Technical Architecture
How school sub-domains work
Each registered school receives its own secure sub-domain within the VML Kids ecosystem — completely isolated from other schools and from the wider platform. The school's data never leaves its sub-domain. Parents and children access school features through their own verified VML Kids accounts, within the school's isolated environment.
vmlkids.com
└─ school.vmlkids.com ← Unique per school, fully isolated
├─ /homework Teacher sets, child submits, parent monitors
├─ /communications Teacher → parent and teacher → pupil
├─ /gallery Watermarked, access-controlled school photos
├─ /classes Year group and class management
└─ /safeguarding School DSL access to safeguarding tools
Every sub-domain runs on the same identity-verified infrastructure as the wider VML Kids platform. Every person who accesses it — teacher, parent or child — is a verified, approved account holder. There are no guest logins, no shared passwords, and no anonymous access.
School Features
What schools get
VML Kids school integration is designed around four core needs: supporting learning at home, enabling safe communication, protecting children's images, and connecting schools to the platform's safeguarding infrastructure.
📚
Homework & Coursework
Teachers set, manage and receive homework and coursework assignments directly within the platform. Parents can monitor progress. Children submit within a distraction-free, moderated environment.
- Assignment setting with deadlines
- File submission and version history
- Teacher feedback within the platform
- Parent visibility of all assignments
💬
Safe Communications
A fully moderated communication channel between school staff, parents and pupils. No personal phone numbers, no personal email addresses, no unmonitored channels.
- Teacher → parent messaging
- Teacher → pupil (educational only)
- School announcements and newsletters
- Parent → school enquiries
🖼️
Image Sharing
Schools can share photographs and videos of school events, trips and activities — with every image automatically watermarked, copyright-protected and restricted to approved family members only.
- Automatic watermarking on upload
- Access limited to approved family accounts
- No public sharing or external links
- Download controls set by school
📅
School Calendar & Events
Term dates, parents' evenings, sports days, productions and school trips — all managed within the platform and pushed to verified parent accounts automatically.
- School calendar integration
- Event notifications to parents
- Permission slip management
- Attendance and trip confirmation
🎓
Education Support
Schools can assign specific VML Kids Education content to their pupils — curated learning resources aligned to what each class is studying, available within the child's verified account.
- Curriculum-aligned resource assignment
- Revision and practice material
- Class reading lists and resources
- Teacher-recommended content pathways
🛡️
Safeguarding Integration
The school's Designated Safeguarding Lead gains access to the VML Kids safeguarding tools — able to raise concerns, view relevant flagged activity and escalate to the independent safeguarding panel.
- DSL access to safeguarding dashboard
- Concern reporting within the platform
- Direct escalation pathway to ISP
- Audit trail of all safeguarding actions
Registration Process
How a school joins VML Kids
School registration follows the same identity-verified principles as child and parent registration. No school can self-register and go live without verification. The process is thorough because the stakes are high.
01
School Registration Request
The school's headteacher or nominated administrator submits a registration request, providing the school's Ofsted URN, Companies House or charity registration number, and the identity of the Designated Safeguarding Lead.
02
Verification Against National Records
VML Kids verifies the school against the Get Information About Schools (GIAS) register and the Ofsted database. The DSL's identity and DBS status are verified independently.
03
Sub-Domain Provisioning
Once verified, a unique sub-domain is provisioned for the school. The school administrator configures year groups, classes and teacher accounts. All teacher accounts require individual identity verification.
04
Parent Notification & Opt-In
Existing VML Kids families registered at that school are notified. Parents opt in to the school connection — it is never automatic. The child's VML Kids account is linked to the school sub-domain only once the parent has approved it.
05
Live — With Ongoing Oversight
VML Kids' independent safeguarding panel retains oversight of all school sub-domains for audit purposes. Annual re-verification is required for all school child account data and administrator accounts.
🛡️ Child safety is not an optional feature
The school environment introduces new safeguarding considerations — staff-to-child communication, peer-to-peer interaction within class groups, and the sharing of photographs. VML Kids treats each of these with the same rigour applied to every other part of the platform.
✅ Every teacher identity verified and DBS status confirmed
✅ All teacher–pupil communication is monitored and logged
✅ No direct messaging between teachers and pupils outside moderated channels
✅ Class group communication moderated by school administrator
✅ Parents can view all communications involving their child
✅ Any concern raised is logged and escalated automatically
✅ DSL has direct access to VML Kids independent safeguarding panel
✅ Annual re-verification of all staff accounts
📸 Every school photograph is protected
School photographs are some of the most widely misused images on the internet. On VML Kids, every image uploaded to a school sub-domain is automatically watermarked with the school name, date and a unique tracking code before it is made available to any parent. Images cannot be downloaded without the school's permission settings allowing it, and no image is ever accessible to anyone outside the approved family accounts connected to that school.
This is not just good practice — it is the architecture. There is no configuration option that makes school photographs public. It cannot be done accidentally.
Is your school interested?
VML Kids is currently in development. Schools can register their interest now to be among the first to receive information about the schools integration programme when it launches.
Register School Interest →
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