Hey {{ first_name | colleague }},
This week we’re looking at how we may reclaim some admin hours by stealing a page from the NHS AI playbook.
TL;DR: The 60 Second briefing
⚡️The 1-Minute Email: DfE is using AI to draft 80% of its correspondence.
🧪The TORTUS Trials: Healthcare trials prove "Ambient Voice" increases face-to-face time by 23%. Teachers & leaders should trial something similar.
🚨Grok Update: Banned in Malaysia & Indonesia, now Ofcom launches an investigation into Grok. Faces fines of up to 10% of revenue.
📚 AI+education news
⚡️ DfE outsourcing external comms > What it is:The DfE is rolling out a "correspondence drafter" using Microsoft Azure AI to handle 80% of its external queries, slashing drafting time from 30 minutes to just 1 minute.
Why this matters: Does this act as "official permission" for leaders? If the DfE trusts AI to draft its public-facing reputation using "human-in-the-loop" verification, can schools confidently adopt the same model for parental comms and policy queries?
Do this next: Create a "Response Bank." Save your top 5 policies (Uniform, Attendance, etc.) and use them as the sole knowledge base for an AI to draft parent replies.
Why this works: By restricting the AI's "knowledge" to your official documents, you ensure parent replies remain factually accurate and strictly aligned with institutional rules, effectively eliminating the risk of "hallucinations" or generic, incorrect advice.
🌍 Wider AI updates
🧪 TORTUS trials > What it is: A landmark NHS study involving 17,000 patient encounters. It used AI to "listen" to consultations and draft clinical notes, increasing patient interaction time by 23.5% and reducing appointment length by 8.2%.
Why it matters: Schools are currently in an "admin crisis." The trial proves that AI doesn't have to replace the human; it just removes the friction of the keyboard and increases interaction time.
Do this next: Identify one "Document-Heavy" meeting this week (e.g., an EHCP review). Trial a school-approved voice recording tool to capture the transcript, then use a "Scribe" prompt to draft the minutes.
Why this works: We can be so focused on getting everything down in our notes, that its takes away from being present in the meeting. This means we may miss subtle cues or not fully listen to the conversation. Using a scribe tool, puts us right back into the heart of the conversation, but still with a record of what was said
🧪Stop being nice; get better outputs > What it is: A study of 250 prompt variants found that "Impolite" prompts outperformed "Very Polite" ones by 4%.
Why it matters: Most people treat AI like a human colleague. This research proves that direct, imperative language is the professional standard for quality.
Do this next: Stop saying "Please." When you prompt your next report or lesson plan, start your prompts with a direct verb and leave out the ‘thank you’.
Why this works: Minimising extraneous ‘linguistic load’ allows the model to "focus" on the core logic of your request - just as we try to manage extraneous load when teaching.
🚨Grok Updates > Ofcom has launched a formal investigation into X over reports that its Grok AI tool has been used to generate illegal sexualised images of children and non-consensual deepfakes. The UK government has warned that the platform could face fines of up to 10% of global revenue or be blocked in the UK if found in breach of the Online Safety Act.
Why it matters for schools: This investigation confirms that current "unfiltered" AI image generators pose a direct criminal and safeguarding risk to students. It provides DSLs with clear regulatory backing to restrict or ban specific AI tools on school networks.
Morning Action Step: Conduct a "Platform Audit." If your school uses X for community engagement or news, verify if students can access to the platform on school-managed devices, or if you post marketing material with images of students and consider if these should be removed.
🎯Prompt: The ‘Ambient Meeting Scribe’
"I am a [ROLE] who has just finished a [MEETING TYPE]. Below is a transcript of the conversation.
[PASTE TRANSCRIPT]
Please generate:
A 3-bullet summary of the Key Decisions made.
A table of Action Points (Who, What, By When).
A draft Follow-up Email to the parents in a [TONE, e.g., Warm but Professional] tone.‘Till next week.
Mr A 🦾
Help a colleague save time by sharing this newsletter; distributing these ideas helps a friend get home on time and keeps our energy focused on what matters - great teaching.
Safety & Privacy Notice: The tools and workflows mentioned in this briefing are intended for professional productivity and educational enhancement. Users must ensure that any AI implementation remains compliant with their local data protection regulations and institutional safeguarding policies.
Data Privacy: Do not enter personally identifiable information, sensitive student records, or confidential institutional data into public AI models.
Verification Required: AI-generated content can be inaccurate, biased, or out of date. Always maintain a "human-in-the-loop" approach by reviewing and fact-checking all outputs before use.
Professional Judgement: These suggestions do not substitute for formal legal, clinical, or safeguarding advice. Final responsibility for accuracy and appropriateness remains with the professional user.
