Safehire.ai, HCR Law and JEM Business Consulting brought together leaders from 42 schools for practical sessions on AI, cyber security, safer recruitment and school policy.
Safehire.ai, the digital risk screening company, legal firm HCR Law and school business managers JEM Business Consulting have joined forces in organising an event to help school leaders understand the practical opportunities and risks of AI. Leaders from 42 schools met at Huntingdon Racecourse on 26 September for a series of workshops and discussion.
Speakers at the event included Simon Holden, Co-founder and CEO of Safehire.ai, Nino Giambalvo of the AI Integration Institute, Rona Metters, Founder and Consultant School Business Manager at JEM Business Consulting, Gemma Hill, Legal Director in HCR Law’s Education Team and Kate Shields, Senior Associate in HCR Law’s Education Team. The sessions explored how AI is affecting cyber security, safer recruitment, policy and day-to-day school operations where it can create opportunities.
Karen Bielawski, School Business Manager at Leighton Primary and Preschool called the event: “The most useful day out I have ever had. Informative, relevant session with lots of actions to take away and implement at work.”
Nino Giambalvo’s workshop prompted plenty of discussion and participation, while Simon Holden’s sessions generated thoughtful questions about the risks schools now face and how leaders can respond. HCR Law’s legal and policy update gave attendees plenty to consider about how their HR policies and procedures may need to adapt. Attendees heard how AI is developing quickly, and schools need clear information to assess its benefits, understand the emerging risks and make informed decisions about what they put in place.
A number of the schools attending took advantage of a free trial of Safehire.ai’s Digital Risk Screening (DRS) service. DRS helps organisations identify publicly available digital risk signals that may be relevant to safeguarding, conduct, reputational risk, and safer recruitment decisions. Safehire.ai’s methodology draws on military intelligence analytical processes, combining large language model capability trained around those methods with human verification by ex-military intelligence-trained analysts. DRS searches open-source data on the surface, deep and dark web, then applies AI-enriched context and finally integrating human analysts verification to produce evidence‑based digital intelligence.
Rona Metters, Founder and Consultant School Business Manager at JEM Business Consulting, said: “I wanted to create an opportunity for schools to get some practical, useful information. Simon Holden helped turn the idea into reality, Nino Giambalvo brought AI to life, and the team from HCR Law helped us navigate the legal side of things. Most importantly, the schools who joined us took away practical ideas and a better understanding of how AI can work for them.”
Simon Holden, CEO of Safehire.ai, said: “Schools need practical advice on AI, safer recruitment and changes in the law which can impact them – not another sales pitch. That’s what we delivered with JEM in Huntingdon. And it was free.”
