December Office Closures
Early Office Closure on Friday 20 December 2024
Our office will be closed from 12:00 on Friday 20 December 2024 to enable our staff to attend an off-site training event that afternoon. All staff will be attending this event .
Office Close Down during the 2024/25 Festive Season
Our office will be closed in the period between Christmas and New Year (27, 30, and 31 December 2024). Our school holiday contact hours of 09:00 to 16:00 will apply during the period 02 January to 03 January 2025 (inclusive). Our normal contact hours will resume from 08:00 on Monday 06 January 2025.
The SIMSforSchools team would like to wish you all a safe, happy, and relaxing festive season.
SIMS User Group Meeting - Thursday 5th December 2024
As published in our September newsletter, the next SIMS User Group meeting is due to be held via Microsoft Teams as follows:
Date: Thursday 5th December 2024
Time: 2.30pm - 3.30pm
As usual, this will be an informal session where the SimsforSchools team will provide an update on any new and upcoming developments in SIMS.
Please Note: We will include an update of developments in SIMS Next Gen, the new cloud version of SIMS, which is currently being rolled out to schools.
If you would like to add any SIMS-related items for discussion during the session, please let us know and we will aim to include these if possible.
A link will be emailed separately in due course with a link to join the meeting.
No confirmation of attendance is required.
School Census Dates for Academic Year 2024/2025
Autumn Term – 3rd October 2024
Spring Term – 16th January 2025
Summer Term – 15th May 2025
SIMS User Group Meeting - Thursday 11th July 2024 - Slides Available
The SIMS User Group Meeting slides from Thursday 11th July 2024 are now available to view.
Please log into our website, using your Schools HR Cooperative account, go to SIMSforSchools then scroll down and click on SIMS User Group & Admin Network Meetings to access the link to view the presentation slides.
If you have any queries please contact our helpdesk.
UPDATE: Key Stage 2 Completion Notes
We have been made aware that the Step by Step - Exporting the Results Using CTF has incorrect information.
Please note that Key Stage 2 Teacher Assessments CTF destination should be the National Assessment Agency and not the Hillingdon Local Authority. The CTF file will then need to be uploaded to the Primary Assessment Gateway.
We have amended the Key Stage 2 Completion Notes 2024 document, so please login into you Schools HR Cooperative account, click on SIMSforSchools icon, then go into Assessment & Key Stage and download the amended document.
We apologise for any inconvenience caused by this error.
If you have any queries or issues regarding creating the CTF for Key Stage 2 assessments please contact our helpdesk.
End of Year Procedures Notes Available to Download
The End of Year Procedures notes for transitioning from the 2023/2024 to the 2024/2025 Academic Year are now available to download.
Please login to your Schools HR Cooperative account, go to SIMSforSchools on the home page and then select one of the following links to access/download the notes relevant to your school phase:
- End of Year Procedures (Primary schools)
- Secondary Schools (Secondary schools)
If you have any queries please contact our helpdesk.
2024 Key Stage Assessments Guidances & Presentation Slides Available
The 2024 Key Stage Assessment Guidances and the presentation slides are now available to view.
We will upload the presentation video shortly.
Please log into our website using your Schools HR Cooperative account, go to SIMSforSchools then click on Assessment & Key Stage. You will find the links to view the presentation slides and the Key Stage Returns guidance notes on entering results into SIMS. You will also find links to the DfE guidance.
If you have any queries please contact our helpdesk.
DfE guidance: Handling strike action in schools
The DfE has provided the following guidance regarding the teacher's strike.
If a school has to restrict attendance by telling some pupils not to attend school on a strike day, the Y3 code [Unable to attend - unavoidable partial closure] should be used for pupils told not to attend. Pupils who are required to attend should be marked in the normal way. If a pupil is required to attend school on a strike day but does not, then they must be recorded as absent. The Y3 code does not count towards the pupil or school’s absence record.
How to add a Y4 code for teacher strike action
1. Select Focus | Attendance/Lesson Monitor | Exceptional Circumstances to display the Find an Exceptional Circumstance browser.
2. Click New to open the Create Exceptional Circumstance browser.
3. Enter the required date – can be AM/PM or both.
4. Group Type defaults to Whole School but can be changed to Year/Reg Group or Individual Students.
5. Click Search.
7. Select the Y4 Code from the drop-down list at the bottom of the screen.
8. In the Description box enter a relevant explanation, i.e. teacher strike.
9. Click on Apply at the top of the screen.
10. Go into the Attendance module via Focus | Attendance/Lesson Monitor | Edit Marks and select the relevant Week Beginning date.
11. Click Search to see the Y4 code recorded on the selected date.
School Workforce Census Notes Available to Download
Our Preparing for and Producing the School Workforce Census notes are now available to download.
Please login into your Schools HR Cooperative account, go to SIMSforSchools on the home page and then click on School Workforce Census.
There you can download the notes.
If you have any queries please contact our helpdesk.
WELCOME TO OUR NEW WEBSITE!
Welcome to our new SIMSforSchools website!
The old website is now no longer active. But do not worry you will be able to pick up notes, guidance, and documents from our new website just as before.
The website has a new look and is now linked to the Schools HR Cooperative website. So, you can still use the https://www.simsforschools.com URL which will take you directly to our new website or you can navigate to our website through the Schools HR Cooperative website.
To access the documents, notes, and guidance, you will need to log into your Schools HR Cooperative account. Once logged in you will be taken to our Categories page where you can download the guidance notes and documents such as the School Census notes. If you do not have an account, you will need to register an account on the website.
Also, when you have logged in, you will be able to log tickets directly to our helpdesk. Go to and click on your account name on the top left of the page, then select My Account. Then click on SIMS Helpdesk and then click on Open New Ticket. Fill in the details required, and then click Submit. You also upload screenshots and documents with the call too. Once the call has been submitted, we will receive a notification that your call has been logged. The helpdesk is more interactive where you can respond to our messages directly on the helpdesk, and you can also accept or reject solutions provided.
If you have any queries about the new website and/or the new helpdesk, please do not hesitate in contacting us.