Background Information

"Headteachers at maintained schools, including maintained special schools, must ensure the statutory requirements for the transfer of records between schools are fulfilled, including the completion of the common transfer file (CTF). This is noted in the Pupil Information Regulations. If a pupil moves to another school in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, the pupil's CTF and educational record must be passed to the new school. Academies are not subject to these regulations, however they are expected to adhere to the following protocols, as a matter of good practice. The means of transfer to a school outside England must be in line with the arrangements for transfer between schools in England. Information must be transferred within 15 school days of any request from the pupil's new school."

Assessment and Reporting Arrangements 2016

The effective management of the transition of pupils from one school to another is a key responsibility both of schools and of the Local Authority. A consistent county-wide approach to the transfer of information is especially important for schools which draw their intake from a large number of schools, and for those which send pupils to several different schools.

National and local surveys have identified pupil transfers as particularly successful when schools:

• have established curriculum liaison and cross-phase trust
• ensure that there is agreement within and across schools about what information should be passed on
• have procedures in place to ensure the right information gets to the right people in good time
• use such procedures for passing information internally as well as to and from other schools and sources
• read the information received, and discuss it where appropriate, prior to the start of the new school year
• use the information received to provide appropriate challenge and support for each pupil
• provide information which focuses on significant aspects of learning and identifies pupils' strengths and areas for development.
• provide information on any pupil intervention or catch-up programme which has taken place

The procedures outlined below represent the minimum amount of information required. It should be noted that all the pupils' statutory assessment data needs to be contained within the school's MIS (SIMS or other) in order to be included in the CTF export for transferring to the next school (with the exception being the pupil's KS2 test results - see below).

Additional procedures which are locally agreed, and which enhance the minimum, are fully supported and encouraged.

Guidance on statutory requirements can be found in the Assessment and Reporting Arrangements for the appropriate key stage, published by the STA, and available from the DfE's website Assessment and Reporting Arrangements 2016.

Files are transferred using Common Transfer File (CTF) format, Anycomms Plus secure data transfer system, or via the s2s website.

The dates that schools should send their CTF files to the new schools are detailed below.

Transfer of pupil data between schools end of 2015/16

Minimum information and latest dates for pupil details to be transferred between schools - Summer 2016

Ensure you transfer any results and assessments from your tracking software into your School MIS - so when you create a Common Transfer File (CTF) it contains ALL the data required by the new schools.

Yr N transfer at the end of Nursery	by Friday 17th June	A - A copy of the Learning Story (or equivalent), with parents' agreement
	by Friday 1st July	B - SEN information about individual pupils
Yr 2 transfer at the end of Key Stage 1	by Friday 1st July	A - Common Transfer File (CTF) containing pupil details including End-of-KS1 Teacher Assessments. EYFS Profile and Phonics Screening Check scores. (Do not wait for Phonics threshold level to be added to MIS - the new school will update their own MIS with the threshold level when published)
	by Friday 8th July	B - Any additional pupil SEN information, or details of any relevant pupil intervention or catch-up programme which has taken place, that is not contained in the CTF C - A copy of the annual report to parents
Please adhere to this 1st July deadline - the primary/junior schools require this CTF well before the end of term.
Yr 6 transfer at the end of Key Stage 2	by Friday 1st July	A - Common Transfer File (CTF) containing pupil details and assessments, including KS2 final Teacher Assessments in reading, writing, mathematics and science. (Norfolk Secondary schools also receive Admission Transfer File (ATF) from the LA, but this ATF file does not contain any assessment data) DO NOT wait for KS2 Test Results - see below
	by Friday 8th July	B - Any additional pupil SEN information, or details of any relevant pupil intervention or catch-up programme which has taken place, that is not contained in the CTF C - A copy of the annual report to parents
Key Stage 2 Test Results - for pupils transferring at the end of Year 6 Feeder schools not required to wait for KS 2 Test Results - send CTF by 1st July Secondary schools download Key Stage 2 Test Results from the NCA Tools website, once published

Please note:

1. Non-statutory test results and Teacher Assessments in subjects other than those mentioned above should be transferred between schools by local arrangement.
2. Any locally agreed arrangements to transfer information earlier than the above dates should supersede this guidance.
3. For pupils with significant special educational needs, key information should be passed as early as possible, in order to enable the receiving school to make appropriate arrangements for support.
4. Although the above schedule refers to the end of an academic year, the appropriate information should also be transferred electronically when individual pupils move schools at any other time. A CTF file must be submitted within 15 school days of a pupil ceasing to be registered at the school.
5. Academies are expected to adhere to the above protocols, as a matter of good practice.