The English schools’ May 2026 census returns data has now been released by the DfE and it continues to show significant movement in the MIS market.
Arbor continue to lead the way, gaining 823 schools since the January census, giving them a total of 11,787 English schools using the Arbor MIS platform and a market share of some 53.58%.
Whilst this is a large number, we must remember that as part of The Key Group Arbor have gained massively from the ‘end of life’ of both Integris and ScholarPack MIS platforms with all these schools being transitioned across to the Arbor platform. Since the January census some 185 Integris schools and 160 ScholarPack schools have successfully made that transition, making a total of 345 schools moving across to Arbor due to this platform switch within The Key Group.
Having said that, we should remember that Arbor have also gained a further 478 schools from their competitors, almost exclusively from schools previously using SIMS MIS.
Bromcom have also continued to make sizeable gains in the English market, bringing another 282 schools on to their MIS platform, again with the majority of these coming from SIMS schools. Bromcom now have some 3,872 English schools using their MIS, giving them a market share here of 17.60%.
Another provider that is winning schools is Compass, who have gained a further 45 schools since the last census return, bringing them up to 184 English schools in total.
ParentPay Group’s SIMS MIS continues to lose market share, dropping a further 802 schools since the January census, reducing their English school numbers to just 5,782 from a market leading 18,000+ English schools just 10 years ago, dropping their market share from over 85% to just 26.28%…
If we now turn to the entire UK market, the picture is changing in Wales too, with several of the Welsh Local Authorities moving their schools away from SIMS to either Bromcom or Arbor platforms.
Only a year or two ago, SIMS was the market leader in Wales with over 1,200 schools there but that has changed dramatically. We now see SIMS in Wales down to just 361 schools with Bromcom gaining 552 and Arbor 290.
In Scotland, SEEMiS with their Click’nGo MIS platform is owned by the 32 Scottish authorities and is used by all state schools in Scotland. We understand that several of the Scottish authorities are now actively exploring the market for a new MIS platform, although it is also likely that this could become another country-wide procurement exercise similar to that by Northern Ireland.
In Northern Ireland, Bromcom won all schools through a lengthy tender process and is rolling out the Bromcom MIS to all 1,116 schools there.
If we add all the UK together we see that whilst Arbor is still the market leader with a 44.69% market share, Bromcom with 20.50% are now close to leap-frogging SIMS, who have slipped to just 22.73%, into second place.
We believe that it is very encouraging to see schools and MATs exploring the market to find the MIS platform that is best for their specific needs. With the DfE planning a new MIS Procurement Framework which they say they will be insisting that schools and MATs must use if procuring a new MIS, it will be interesting to see if this churn continues over the next few years.
Having said that it is encouraging to see movement for the right reasons, schools and MATs need to remember that changing MIS is not just a procurement project but also a change management project that needs to carefully managed to ensure things proceed both in a compliant manner but also to ensure that all stakeholders are engaged with the project.