Data & Information support service 2024-25
Offering a comprehensive service, our experienced team will support you throughout the academic year. Here is what you can expect from us:
- A voice at the end of the phone, a face on MS Teams or a response via email: - the team are here for you. More than anything, we value the
relationship that we have built with Herefordshire schools and academies.
Whether it is a query about pupil premium, test registration or free school
meals transitional protection, the team will listen, respond and support you.
- Support with your termly School Census return: - the school census
newsletter has become a regular feature during the weeks leading up to
census day. We will ensure that you are kept informed of new data items and changes to existing data items, whilst also offering reminders about important funding streams attached to your school census data. We will receive, upload and undertake a full audit of your census data before releasing it to the Department for Education. We will work with you to resolve any errors or queries and we will add any appropriate notes to ensure that your census passes validation.
- Examination, test and assessment support: - we will offer reminders
about test registration dates to ensure that you do not miss important
deadlines. We will support you with understanding the various options open to pupils taking SATS, including those working below the level of the tests, those who might qualify for special consideration, pupils newly arrived in England and those needing access arrangements.
On receipt of your pupil assessment data, we will undertake comprehensive checking of the data to ensure that all pupils have been accounted for and the correct coding applied.
We will ensure that your assessment data is submitted to Department for
Education within meet statutory deadlines.
- Perspective Lite and NOVA reporting: - as a subscriber, your school will benefit from access to NCER (National Consortium for Examination Results) software. Perspective Lite offers performance trends in an easily accessible format, whilst NOVA reports offer you complete control over reporting of your examination, test and assessment outcomes. In a couple of clicks, you can review the performance of pupil groups in your school and compare these to both local authority, regional and national averages.
- Key statistical data releases: - whenever the Department for Education release a new, relevant data publication the team will undertake analysis and share outcomes with you. Examples include:
o Pupil absence in schools in England
o Permanent exclusions and suspensions in England
o Pupil Premium funding
o National Tutoring Programme
- Meet the team:
o Owain Pascoe – Owain (pronounced Owen!) is the new guy in town,
having only joined the team in Oct23. Despite this, he has already
experienced two school censuses and established a comprehensive
knowledge of statutory returns.
o Ann Lieu – Ann has been with the team a number of years and has
experience with both census data as well as test and assessment
submissions.
o Alison Essery – Allie’s methodical approach means that she will not
miss a thing. Working alongside Ann, she has developed a keen eye
for SEND performance.
o Ian Sockett – the ‘old boy’ who values working with you.
Charges for FY 2024-25
The 2024-25 Data & Information service developed from of the original School Census service level agreement (SLA) that was established over a decade ago.
The original SLA was developed for Herefordshire schools, offering comprehensive support with the statutory, termly school census return. Since then, we have expanded the scope of the service to include new and more extensive data audit including most recently, pupil led tutoring and alternative provision placements. Subscribers now have access to Perspective Lite and NOVA reporting. As part of the subscription, primary schools and academies benefit from complimentary collection, audit, submission and analysis of key stage test and assessment data.
We pride ourselves on our local knowledge and an understanding of Herefordshire’s school estate. Unlike many of the commercial support services, we treat every school as an individual. Our history, geography and level of local deprivation all interact to make Herefordshire unique from other local authorities. We understand the impact of small cohorts on your performance data and we recognise the increased costs resulting from Herefordshire’s relative rurality.
Offering the Data and Information service direct to schools and academies means that we are better able to control prices. It also enables us to offer a completely flexible buying period. If you miss the annual subscription process in March, your school or academy can join at any point during the year and you will only be charged on a pro rata basis. Whilst some price increase is inevitable in 2024-25 due to cost pressures throughout the system, we have kept this to an absolute minimum and well below the current rate of inflation.
Charges: Financial year 2024-25
Standing charge - £750.00
Per pupil charge - £0.65
Subscribing is easy.
Simply email: schoolcensus@herefordshire.gov.uk and we will acknowledge receipt of your order. If you are unsure how many single and dual main pupils were on your roll as at Autumn 2023, please refer to the accompanying table here.
