Core features, data standards and relationships for Online Transactional Services. Development led by Tim Spiers and agreed with range of government and commercial organisations.

1. Connect Digitally Contents
Minimum Features and Relationships Relationships – Grouping and Linking Services 2
Generic Minimum Features and Guidance 4
Connect Digitally has produced a core document, the Minimum Features and Relationships (MFR). The
MFR will support local authorities (LAs) by identifying the minimum features that should be included for Online School Admissions – Enhancements 6
a range of core services and, in addition, how these services should link together. The MFR document has
Online Free School Meals – Minimum Features 8
been developed through collaboration between LAs, suppliers and Connect Digitally and was endorsed
by stakeholders on 30 November 2010 at the Intellect Technology Trade Association offices. Online Payments – Minimum Features 9
The MFR evolved from the Online School Admissions (OSA) Minimum Features List (MFL) which Endorsement of the MFR Document 10
enabled LAs, suppliers and other stakeholders to implement an effective and sustainable OSA
process across every LA in England.
Related Documents ›››››
› Online School Admissions Minimum Features List
› Enhanced Online School Admissions
Process Guide
What is the Purpose of the MFR? › Online School Admissions products
The MFR supports the development of solutions by the needs of their customers. However, it is expected that › Online Free School Meals products
agreeing and obtaining supplier endorsement of core many of the features listed will be integral to every service. › Online Payments products
service features and functionality.
The MFR covers the following: › Online Free School Meals Developer Toolkit
By following the guidance provided in the MFR, a range of (available from the Department for Education
• Enhancements to Online School Admissions (OSA) Free School Meals Eligibility Checking Service
benefits can be achieved including: improved usability for
• Online Free School Meals (ECS) Service Desk (fsm.admin@education.gsi.gov.uk).
parents/carers; reduced costs for LAs; better data quality
(OFSM)
through the linking of back office data; and a strategy for
• Online Payments
the development and grouping of online services. This document should be read by LA staff involved with:
• Grouping and
The MFR is not a specification, it should be adapted Linking Services Information
by LAs to meet local requirements. The content is Service delivery
technology
generic but, where appropriate, includes specific Please note that Online Payments
examples for clarification. can include links to Cashless Catering
systems. Therefore references to Cashless Catering Online parental
The features listed are intended as a guide for LAs, suppliers Transformation
are included within the document where applicable. services
and other stakeholders in developing online forms to meet
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2. Background
The Connect Digitally Programme is working with partners to improve services for parents/ Please refer to the Appendix for information regarding the wider perspective involving
carers using digital technology, whilst delivering increased efficiency in LAs and schools. interoperability, identity management and security.
Parents/carers should have access to the core set of grouped services, accessible through a
variety of channels and technologies.
The detailed minimum features for enhanced OSA
and OFSM are well developed, as OSA was led by the Updates
eAdmissions National Project and OFSM was identified
The MFR will continue to be updated and comments and suggested
in the Varney Report in December 2006.
improvements can be submitted by LAs through the Connect Digitally
This third version of the MFR has been Community of Practice or by email to connectdigitally@hertscc.gov.uk.
enhanced to include:
If suppliers have any comments or require additional copies of this
• The minimum approach to grouping services and document, please email connectdigitally@hertscc.gov.uk
developing the relationships between the core systems
• More detailed minimum features for online payments
Relationships – Grouping and Linking Services
The majority of LAs have grouped Connect Digitally Core Services in a meaningful way on their website. This requires LAs to
signpost other parental services from Connect Digitally core services e.g. advice on OFSM and other relevant services during the
school admissions application process.
The first steps required for LAs to establish links beyond this are:
Sharing of parent/carer and learner data for use in public Establishing links to share common data between back
facing systems e.g. pre-population of the OSA form from office systems such as school admissions, free school
parent/carer data held in other systems meals and centralised schools information
The diagram on page 3 “Parental Services – Options for Linking Systems” outlines how systems
could be linked together with common features and benefits.
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3. Parent/Carer Access
to Services
SMS • Internet • Digital TV etc...
Parental Services – Options for Linking Services
Other Services
Typical Features Typical Features Typical Features Typical Features Typical Features
• Support for pre-application research • An online payments service • Links to online payments • Guidance to parent/carer applicant • Online reporting to parents/carers
• Guidance to parent/carer on process • A single location for all • Support for BACs/cheques • Online form to capture • Information on home to
• Online registration, application school payments • Links to other systems: school parent/carer request school transport
and confirmation • Money transfer into central accounts management information, free • Immediate checking of eligibility • Information about childcare
school meals (FSM), catering for FSM and family services
• Inter-system transfer of • Selectable reminders to parents/carers
data within authority suppliers, LA, finance systems • Links to other online services • Advice for parents/carers
• Links with school systems CHILDREN
• School reporting and schools of SEN pupils
• Improved links across • Reports to parent/carer school
parental services • Parent/carer • Advice on school’s uniform
• Tracking of non-payments to school reporting
• Support for multi-channel • Information/application
• Secure access for payments for school admissions
access (e.g DigiTV/SMS)
• Registration links to OFSM appeals
Parent/Child Details
Registration Links
Benefits Benefits Benefits Benefits Benefits
• Improves process for parent/carer • Ease of payment for parent/carer • Streamlines school lunchtimes • Speeds up access to free school • Improves dialogue between school,
when applying for a school place of all school expenses (e.g dinners, • Reduces administration meals for children parent/carer and student
• Increases efficiency and reduces trips, music fees, uniforms, clubs) • Reduces stigma • Improves information and guidance
• Improves cash flow
costs to serve • Reduces lost payments (cash/cheque) • Faster, simpler, more convenient to parents/carers
• Creates safer staff/pupil environment
• Encourages parents/carers to use • Improves administration for LAs application process for parents/carers • Up-to-date information about
other online services and schools • Improves administration, reduces home to school transport
• Saves time for costs and up-to-date entitlement • Links to online payments for
parent/carer for schools transport fees
• Reduces stigma • Streamlines service with reduced cost
and improved administration for LA
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4. Generic Minimum Features and Guidance
Generic minimum features which apply to each core service are itemised in an easy 8 point guide
2 Data Sharing
1 Form
Design
Parent/carer and child data
sharing across systems (subject
and Usability to legal considerations/LA data
management strategy)
Pre-population of online forms
using data from other systems
with due regard to security
considerations
Data transfer should be seamless
Field level validation to improve the quality and and real-time where appropriate
consistency of data
Clear concise language with help and guidance
that is contextual, succinct and provided at the
point where it is needed
3 Parent/Carer Contact: Easily locatable contact facility available to support parents/carers
Usability testing by supplier, LA and users
before release to the public website. 4 Digital Inclusion
See http://usability.coi.gov.uk/ for best practice advice
Guidance to the parent/carer to ensure that the To avoid the risk of some parents/carers
core data captured for the online process is of a being excluded from the opportunities
high quality that digital technology offers, services
should be designed to enable (include)
Meaningful and useful error messages multi-channel access. For example, through
Parent/carer consent to the sharing of their offering Assisted Digital, SMS Text and
data where appropriate Digi-TV as additional or alternative means
of conducting transactions or sending and
Consistent approach to providing parental access to
receiving information
online service using an integrated web portal
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5. 5 Access and Security
Registration process to establish secure parent/carer access to any 6
online form or account
Links
Ability for parents/carers to enter, save and retrieve an application Links between online services as follows: These should:
at any time where the process allows this
• To parental systems operated by the LA such • Be grouped by relevance and in a
Statement and application of standards for LA access, security as OSA, online reporting, OFSM, cashless meaningful way for parents/carers
and authentication including the protection of all databases catering and online payments
and processes • Share data where appropriate
• Within the LA website with other
Data protection to prevent destruction or corruption, including • Reduce the number of sign-ons for
relevant services
frequent file saves and transaction logs to ensure the ability of the multiple services (single sign-on)
system to re-create itself. (This could be included as part of a wider • To schools’ websites within the LA
• Incorporate seamless data transfer
contingency plan) • To national websites containing information between services
Audit trails and logs pertaining to benefits, parental services and
as appropriate the child’s education. e.g. Directgov
7 Accessibility, Compliance and Compatibility
Where applicable the core services must comply with:
All relevant legislation such as Disability Software compatibility with industry
Discrimination Act (DDA) (www.dda-compliant.com), recognised internet browsers
Data Protection Act (DPA), Freedom of Information standards
Act (FOI) (www.ico.gov.uk)
World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
(www.w3.org)
8 Service Availability OPEN
Service Level Agreements (SLAs) need to be in Appropriate technology to minimise service disruption as a result
place to ensure any system downtime is kept to of usage peaks or disruptive forces such as hackers, malware and
an agreed minimum viruses should be employed
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6. Online School Admissions – Enhancements
We have identified 14 ways LAs can enhance the service beyond the OSA Minimum Features List agreed in 2004, by providing:
1. Support for pre-application research 2. Allowable Applications 3. Registration
including improved links to: Defined areas of allowable A PIN/password for the
applications for example parent/carer either with the
A downloadable admissions booklet with the option to use based on the child’s date registration pack or as part
alphabetical school tabs for navigation of birth, and correct LA of the online registration
application form using
the home address
Information about applying online – FAQs, processes, registration, and postcode
Fair Processing Notices, Data Protection
Clearly presented opening and closing dates
4. Online Validation 4
Online validation for a range of fields as follows:
An A-Z of schools’ websites within
the LA with hyperlinks 4 Age groups to ensure application in 4 Reminder if less than maximum
correct year group preferences used
Guidance from Ofsted, DfE, EduBase etc 4 Gender to ensure match with single 4 Proof of residency of child
gender schools
4 Indication of required fields as a result
School specific information such as school uniform information 4 Missing fields where relevant of previously entered data
and application processes 4 Address of applicant and child
4 School validation based on the DfE
Home to school transport service and information on school buses
look up list
4 Home to school distance
Catchment area information for each parent/carer based
on their child’s address 4 Check for duplicate preferences
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7. 5. Electronic Transactions
All possible transactions to support the online form provided electronically
e.g. proof of residency, religious affiliation, birth certificates, pre-admission
information, and any other certificates or evidence of aptitude
6. An email and SMS text messaging service for:
And five final ways...
Allocation (offers) details available online together with useful information
> User id/password > Receipt of application 10.
notification and links to other services
> Allocation day alert
and reminders
Schools with a view of online applications which, as a minimum, should include
> Offer details 11. pupils in their school. Allowable additional information would be defined by the LA
> Alerts for application form
closure deadline > Appeals
Schools with a view of allocation details when available irrespective
12. of how they were made
Parents/carers with access to an online email facility to deal with
13. queries throughout the admissions and appeals process
7. Advice Services
Links to Choice Advisers and other advice services via email, Verification of addresses for children applying for school places by matching
14.
telephone and SMS text message against Council Tax Records and children’s services data
8. Application Receipt
Information useful to the parent/carer in the confirmation of the application
receipt e.g. reference number, contact information, synopsis of information
transferred, next steps, links to other information
9. Online Guidance
Online guidance to parents/carers on relevant criteria information, for example
school catchment area details.
Online facility for the parent/carer to:
Accept offer
Register continuing interest
Lodge an appeal
Reject an offer
Add free text comments
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8. Online Free School Meals Minimum Features
LAs can meet the minimum features for an OFSM service by providing the following:
• An online transactional form for OFSM
• Online guidance to the parent/carer
regarding the OFSM application process,
eligibility criteria and on specific areas
of the process through to the provision
of the school meal for the child
• Integration via a web service with the ECS
• Electronic confirmation of the application to the parent/carer
• Removal of paper proof of benefit for applicants through
eligibility checking
• Electronic communication to the school regarding eligibility
status and start date (this may be by telephone or email)
• Batch checking of ongoing
eligibility through ECS
• Ability to report transactions breakdown • Management of OFSM applications
for FSM online, through assisted digital including; progress tracking, document
(telephone), face to face and on paper management, letter generation and
exception management
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9. Online Payments Minimum Features
The minimum features for an Online Payments service can be met by providing the following:
£ Solutions compliant with the Payment £ Facility to refund payments to
Card Industry Data Security Standard parents/carers as covered by card Other considerations:
(www.pcisecuritystandards.org) scheme regulations
£ Selectable reminders for payments Links to a Cashless Catering service and functionality within this
£ Capability to collect range of
which are due service may include: integration with revaluation machines; reporting
payments for school-related items,
such as school dinners, trips, music functionality for the school so that catering can be managed
£ Reporting functionality for parents/
lessons, clubs, and uniforms. These carers, LAs and schools electronically; reporting for parents/carers to check balances and
items may be fixed or variable £
have access to menus and other catering related information
Identification and management of
amounts or payable by instalments
payments due Facility for open payments to be made without the need for account
£ Ability for parents/carers to make £ Record of non-electronic payments in creation e.g. donations or for extended school facilities
payment to schools or LAs online the system
using credit, debit cards or other Parents/carers may want to restrict daily or weekly use within specified
electronic means e.g. cash credits to £ Ability to set minimum and maximum limits e.g. to ensure correct use of monies on child’s school dinner.
accounts at retail outlets facilitating amounts per payment item
This could be managed at point of sale by the school cashless catering
payments for non-internet users £ Ability to define item quantity system or by the school where a cashless catering system is not present
£ Facility to make payment for multiple £ Production of electronic receipts
Additional functionality related to school meals may be managed
items in one transaction £ Access within the parent’s/carer’s by the Online Payments supplier or by a separate system e.g.
£ Ability for payment of money to secure account to payment history administration of FSM payments, dinner money,
be made into a central LA or school and account statements
registration numbers, meal registers
account or to other third parties £ Ability to make payments for more
such as caterers than one child at a time Ability to set up system before pupils
start school so that plans can be
£ Functionality to allocate funds to
made to launch the system
different account codes and different
items to different bank accounts (pre-admissions)
£ Integration with Information Management
Systems to support processes within the school.
This could include ability to manage groups
such as importing year groups and creating
groups, for example, school trips
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10. Endorsement
CD1119401
Print www.communities.idea.gov.uk Appendix P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6 P7 P8 P9 P10

11. Appendix
Other Parental Engagement Programmes Dependencies and Guidance Identity Management
Connect Digitally is working closely with the The detailed specific requirements for each system The UK Access Management Federation provides UK
following associated areas of DfE: will be different in each LA and will be dependent schools, further and higher education and research
on a number of factors. These include processes, sectors with a framework for accessing online learning
procedures and policies; local systems; existing online material by using identity management software, such
Interoperability
forms; infrastructure; overall strategy and standards. as Shibboleth. This gives institutions a route to single
To improve the way in which educational data is
sign-on to resources through the implementation of
collected and shared, options such as the Systems The following have been referred to in the
federated, devolved authentication.
Interoperability Framework (SIF) may development of this document:
be considered. www.ukfederation.org.uk/
• Experience and lessons learned through the
www.sifassociation.org/uk/
implementation of online systems and processes by
OpenID is an open, free, standards-based specification
Hertfordshire County Council, regional partners and
Broader children’s services standards will be for managing identities on the internet. OpenID
other LAs
adopted as they develop. This includes the work of performs functions similar to Shibboleth, although it
the Information Standards Board (ISB). • LA and school software suppliers does not provide a full single sign-on service.
www.escs-isb.org.uk/ • Compliance with Data Protection and Freedom of http://openid.net/foundation
Information Acts
Security • Documentation from the ECS The Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC)
There is a series of good practice guides to help commissioned a study to describe current practice and
• School Food Trust guidance on Cashless Catering
schools protect sensitive and personal data that is envision future processes in identity management for
held on learners, staff and other individuals. lifelong learning in UK higher and further education.
This mapped the differences between the ‘ideal’
http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/management/ims/
world and what happens currently, to provide a
datamanagement/privacynotices/
better understanding of what can be done and where
priorities may lie for future work.
For more information on Connect Digitally visit the Community of Practice on communities.idea.gov.uk http://www.jisc.ac.uk/publications/reports/2008/
or email us at connectdigitally@hertscc.gov.uk
idmfinalreport.aspx
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