This FOI request is based around SIMS/MIS for schools.

1. How many schools are local authority maintained schools in the local authority area?

2. What is the split between primary and secondary?
a) Primary:
b) Secondary:

3. How many of these schools are using the SIMS (Supplier Information Management System) service, please split?
a) Primary
b) Secondary

4. Does the authority have a dedicated support team for SIMS schools? If so, how many FTE are in the team?

5. Who is the person in the authority responsible for the SIMS support in schools?

6. If this service is not provided directly by the local authority, does another organisation provide this to the local authority?

7. If the authority does use a 3rd party supplier, please can you provide the following;
a) Supplier name
b) Contract start date
c) Contract end date
d) Total Contract Value
e) Does this cover licences and support to schools or just licences?

8. Is the funding for MIS (licences / support / both) devolved to schools or does local authority contract directly with the MIS supplier and mandates this to maintained schools?

9. Do you support any other MIS systems, if so, which MIS systems do you support?

This FOI request is based around SIMS/MIS for schools.

1. How many schools are local authority maintained schools in the local authority area?
There are 34 LA Maintained schools, 32 primary, 1 secondary and 1 all age special school in the Council area.

2. What is the split between primary and secondary?
a) Primary: 32 primary
b) Secondary: 1 secondary
1 all age special school

3. How many of these schools are using the SIMS (Supplier Information Management System) service, please split?
a) Primary
b) Secondary
All of these schools currently use SIMS

4. Does the authority have a dedicated support team for SIMS schools? If so, how many FTE are in the team?
No

5. Who is the person in the authority responsible for the SIMS support in schools?
The Council doesn’t provide SIMS Support in schools

6. If this service is not provided directly by the local authority, does another organisation provide this to the local authority?
Yes

7. If the authority does use a 3rd party supplier, please can you provide the following;
a) Supplier name: ESS (Education Software Solutions)
b) Contract start date: 1 April 2020
c) Contract end date: 31 March 2023
d) Total Contract Value: £363k
e) Does this cover licences and support to schools or just licences: The figure above is the total value of the support element of the contract

8. Is the funding for MIS (licences / support / both) devolved to schools or does local authority contract directly with the MIS supplier and mandates this to maintained schools?
Neither of the options in the question properly describes the situation. Maintained schools are free to choose whichever MIS they prefer. Schools pay for the MIS provision from their own budgets, no monies are devolved from the LA in relation to MIS and nothing relating to MIS is mandated by the LA.

9. Do you support any other MIS systems, if so, which MIS systems do you support?
No