Great Marlow School closes after cybersecurity incident

A school has been forced to close for most students following a suspected malware incident.

Great Marlow School confirmed it is dealing with a cybersecurity incident affecting parts of its ICT network and has restricted access to systems as a precaution while investigations continue.

In a statement published on the school’s website, headteacher Guy Pendlebury said: "We are responding in line with guidance from the Department for Education (DfE) and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

"Immediate action has been taken to contain the incident, and we are working closely with specialist IT and cybersecurity professionals to fully assess the situation and restore normal operations as quickly and safely as possible.

"We understand that this situation may cause inconvenience and concern, and we sincerely appreciate your patience, understanding, and support as we take these necessary precautionary steps."

With email communications disrupted, the school used its website and Microsoft Teams to students and families.

The site was closed to most pupils on Wednesday, June 10, to ensure systems could be secured and the safety of data protected.

Year 11 and Year 13 students must attend school as normal for their external examinations, in line with their published examination timetables, with appropriate arrangements in place for examinations to proceed as planned.

Students who have more than one examination in a day, or who are unable to leave the site between examinations due to transport arrangements, will be able to remain on site to revise.

Internal exams for Year 10 and Year 12 students will be rescheduled to take place later in the term.

Teachers are not able to set specific work at this time, but students may continue to access revision materials via Microsoft Teams where possible.

Other planned activities, including a Year 7 ‘Learn to Row’ session scheduled for Wednesday afternoon, will also be rearranged.

Mr Pendlebury emphasised that the safety and wellbeing of students and staff remains the school’s highest priority.

The headteacher said that all appropriate reporting procedures have been followed and that School and Trust leaders, alongside technical specialists, are closely monitoring the situation.

He also thanked the school community for its patience and understanding during the disruption.

The school confirmed that a further update would be provided during the afternoon of Wednesday 10th June.