocks on their phone. But the scanning software will hang around. Something that could end up being used to censor much more. We can't allow this trojan horse tech.
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Jen Persson @TheABB @jenpersson.com · 29/05/2026
Despite what the media is reporting on a UK #SocialMediaBan the evidence does not all point in one direction. Many in a wide range of expert organisations do not support an u16s ban but advocate for addressing the underlying causes of harm. jenpersson.com/social-media... #OnlineSafety #ChildRights
jenpersson.com
Social Media Bans: Evidence Does Not all Point in One Direction
According to reporting by ITV and Sky News, Alan Milburn said that “the evidence points in one direction” on a social media ban for under-16s. ITV reported it saying he was backing Lord…
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Xnet - Instituto para Digitalización Democrática @xnet-x.net · 08/06/2026
Con la excusa de la verificación de edad, Google podrá vincular cualquier usuario con una identidad gubernamental verificada. Gracias a ONG's tecnófobas, papas antipantallas y "defensores de los niños" por ser los tontos útiles de Gobiernos y BigTech's.
reclaimthenet.org
Google Wants to Be the ID Checkpoint for Europe's Internet
Google is volunteering to broker your legal identity for every ordinary thing you do online.
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
News: UK schools should remove pictures of pupils’ faces from websites and social media defenddigitalme.org/2026/05/09/n... #privacy #safeguarding #pupildata #education UK #schools #EarlyYears GCSE ALevels Exams #ResultsDay
defenddigitalme.org
News: UK schools should remove pictures of pupils’ faces from websites — Defend Digital Me
“UK schools should remove pictures of pupils’ faces from their websites and social media accounts because blackmailers are using them to create sexually explicit images, experts have said.” [The Guard...
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raycorrigan.bsky.social @raycorrigan.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Joint Statement: UK policymakers must prioritise addressing the roots of online harm, not undermining the open web www.openrightsgroup.org/app/uploads/... @openrightsgroup.org @eff.org @bigbrotherwatch.bsky.social @defenddigitalme.bsky.social @indexoncensorship.org @no2id.bsky.social @torproject.org
openrightsgroup.org
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Pat Walshe - Privacy Matters 🇮🇪🇬🇧🇪🇺 @privacymatters.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
@jenpersson.com
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 07/04/2026
“Letting kids on social media is like sending them to Mars (and other bizarre analogies)” — CRIN home.crin.org/the-big-deba... #BigDebates #SocialMediaBan #ChildRights #Privacy #ChildProtection
home.crin.org
Letting kids on social media is like sending them to Mars (and other bizarre analogies) — CRIN
Are policies that deny children access to social media just "restrictions" or outright bans? And is letting children on social media more like sending them to Mars or to a nightclub? Language and met...
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Patrick Breyer @echo-pbreyer.digitalcourage.social.ap.brid.gy · 21/03/2026
🇪🇺🚨 Not a thriller, but reality: The Conservatives (EPP) want to overturn the historic vote against indiscriminate #ChatControl on Thursday and force a new vote. This is a direct attack on democracy & privacy! ✉️ Protest now: 👊 → fightchatcontrol.eu/#contact-tool
fightchatcontrol.eu
fightchatcontrol.eu
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 07/03/2026
The govt should withdraw amendments for Monday in the Children’s Wellbeing and #SchoolsBill. They abuse the Bill process, and #AV in #DataProtection law as a proxy for #onlinesafety — and there’s no such thing as “the digital age of consent”. 🎬 youtu.be/DEMDOOrTM7g 💬 jenpersson.com/there-is-no-...
youtu.be
Scrap the UK Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill amendments on UK Data Protection law and age.
YouTube video by defend digital me
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Pat Walshe - Privacy Matters 🇮🇪🇬🇧🇪🇺 @privacymatters.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
@defenddigitalme.bsky.social response to the DfE Schools #WhitePaper published this week defenddigitalme.org/2026/02/26/e...
defenddigitalme.org
Every child achieving and thriving: data drivers and our response — Defend Digital Me
The Schools White Paper released this week has been widely discussed in the media for its plans related to the provision or otherwise of children with additional needs, special educational needs and d...
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LSE Department of Media and Communications @lsemedia.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
Missed last Thursday’s LSE lecture? #EdTech at the Crossroads: #Pedagogy vs. Profit" is now available. Our panel tackled the digital shift in #schools and how commercial models impact children’s privacy. 📺 Watch: youtube.com/watch?v=HNG7... 🎧 Listen: www.lse.ac.uk/lse-player/e...
youtube.com
EdTech at the crossroads of pedagogy vs profit | LSE Event
YouTube video by LSE
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
On #SaferInternetDay, we ask: does banning children from social media actually keep them safe? If “to ban or not to ban” is the wrong question where should we start instead? 💡 Find out here with the first of a collaborative series with CRIN home.crin.org/the-big-deba... #ChildRights #OnlineSafety
home.crin.org
To Ban Or Not To Ban?: That Should Not Be The Question — CRIN
Should governments ban social media for children? From a children’s rights perspective, this is the wrong question. Instead, we should start by asking for the right ones.
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
“Children have the right to #education. How much is mediated by #EdTech at the crossroads of pedagogy and profit?” 📆 12 Feb | 6:30-8pm | LSE hybrid event 🔗 lse.ac.uk/events/edtech #ChildRights #Schools #LSEEvents Come along or follow the panel online and join in with Q&A, incl. @jenpersson.com
lse.ac.uk
EdTech at the crossroads of pedagogy vs profit | A discussion
6.30pm Thurs 20 Nov |Sandra El Gemayel Baroness Kidron Julian Sefton-Green Rhys Spence| Ticket Required | Free public event at LSE
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
We applaud the intentions, but not associated with us, for clarification.
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Privacy International @privacyinternational.org · 01/11/2025
In England, children are tracked from birth through education databases that record their lives in detail. These systems are vast, permanent, and invisible to most families. privacyinternational.org/long-read/56...
privacyinternational.org
From Playground to Database: child data in education
In England’s schools, children are not only pupils but also data subjects. From the moment they are born, a digital record begins to take shape — one that will follow them through nursery, primary…
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Privacy International @privacyinternational.org · 01/11/2025
Education should nurture curiosity, not feed algorithms that children are unable to consent to. It’s time to question how deeply surveillance is being built into childhood itself. Read our article with @defenddigitalme.bsky.social 👉 privacyinternational.org/long-read/56...
privacyinternational.org
From Playground to Database: child data in education
In England’s schools, children are not only pupils but also data subjects. From the moment they are born, a digital record begins to take shape — one that will follow them through nursery, primary…
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Pat Walshe - Privacy Matters 🇮🇪🇬🇧🇪🇺 @privacymatters.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
@jenpersson.com @defenddigitalme.bsky.social
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 29/09/2025
Department for Education refuses to release 2020 audit of national pupil records, under FOI. defenddigitalme.org/2025/09/29/d... #FOI #GDPR #DataProtection #PupilData #UK #SchoolsBill #CWBSBill
defenddigitalme.org
DfE refuses to release 2020 audit of national pupil records under FOI — Defend Digital Me
What’s new: The Department for Education has refused to release its full 2020 ICO Audit—over five years later—claiming it would be prejudicial today, “to the conduct of public affairs” and specificall...
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 05/07/2025
Read the Lord Frost comments in context, in the Hansard record of the full House of Lords debate on July 3, 2025 (part 1) Children’s Wellbeing and #SchoolsBill Committee Stage #CWBSBill hansard.parliament.uk/lords/2025-0... 2/2
hansard.parliament.uk
Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill - Hansard - UK Parliament
Hansard record of the item : 'Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill' on Thursday 3 July 2025.
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 05/07/2025
Lord Frost, Children's Wellbeing and #SchoolsBill 3/7/2025, "we are seeing the erosion of the vital principle that freedom and autonomy are fundamentally important and that the state does not have the right to go anywhere it wants at will". www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdZb... #education 1/2
youtube.com
Lord Frost July 3, 2025 Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill
YouTube video by defend digital me
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 23/06/2025
Our interview @privacyinternational.org podcast includes discussion of UK Department for #Education “Futures research looking at the implications of the use of #genomics in relation to education, focusing on 2 potential future scenarios.” Timely in context of recent news www.bbc.com/news/article...
bbc.com
NHS plans to DNA test all babies in England to assess disease risk
Scheme is part of the government's 10-year plan for the NHS in England aimed at easing pressure on services.
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Gateklons @gateklons.eurosky.social · 14/06/2025
I already knew of the issues surrounding DfE collection of pupil data and the UK database state but this is a really eye-opening and interesting (by which I mean horrifying) account of that by Jen Peersen from @defenddigitalme.bsky.social. I highly recommend you give it a listen youtu.be/3vb_JysheF0
youtu.be
Learning about learners: Protecting Children's Data
YouTube video by Privacy International
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 19/06/2025
#NHS number to be national ID mandated in Children’s Wellbeing and #SchoolsBill Key points of what we know, and seven areas of scrutiny and challenge, particularly as Clause 31 in the Bill is debated soon and its potential for scope creep, as happening in Wales defenddigitalme.org/2025/06/14/n...
defenddigitalme.org
NHS number to be national ID mandated in Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill — Defend Digital Me
There are three key things going on in parallel about the Single Unique Identifier (“SUI”) ID mandated in Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill and children’s NHS number: 1. The Government has confirm...
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 17/06/2025
“Learning about learners: Protecting Children's #Data” @PrivacyInternational.org with @JenPersson.com (June 2025). Current issues in education in England: What’s in a National Pupil Record? #EdTech, #AI, what futures are possible and how and why it matters privacyinternational.org/video/5598/l...
Learning about learners protecting children’s data — Privacy International podcast from June 2025 interview with Defend Digital Me  — “the technology pill” images on orange background with white text.
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 07/06/2025
Excited to be participating at the ‘Data Tech and Black Communities’ report launch in Birmingham. The first part of a wide range of their work. On #edTech #pupildata and #HumanRights empowering children and families in state education in England. dtbc.org.uk More coming soon.
A photo of the executive summary of the ‘Data Tech and Black Communities’ report: “what if we took stewarding children’s data seriously?”

The first part of a wide range of their work. On #edTech #pupildata and #HumanRights empowering children and families in state education in England. dtbc.org.ukA photo from slides shown at the ‘Data Tech and Black Communities’ report launch: “what if we took stewarding children’s data seriously?”

This slide is of the website  dtbc.org.uk

More coming soon.A photo from slides shown at the ‘Data Tech and Black Communities’ report launch: “what if we took stewarding children’s data seriously?”

This slide is talking about the advertising in EdTech A photo from slides shown at the ‘Data Tech and Black Communities’ report launch: “what if we took stewarding children’s data seriously?”

This slide is talking about the commercial exploitation and incentives in EdTech that are not in the best interests of the child
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Connected by Data @connectedbydata.org · 03/06/2025
What happens when public data is shared with the wrong people? 🗃️ The Department for Education (DfE) maintains records about everybody who has received state-funded education in England since 1996 in the National Pupil Database. It routinely shares this information with third parties. (1/3)
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CDT Europe @cdteu.org · 26/05/2025
📢 CDT Europe and 88 others just sent a joint letter to the European Commission warning against plans that risk weakening end-to-end #encryption in the EU. Strong encryption protects everyone’s security. We need to defend it, not undermine it. #E2EE #ProtectEU
cdt.org
Joint Letter on Encryption and the European Internal Security Strategy (ProtectEU)
On 26 May 2025, CDT Europe, as part of the steering committee of the Global Encryption Coalition, alongside 88 civil society organisations, companies, and cybersecurity experts published a joint lette...
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
On #WorldVampireDay — you can use a ‘Subject Access Request’ to ask the DfE for a copy of all the personal data sucked out from your school about you or your child since 2002. Find out: Who’s been given it & why? What is kept forever? #DraculaDay #Education defenddigitalme.org/my-school-re...
Know any data vampires? White text in orange tile with three bat silhouettes in corners
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 15/05/2025
Five years after the ICO DfE audit, only a 6-side summary has ever been published about the 139 findings defenddigitalme.org/wp-content/upl… Remedial actions are long overdue—why can the termly census affecting 700,000 pupils be done if the required fixes aren’t?defenddigitalme.org/wp-content/u...df
defenddigitalme.org
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 15/05/2025
The summer term #school #census opens in England today. But do parents know where pupil records go each term? Will the new ICO Code of Practice for #education help? “Unlawful, unsafe and unaccountable. Education, we have a #data problem.” (2020) in Schools Week schoolsweek.co.uk/unlawful-uns... 1/2
schoolsweek.co.uk
Unlawful, unsafe and unaccountable. Education's big data problem
A damning ICO report on the DfE’s data handling is a wake-up call for the department - and schools can also learn from it, writes Jen Persson
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Rosamunde Van Brakel @rosamundevb.bsky.social · 08/05/2025
Tomorrow is the deadline!! 🌟
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Lyndsay Grant @lyndsayg.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
In August last year the UK government announced a share of £1m to award to AI companies who bring forward the best ideas to reduce teacher workload by March 2025. Anyone seen an announcement of the successful tools? www.gov.uk/search/news-...
gov.uk
News and communications
Find news and communications from government
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
And that’s it. Choose your own adventure, the outcomes are up to you. If you can, help us resist a dystopian future in education and fight for safe, fair, transparent data, systems and #EdTech that empower every learner to thrive.
 Enjoy the game. #HappyEaster2025 defenddigitalme.org/donate/

 8/8
defenddigitalme.org
Donate — Defend Digital Me
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
Or will you become the Digital Ghost? Your future erased. 

"You decide you will write to your MP in parliament in secret, but for now, you are stuck until you choose to work with others to resist." 7/8 

Instead, you can choose to write to them today defenddigitalme.org/my-school-re...
defenddigitalme.org
My Records My Rights | Defend Digital Me — Defend Digital Me
My Records My Rights (The National Pupil Database)
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
Or will you resist, and start by finding out more? Take action in the real world scenarios today, with Defend Digital Me resources and templates. 

defenddigitalme.org/resources/

 Who knows what about you? 6/8
defenddigitalme.org
Resources — Defend Digital Me
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
Will you be the good student? "Years later, you apply for university. You realise your entire history is owned by private firms. Your thoughts, habits, relationships—all pre-analysed, predictable. Your choices are decided by them. Your life was never yours.” 5/8
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
You start looking into the systems. You talk to the IT teacher—one of the few adults who still seems human. The first thing you do is revoke consent to your biometric data and watch a video to find out more about use of #biometrics in schools. 4/8 Check it out www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kdW...
youtube.com
Ban Biometrics in Schools Animation 2022
YouTube video by defend digital me
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
You are being watched, constantly. At first, it feels normal. Convenient, even. And now, you start to wonder: Who owns this data? Who controls it? What do you do? 

Investigate or continue complying? 

#HappyEaster2025 at Horizon Academy 3/8
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
Will you resist quietly—try to avoid the new systems, revolt, or be the model student? A choose-your-own adventure game. "Then, one morning, the Data Compliance Team arrives."

 2/8 

 Follow the link to play 🎲 "Data Shadows: A Student's Tale". defenddigitalme.org/wp-content/u...
defenddigitalme.org
"Data Shadows: A Student’s Tale"
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
This weekend, we've a little Easter egg for dystopian fiction fans. Or is it? "You are a Year 10 pupil at Horizon Academy. You didn’t sign up for the new system. No one asked for your permission. But your school bought it anyway. What do you do?" Choose wisely in our Twine. #HappyEaster2025 1/8🧵
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Eurochild @eurochild-org.bsky.social · 11/04/2025
#Childrights are under threat and so are the organisations defending them. Anti-rights movements are using #childprotection language to roll back progress. We need a strong, funded #civilsociety to fight back. Read our Secretary General Sabine Saliba's blog 👇https://buff.ly/njjh8cD
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Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social · 07/02/2025
The Children’s Wellbeing and #Schools Bill so far: Impact Assessment & scrutiny not fit for purpose defenddigitalme.org/2025/02/07/i... #Data Pushing everything 'too difficult' into #CWBSBill secondary regs gets them passed without scrutiny but makes Bill high-risk schoolsweek.co.uk/campaigners-...
defenddigitalme.org
Impact Assessment and scrutiny not fit for purpose: the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill so far — Defend Digital Me
Today, MP Neil O’Brien,”put on record,” that the Minister will be, “well aware of some of the concerns about the clause that are coming to us from civil society.” “I am sure that she will have seen th...
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Doughty Street Chambers @doughtystreet.bsky.social · 12/03/2025
The panel includes: - Kay Firth-Butterfield, DSC - Leo Ratledge, Co-Director of the Child Rights International Network - Jen Persson (@jenpersson.com) , founder of Defend Digital Me @defenddigitalme.bsky.social - Tracey Gyateng, co-founder of Data, Tech and Black Communities #ChildRightsDSC
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Doughty Street Chambers @doughtystreet.bsky.social · 12/03/2025
📣Doughty Street Chambers Children’s Rights Group Annual Children’s Rights Lecture 2024 |Thursday 13 March 2025, 17.30 – 19:00 📣 The lecture will be delivered by @sonialivingstone.bsky.social, London School of Economics and Political Science. The event will be chaired by @aoifenolan.bsky.social
doughtystreet.co.uk
DOUGHTY STREET CHAMBERS CHILDREN’S RIGHTS GROUP ANNUAL CHILDREN’S RIGHTS LECTURE 2024
DOUGHTY STREET CHAMBERS CHILDREN’S RIGHTS GROUP ANNUAL CHILDREN’S RIGHTS LECTURE 2024Thursday 13 March 2025, 17.30 – 19:00 GMT, followed by a reception until 20:00 GMT.Every year, in November, the int...
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