Date: 29th September 2025 with further update 2nd October 2025
DfE School Census Date: Thurs 2nd October 2025
Return Date: Tues 7th October 2025
It is important that you upload your census file as soon as possible and by Tuesday 7th October 2025. This will enable our team to check your data and liaise with you regarding any queries on your return.
We are aware that this may be your first census. If you are having any concerns at all, please contact us by emailing census@devon.gov.uk giving details of the problem and a contact telephone number, and someone from the team will contact you to help.
1. DfE known issues
1.1 Errors and queries – Post 16
The DfE have identified that the logic behind the following errors isn’t quite correct and so isn’t working as expected;
- 4043 Maths GCSE grade achieved is ‘D’-‘G’ / ‘3’-‘1’, ‘U’ or ‘NR’ and the student is recorded as not having a funding exemption, therefore Maths minimum hours must be present
- 4044 English GCSE grade achieved is ‘D’-‘G’ / ‘3’-‘1’, ‘U’ or ‘NR’ and the student is recorded as not having a funding exemption, therefore English minimum hours must be present
The DfE have issued revised an update to software suppliers but appreciate there might not be time to implement the update.
If the software is not updated, the errors will either trigger an error, or the error will disappear when the file is loaded onto COLLECT. Any error E4043 or E4044 triggered on COLLECT will be genuine and must be resolved.
2. Bromcom users
2.1 Errors and queries
The DfE recently release a new set of validations which have corrections to the queries listed below. However, Bromcom have not yet implemented these changes so they will not trigger correctly in your MIS but will do so in COLLECT
- Early Years – 1859 Funded hours plus any extended hours cannot be more than the hours at setting and 3032 Funded hours plus any Expanded hours cannot be more than the hours at setting
- Post 16 – 2775Q Please check: The sum of planned learning hours and the planned employability, enrichment and pastoral hours is lower than 40 and 3030Q please check: English GCSE grade achieved is ‘D’-‘G’ / ‘3’-‘1’, ‘U’ or ‘NR’ and the student is recorded as not having a funding exemption
- Pupils no longer on roll – 1925Q Please check: Pupil no longer on roll record should not be submitted if there is no attendance, suspensions, permanent exclusions, AP placement details, learner funding and monitoring or post-16 data for the required period
2.2 Summary report
Bromcom have noted an issue where a school had post-16 provision last year but no longer offers this (so highest NCY has reverted to 11). Table 281 of the report does not populate with data from the census return, although the census file does contain the expected historic data. The DfE have not yet advised whether they intend to resolve this issue.
1 Table 28: Post 16 learning aims – number of learners with learning aims which were active in the previous academic year from 1 August 2024 to 31 July 2025
2.3 Bromcom School Census Guide – EY hours
Bromcom school census guidance is currently advising incorrectly that the funded hours and expanded hours must equal hours at setting and also advised that funded hours and extended hours must equal hours at setting.
Hours at setting can be greater than the total funded hours and extended/expanded hours, as hours at setting are the total of all hours, including hours paid by parents.
Further updates to known issues – 02/10/2025
Error 5155 – UPRN incorrect format. The Unique Property Reference Number (UPRN) should pre-populate from the Postcode entry against a pupil record but some are producing error 5155. It is not possible to amend the UPRN as the field is greyed out. Please edit the Postcode of the pupil with the error and re-enter it and then save. Then re-run your census return and it will clear the error.
Missing attendance mark 2513 & 2586 for every pupil – This is where the summer holidays haven’t been updated to show as a school holiday. Go to Config > Curriculum > Academic Days, change the Academic Year in the drop down to last academic year, open up the summer team and add in a # for all days Monday-Friday which are in the summer holiday dates. It comes up with a warning message, this is confirming you are happy to change this for these dates, press proceed and it automatically saves and when the census is re-run these errors should clear.