Best HR Software for Schools and Education UK 2026

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Last Reviewed: April 2026 | Fact-checked against DfE, ICO, and ACAS guidance.

TL;DR: HR software for UK schools must maintain a Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) compliant Single Central Record (SCR), track DBS check status and professional qualifications, manage the Teachers Pension Scheme, and handle term-time only and part-year working calculations that most HR platforms get wrong. There are approximately 500,000 teachers in England (DfE, 2024). This guide identifies what works for maintained schools, academies, and independent schools.

How We Assessed These Platforms

We assessed HR platforms against education-specific criteria: Single Central Record (SCR) compliance under Keeping Children Safe in Education 2024, DBS check tracking at the correct level for each role, prohibition order check documentation, Teachers Pension Scheme administration support, term-time only and part-year working holiday calculation accuracy, supply teacher management, Ofsted inspection readiness of HR records, UK data residency for pupil-adjacent data environments, and G2/Capterra ratings from verified UK education users. No platform paid to appear here.

Author: Chandraketu Tripathi, reviewed by the kaeltripton.com editorial team.

The Single Central Record: The Non-Negotiable

Every school in England must maintain a Single Central Record (SCR) under Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) 2024 - the statutory safeguarding guidance issued by the Department for Education. The SCR records the pre-employment checks completed for every member of staff, governor, trustee, and regular volunteer who works with pupils. Required checks include: DBS check at the Enhanced level with barred list check for roles involving regulated activity; right to work in the UK; teacher prohibition order check via the Teaching Regulation Agency; section 128 direction check for management roles; qualification verification for teachers; and overseas criminal record checks for individuals who have lived or worked abroad within the past five years.

Ofsted inspectors examine the SCR at the start of every inspection. An SCR that is incomplete, contains gaps, or cannot be produced promptly will be noted as a safeguarding concern that affects the overall inspection outcome. HR software that maintains SCR-compliant records for every staff category, with status indicators and expiry date tracking for each check type, provides the real-time SCR evidence that Ofsted requires (DfE, 2024).

Teachers Pension Scheme Administration

Teachers in maintained schools and many academy trusts are eligible members of the Teachers Pension Scheme (TPS), administered by Capita on behalf of the Department for Education. TPS is a defined benefit scheme with employer contribution rates set nationally - currently 28.68% of pensionable pay for employers. TPS administration requires: monthly submission of member records to the TPS online portal; accurate pensionable pay calculation for each eligible teacher; tracking of opt-out elections; and management of the final salary and career average sections for members who joined before and after 2015 respectively. Payroll software with TPS integration - IRIS Payroll, Sage Payroll with TPS module, and PS Financials - handles the calculation and submission. HR software stores the employment records and contract details that inform TPS submissions. Verify that any HR platform you consider connects to TPS-compatible payroll software before purchasing (DfE, 2024).

Term-Time Only Working: The Holiday Calculation Problem

Term-time only (TTO) and part-year working contracts are common in schools for support staff - teaching assistants, lunchtime supervisors, and administrative staff contracted to work only during term time. Holiday entitlement calculation for TTO workers is a known area of complexity. Following the Supreme Court ruling in Harpur Trust v Brazel (2022), the 12.07% accrual method was found to be incorrect for part-year workers. TTO workers must now receive their full 5.6 weeks of statutory holiday entitlement calculated on the basis of the weeks they actually work, without reduction for weeks not worked. This significantly increased holiday pay costs for many schools and the calculation method is not correctly implemented in all HR platforms. Verify specifically during any trial that the platform applies the Harpur Trust v Brazel calculation for TTO workers.

Best HR Software for Education UK 2026

Ofsted Inspection Readiness

Ofsted inspectors arrive with little notice - sometimes as little as one day for standard inspections. The SCR must be available immediately and in a format that inspectors can review and cross-reference against the staff list. An SCR maintained in a current HR system with status indicators for each check type is significantly faster to present than one compiled manually from multiple spreadsheets and paper files at short notice. HR software for education should support an SCR export that can be produced in under five minutes, covering all current staff with their check status clearly indicated.

Supply Teacher and Agency Worker Management

Schools regularly engage supply teachers through agencies. Under KCSIE 2024, schools must receive written confirmation from the supply agency that appropriate pre-employment checks have been completed before the supply teacher commences work. Schools must record this written confirmation in their SCR alongside the confirmation date and the agency name. HR software must be able to record supply teacher records that include agency-confirmed checks rather than school-conducted checks, clearly distinguishing the source of verification in the SCR record.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Single Central Record and which schools must maintain it?

The Single Central Record (SCR) is a statutory register of pre-employment checks completed for all staff, governors, trustees, and regular volunteers in a school. All maintained schools, academies, free schools, and independent schools in England must maintain an SCR under Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) 2024. The SCR must cover: DBS checks, right to work verification, teacher prohibition order checks, qualification verification, and overseas criminal records checks where applicable. Ofsted inspectors review the SCR at every inspection.

How has Harpur Trust v Brazel changed holiday pay for school support staff?

The Supreme Court ruling in Harpur Trust v Brazel (2022) found that the 12.07% accrual method for calculating holiday pay for part-year workers is incorrect. Term-time only workers must now receive the full 5.6 weeks of statutory holiday entitlement without proportional reduction for weeks not worked. For a teaching assistant contracted for 35 weeks per year, this means receiving 5.6 weeks of holiday pay based on their weekly contracted hours, not 12.07% of annual earnings. Many schools had to increase TTO holiday pay following this ruling. Verify your HR or payroll platform applies this calculation correctly.

Do independent schools need to maintain a Single Central Record?

Yes. Independent schools registered with Ofsted or the Independent Schools Inspectorate must maintain an SCR under the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014, which incorporate equivalent safeguarding requirements to KCSIE for the maintained sector. ISI inspectors review the SCR in the same way that Ofsted inspectors do in maintained schools. International schools operating in the UK under British curriculum frameworks have additional compliance considerations depending on their regulatory status.

What payroll software handles the Teachers Pension Scheme correctly?

TPS-compatible payroll software includes IRIS Payroll for Education, PS Financials, Bromcom Payroll, and Sage Payroll with the TPS module configured. These tools handle monthly member record submission to the TPS portal, pensionable pay calculation, and opt-out tracking. General payroll software without TPS configuration does not handle the scheme's specific data submission requirements. Verify that any payroll tool you consider has an active TPS integration before purchasing for a school or academy trust.

Can general commercial HR software be used in schools or is specialist software required?

General commercial HR software can be used in schools but requires careful configuration to meet education-specific requirements. The Single Central Record must be replicated using document storage and custom fields, which most general platforms can accommodate but do not provide natively. Teachers Pension Scheme administration requires TPS-compatible payroll software regardless of the HR platform chosen. The Harpur Trust v Brazel holiday calculation must be verified as correct for part-year workers. Specialist education HR platforms like Bromcom and PS Financials include these features natively, reducing implementation risk at the cost of higher licence fees.

For related reading, see our guides on HR software GDPR compliance and HR compliance software UK.

For the complete market comparison, see our best HR software UK 2026 guide.

Sources

• DfE Keeping Children Safe in Education 2024: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education--2
• DfE Teacher Workforce Statistics 2024: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-teacher-workforce
• Harpur Trust v Brazel 2022 Supreme Court: https://www.supremecourt.uk/cases/uksc-2021-0155.html
• Teachers Pension Scheme Employer Guidance: https://www.teacherspensions.co.uk/employers/
• ACAS Term-Time Working Guidance: https://www.acas.org.uk/flexible-working