It is conducted in November every year and the data collected informs policy decisions by government.
More information is available on the Department for Education website.
Schools in Oxfordshire
Maintained schools in Oxfordshire now use the IBC to complete and submit their Schools Workforce Census (SWC) return.
Actions
Before the census return date in November each year, all schools should review the following to make sure your data is complete and accurate:
- Ask staff to update their ethnicity and disability status in Employee Self Service
- Check and update contract information, including:
- Extending temporary or fixed term contracts
- Converting staff to permanent contracts where appropriate
The Schools Workforce Census is separate to the Schools Census which collects pupil data three times a year.
Change of process for School Workforce Census from 2026
From November 2026 all schools must complete and submit the School Workforce Census (SWC) via the IBC portal.
Why use the IBC portal to capture the information?
- Much of the return will be pre‑populated using data collected throughout the year
- It will reduce manual effort and duplication
- It ensures compliance with current Department for Education requirements
- It generates a fully compliant census file ready for submission.
What schools need to do
In the IBC portal:
- Review the online work instructions for SWC guidance and key dates: work instructions
- Find the Schools Workforce Census app in the IBC portal, select the Open search icon, search Apps for ‘Census’, and choose SWF Annual Census.
- Run the SWC report in Test Mode and resolve any errors: School workforce (SWF) run and correct TEST report | Staff and managers
- Ensure fixed‑term contract data is accurate and up to date: https://extra.hants.gov.uk/employee/swfannualcensus/error-and-warning-guide
- Encourage employees to enter ethnicity and disability information into Employee Self Service ‘My Information’ to reduce the number of queries in the report.
If you experience any issues accessing the video guidance, please visit the IBC portal landing page and go to the ‘Things to be aware of’ section.
From there, select the tile for enabling video guidance: Shared Services | Staff and managers
Any queries should be raised via an IBC Enquiry:
- Type: Employment/Salary/Pay
- Sub‑type: Schools Workforce Census
- Title: Schools Workforce Census 2026.