School Census – Checklist

Use this check list to tick off each of the tasks once they have been completed.

 

1. Early Years Portal – schools with early years children

• add any new children and carers before Fri 14^th January to ensure these are included in your EY pupil premium and eligible for 2 year old funding reports.
• complete the Early Years Portal Task as it will be checked against your entries in the census. The Early Years portal collection is based on the same week as census: week commencing 17/01/2022.

2. COLLECT

• Check your COLLECT access by logging in to the DfE sign in page.  If you have forgotten your password or username please contact the Department of Education immediately.

3. Sims

• Ensure you upgrade to SIMS version 7.202 or later as soon as possible to enable dry runs to be carried out. If you are a hosted school, Scomis will apply this automatically for you.
• Check the latest fileset 2003 has been imported (correct at time of publication). Do not upload a file until you are sure the census fileset has been imported.  For the latest SIMS information please view the Scomis site.
• Carry out a dry run to determine what information needs to be updated, our Spring School Census Guide is available via our census webpages.

4. Preparing the census data

• Check school level information e.g. establishment details, school email address, URN etc.
• Ensure leavers and re-admissions are recorded and any student records created in error are deleted.
• Check students’ basic details, e.g. name, date of birth, gender, enrolment status, year taught in, UPN, home address, free school meal eligibility, first language, ethnicity & service child indicator.
• Special Educational Needs – check SEN status, SEN need and rank, member of SEN Unit / Resources Provision indicators and Top Up Funding indicator. The detailed ‘SEN Report’ in the census routine is useful to pass to your SEN co-ordinator for consideration.
• Exclusions/Suspensions – this census captures summer 20/21 and autumn 21/22 term exclusions/suspensions. Please ensure exclusion/suspension records have been added against pupil records. E codes in attendance need to match the associated exclusion/suspension record.
• Attendance – deal with any missing marks and investigate any ‘N’ codes (reason for absence is not yet known).
• Early Years children – check Hours at Setting, Funded Hours (2, 3 & 4-year olds), Extended Childcare Hours (3 & 4 year olds), 30 Hour Code, Disability Access Fund.  Also check 2 year old eligibility and basis for funding and early years pupil premium eligibility and basis for funding.
• Classes – ensure they reflect your selected period on census day. Primary schools: remember to record the correct Key Stage and activity for your class.  Do you have any infant classes with 31 or more pupils?  if yes, is there an admitted exception or teacher on PPA time?

5. Producing the census

• Run through the school census routine in sims, remember to ‘create and validate’, check and resolve errors and queries.
• Run the detailed reports and summary report to assist you with checking your data and resolving any errors and queries.
• Once your Head Teacher is satisfied the data is correct authorise the return (print reports for your records).

6. Return to COLLECT

• Upload and submit your return to the DfE COLLECT data collection website via the DfE Sign In Portal.
• Check for errors and queries in COLLECT and add the appropriate acceptable notes, which can be found on the DfE census webpages.