The Spring School Census is on Thursday 15 January 2026.
Your return should be uploaded to Collect by Thursday 22 January 2026.
Collect is now accessed via Secure Access
Guidance notes
Please note: A Headteacher confirmation sheet must be signed and returned to the Schools Data Team, without this we are unable to approve your census for submission to the DfE Department.
A copy of the headteachers confirmation sheet can also be found at the bottom of your guidance notes.
Key reminder
When your school census return has been submitted, COLLECT will run a series of validation checks against the data. It will highlight any errors or queries in red against the relevant data item. It is the school’s responsibility to add a note to the return which matches the DfE list of acceptable notepad entries for all errors and queries that are not resolved.
The DfE list of acceptable notepad entries can be found here. If your notepad does not match this list we will be unable to approve your school census.
Support in identifying your errors/queries and adding a notepad entry can be found in the additional guidance section.
Preparation Checklist
Countdown Newsletters
Additional Guidance
DfE Guidance
We incorporate the DfE Guidance notes into our own guidance, so you should be able to find the majority of information in those.
Link - Data items - Complete the school census - Guidance - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Useful Contacts
Data Enquiries - The Schools Data Team
Phone: 01785 895600
Email: schools.capitadatateam@staffordshire.gov.uk
Technical Enquiries with SIMS - Link2ICT - MIS Team (previously known as Entrust)
Phone: 0333 300 1900