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Autumn School Census 2026 – Bulletin

This FAQ lists the latest information regarding the School Census. 

For Schools wanting the latest documentation for Census and using Bromcom – Click here  to jump to the relevant section.

For Schools wanting the latest documentation for Census and using Arbor –  Click here  to jump to the relevant section.

For Schools wanting the latest documentation for the Post-16 Census –  Click here  to jump to the relevant section.

For information preparation for the upcoming Census click:   How can I prepare data and be ready for the School Census Return?

DfE census documentation: here

Census Date:   Thursday 1st of October 2026    

DfE return date: Wednesday 28th of October 2026

KNOWN ISSUES: Please check back on regular basis – Known issues will be posted here
30/09/2026 BROMCOM KNOWN ISSUES – We will update this when these issues have been resolved

01.10.26

  • CAS-508838-H0P6L4 – Permanent exclusions not showing in census file

30.09.26

  • CAS-507957-R4G4M5 – Pressing enter in the search bar of the “View Errors” page takes you to the census parameters page

29.09.26

  • CAS-507534-D9M1M9 – Census – Young Carers – not showing on OnRollStudentsReport or in the Census file
  • RESOLVED CAS-507556-K7L8R8 – Census Error 2280 – DA Drug and alcohol related not selectable in the exclusion dropdown. Census validation for Autumn says this needs to be available for any exclusions that happened last academic year.
  • RESOLVED – DfE Known Issue Error 2378 triggering incorrectly : School arranged alternative provision (AP) placement leaving date is outside of the collection period

28.09.26 : DfE Known Issues

  • RESOLVED Hospital Special Schools Only. Errors 2500 and 2575 are currently triggering incorrectly.
  • RESOLVED School Summary Table 5: The number of service children and number of pupils with expanded Free School Meals (FSM) is not displayed in the table.
28/09/2026 BROMCOM: The Autumn 2026 School Census is now available to run in Bromcom, ahead of Census Day on Thursday 1 October 2026.

Important: DfE changes released on 25 September

Following the latest DfE requirements, we have also released a number of changes to the Autumn Census. Full details of these changes can be found here:

👉 Autumn 2026 DfE Census Changes – 25 September
11/9/26 BROMCOM – Bromcom have confirmed the census will be available to run from Monday 28th of September.
12/08/2026 Please see changes for the census for 26/27 https://www.gov.uk/guidance/complete-the-school-census/changes-for-2026-to-2027
12/08/2026 BROMCOM – The autumn census is not yet available to run – we will update this guide when Bromcom has been updated. This will also be confirmed on the Bromcom census guide Bromcom School Census Homepage – Bromcom – Documentation Centre

ARBOR – Dry run opens on 7/5/2026
12/08/2026 BROMCOM – REFRESHING THE STUDENT CACHE – Please ensure that you refresh the student cache before running your summer census return – this will ensure that any recently updated data will be pulled through to your census return – this step is included in our FAQ BROMCOM – Quick Summary Guide – Pre-checks and Generating School Census

 

Documentation – Bromcom 

All Information released by Bromcom can be found on the Bromcom Census page –  School Census – Bromcom

  • Thursday 1st of October is census day
  • Wednesday 28th of October 2026 is your census submission deadline (unless otherwise advised by your Local Authority)
SCOMIS – Census ‘Quick Summary Guide for Bromcom’ – ‘Pre-checks’ and ‘Generating School Census’  –  CLICK  HERE
Guides and Webinars 

Please find a link to Bromcom’s Census Page & Errors Guide below

Census guide and Webinar Autumn 2026 School Census Guide

Post 16 Guide and Webinar Autumn 2026 Post 16 Guide

Errors guide  Autumn 2026 Error Resolutions Guide

Documentation – Arbor 

  • Thursday 1st of October is census day
  • Spring Census Dry Run opens 2 weeks before Census Day
  • Wednesday 28th of October 2026 is your census submission deadline (unless otherwise advised by your Local Authority)
SCOMIS – Census ‘Quick Summary Guide for Arbor’ – ‘Pre-checks’ and ‘Generating School Census’  –  CLICK  HERE

Please find a link to Arbor’s Census Pages and Errors Guide below:

Overview census page here and a link to Arbor guide, errors and FAQ’s here.

Census guide  – School Census guides – Arbor

Errors guide  – School Error guides – Arbor

Documentation – Post 16

Here is all the guidance for Schools completing the Post 16 Census: Autumn Post 16 School Census 2026 Guide

 

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