GovWire

The children in need census is an annual statutory census for all local authorities. You must complete statutory censuses by law unless theres a good reason not to.

The census covers the financial year (1 April to 31 March).

It collects data on children referred to local authority social care services because their health or development is at risk. This includes:

• children in local-authority care (in placements in a residential home, in a foster family, or with relatives)
• children who are getting support from their local authoritys social care services
• children who are the subject of a child protection plan
• unborn children who will potentially need support from social care services

Important dates

2024 to 2025 census dates:

• census opens: Tuesday 1 April 2025
• deadline for loading data: Monday 30 June 2025
• deadline for submitting data: Thursday 31 July 2025

Submit your data

Youll need to:

• register and log in with DfE Sign-in
• use COLLECT to submit your data

Contact your school or local authority approver, if:

• you want to request a DfE Sign-in username or password so you can access COLLECT
• children in need census is not on the list of collections you can see in COLLECT

Get help using DfE Sign-in

If you do not know who your approver is, use the DfE Sign-in request form.

If youve forgotten your password, use DfE Sign-in to reset it. You will need to click Start now and then the Ive forgotten my password link.

Well only be able to change the status of your data submission to authorised once youve cleared all errors in the data in COLLECT.

Census documents

These documents will help you complete the census.

2024 to 2025 census guides

• census guide
• technical specification and validation rules
• COLLECT guides
• COLLECT reports specifications

2025 to 2026 census guides

• census guide
• technical specification and validation rules
• COLLECT guides
• COLLECT reports specifications

Factors identified at the end of assessment

This additional guide on the factors identified at the end of assessment (PDF, 231 KB, 16 pages) explains how to complete the factors identified at the end of the assessment data item.

Get help submitting data

For complex questions, use the service request form. We aim to answer your question within 5 working days.

Feedback

Use the service request form if you have any comments about our data collection service, including COLLECT and the helpdesk service.