Susan McLean: Staff Online Safety & How To Better Protect Teachers and School Leaders | Episode 164

Susan McLean: Staff Online Safety & How To Better Protect Teachers and School Leaders | Episode 164

From The School of Wellbeing with Meg Durham by Meg Durham

April 30, 2026 · 47 min

About this episode

Susan McLean discusses the growing online risks faced by teachers and school leaders and how to better protect themselves.

“Investigations take time. Reputational damage is instant.” - Susan McLean What’s happening to school staff online? In this episode,  Susan McLean  shares about the growing reality of online risk for teachers and school leaders. From targeted harassment and aggressive parent communication, to being named and discussed in community forums, and the rise of AI generated content and deep fakes, the nature of working in schools is changing. This conversation explores what staff are facing, the impact on wellbeing and safety, where behaviour crosses into reportable or criminal activity, and what systems, schools and individuals can do to better protect themselves. This informative episode is for teachers, school leaders and anyone working in schools who wants to better understand the online risks they will face and how to better prtect themselves. ---- Chapter Markers: 00:00 Introduction and why this matters 03:30 The changing digital landscape 07:00 What staff are facing online 10:00 Why this feels so personal 16:00 Impact on wellbeing and safety 21:00 Supporting staff 26:00 Behaviour, boundaries and consequences 34:00 System level responsibility 36:45 What schools can do…

People in this episode

Host: Meg Durham

Guest: Susan McLean

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