Guidance

High needs import/export digital form guidance

Updated 26 May 2026

Applies to England

Introduction 

This guidance is for local authorities. 

You should read this guidance alongside the 2026 to 2027 import/export adjustment: notifying DfE of data errors which explains the 2026 to 2027 import/export adjustment allocation and scope of the data error notification process before:

• downloading the data
• submitting a form requesting a funding change due to a data error

The 2026 to 2027 import/export adjustment will be shown in the 2026 to 2027 dedicated schools grant (DSG) July update, although local authority allocations and data at school and college level is now available to local authorities.

Who is this for 

Local authorities can use this form to:

• download the high needs import/export data at school and college level
• download the local authority import/export contact list in case of data queries
• submit requests for funding changes where data errors have been agreed with other local authorities
• submit requests for funding changes where data errors have not been agreed with, or evidenced by, other local authorities
• submit requests for funding changes for providers where DfE is the provider local authority

When you can access the form

You can now access the import export data and request an adjustment for the 2026 to 2027 financial year using this form. The financial year (FY) runs from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027.

Local authorities need to submit their return by 5pm on Friday, 17 July 2026.

The return is made up of a collection of sub-forms. You can amend your return and resubmit each sub-form up to the deadline. We are unable to guarantee any extensions. If you make multiple submissions to any or all of the sub-forms, we will take account of your latest submission against each sub-form and disregard any previous submissions. You will be given a new unique reference for each submission.

How to access the form

Access the Download high needs import/export data and report errors service to complete your return.

Before you start

This service is for local authorities.

Ensure that you have a DfE Sign-in account that is linked to your local authority correctly.

To complete your return, you will need:

• confirmed changes for schools, colleges or other providers in your local authority area
• supporting evidence
• to have read 2026 to 2027 import/export adjustment: notifying DfE of data errors

DfE Sign-in

Sign in to your DfE Sign-in account

Follow the steps below to access your DfE Sign-in account:

1. Access the digital form and when prompted, enter your DfE Sign-in credentials (your account email address and password) for authentication.

2. If multi-factor authentication (MFA) is enabled on your account, you will need to enter a verification code to login. To send the verification email with the code you need to click on ‘Email code to [your email address]’ on the ‘Verify your identity page’ you were directed to after entering your email and password.

3. After clicking on ‘Email code to [your email address]’ you will progress to the next page ‘Enter code’. Copy the code from the verification email and paste it into the box. Then select ‘Verify’.

4. Choose the organisation you are completing the form for – this is only required if your account is linked to several organisations.

5. The next page will display the details we hold about the organisation you selected when you signed in. This will show the name, address and unique identifier of the organisation, as well as the name and email address of the person who signed into the form.

6. If these details are correct, select ‘Continue’ to go to the next page.

7. If you believe these details are incorrect, contact us via the customer help portal and we will investigate. However, you can still proceed with your submission.

To complete the form, your account must be connected to the local authority you are completing the form for.

You do not need to add any services in DfE Sign-in, it is used only for authentication.

If you do not have a DfE Sign-in account

If you do not have a DfE Sign-in account, you will need to create one by completing steps 1 to 7 below:

1. Access DfE Sign-in page and select ‘Create a DfE Sign-in account’.

2. Enter your email address. You must use a valid business email address that contains your name – we are unable to accept generic emails, such as ‘admin’ or ‘info’. You are also unable to use a personal email address.

3. We will send you an email to verify your email address - copy the code from this email and paste it into the box on the verification page. 

4. Create a memorable password that is a minimum of 8 characters and contains 3 out of: lowercase characters, uppercase characters, numbers, symbols. Enter your given name and surname.

5. Sign in using your new credentials. Request your MFA verification email by clicking on ’Email code to [your email address]’ on the ‘Verify your identity’ page.

6. We will send you a MFA email to verify your identity. Copy the code from this email and paste it into the box on the verification page.

7. Follow the next step instructions outlined in ‘Adding an organisation to your DfE Sign-in account’ below.

Adding an organisation to your DfE Sign-in account

To add a new organisation to your DfE Sign-in account, follow steps 1 to 6 below:

1. Login to your DfE Sign-in account.

2. Select ‘Organisations’ from the tab at the top of the page.

3. Select ‘Request access to an organisation’ from the ‘Related actions’ on the righthand side of the page.

4. Enter the name of the organisation you wish to add.

5. Select the organisation.

6. Select ‘Confirm’.

You request will be sent to an approver within your organisations. If you do not already have an approver your request will be actioned by the DfE Sign-in support team. 

Once your request to access an organisation has been approved, you can follow the steps outlined under already have a DfE account to complete the form.

You may have noticed the term ‘approver’ when setting up your account. An approver is someone at your organisation responsible for controlling who has access to DfE Sign-in and the services within the system. It is usually a senior person, such as a manager. For security reasons, you will need authorisation from one of your organisation’s approvers before you can access the form.

 If you need further assistance

If you need help with DfE Sign-in, use our DfE Sign-in help service where you will be able to request further assistance. When raising a support request, select ‘Other.’

If you are having problems accessing the form, you can contact us via the customer help portal.

Completing the information in the form

Access the digital form and select ‘Start now’. Once authenticated through DfE Sign-in, you will find a portal that lists links to the forms you may complete as part of your adjustment as below:

• Download your documents
• Submit your agreed changes
• Submit your not agreed changes
• Submit your changes where DfE is the provider local authority

All sub-forms may be completed as needed. You do not need to complete a form if you have no related errors to report. 

Each form will display a status indicator showing one of the following:

• Not Yet Started – the form has not been accessed
• In Progress – the form has been started but not yet submitted
• Complete – the form has been successfully submitted

Ensure you check the status and complete all necessary forms. Forms can be completed in any order.

If you experience any issues or have questions, contact our support team using the customer help portal for assistance. 

When you select a form from the portal, you will find a ‘Save and continue’ button on each page which will take you to the next page of the form. If you sign out of a form, or leave your form opened for an extended period before submitting, you can resume your submission when you sign back in.

Once you have submitted your form, you will be advised of next steps and will receive an email confirmation of your submission with a link to download a PDF copy of your submission. This link will expire after 6 months, so you must download a copy as soon as possible.

You can edit and resubmit your forms until the submission deadline. 

Selecting ‘Save and continue’ on each page will take you through the form. You must click ‘Submit’ on the final form page to send your completed data return to us.

Your details

We will show you details of the information we hold about the organisation you selected when you signed into your DfE Sign-in account.

Download your documents

You can download the high needs import/export data and contact list. Once you have downloaded the data you can review them offline. 

You can then select to complete the section and close the window until you are ready to notify us of errors. When you are ready to continue to notify us of errors, you will need to sign into the form again and select the relevant form to:

• Submit your agreed changes
• Submit your not agreed changes
• Submit your changes where DfE is the provider local authority

Submit your agreed changes

When selecting to submit your agreed changes you will be notifying us of changes that have been agreed with other local authorities.

You must make sure that:

• you report a local authority only once
• you have calculated the net change for each local authority before adding (where more than one provider is involved)
• you provide required evidence from the named local authority confirming the total net funding change as set out in 2026 to 2027 import/export adjustment: notifying DfE of data errors

Submit your not agreed changes

When submitting your not agreed changes you will be notifying us of changes that have not been agreed with, or evidenced by, other local authorities.

You must make sure that:

• you report each change only once
• you have unique reference number (URN) (optional), UK provider reference number (UKPRN) and the provider name for each change
• you have the change in imports and exports at a provider level
• you provide evidence from the provider confirming the data error
• you provide correspondence from the other local authority where they have not agreed to the changes
• where no response is received, you provide evidence that you contacted the relevant local authority and provider on or before 3 July 2026

DfE will not consider changes where the total data error for a school or college is fewer than 3 pupils or students for cases not agreed with other local authorities. This threshold and examples of the evidence required are explained in the 2026 to 2027 import/export adjustment: notifying DfE of data errors.

Submit your changes where DfE is the provider local authority

When submitting changes where DfE acts as the provider local authority, you will be notifying us of changes for pupils living in your local authority who attend providers where DfE is the provider local authority.

You must make sure that you:

• report each change only once
• select the correct provider from the drop down list
• have the change in exports only
• provide evidence from the provider confirming the census or ILR data error

Declarations page

Once you have completed all relevant data entries you must complete the mandatory declarations. You will not be able to submit your forms without fully completing this section. You will need to tick each statement box to confirm your agreement.

Submission summary

The summary page allows you to check your answers before submitting your form. You can change your answers using the ‘Change’ link that appears next to each data entry .

You can also save a breakdown of the form information, by clicking ‘Save summary as PDF’ before you submit.

We are unable to accept a PDF summary of your answers as proof of submission.

You must select ‘Submit’ at the bottom of this page and you will receive a unique reference number for your submission to be processed. 

Confirmation

The final page confirms your form has been successfully submitted. You will receive a unique reference number, followed by an explanation of what happens next.

You will receive an email confirming successful submission of your form. This email contains a link to download a PDF of your submission, which is valid for 6 months from the date of your submission. 

Make a note of your unique reference number as we will not include this information in your confirmation email.

Resubmitting your return

You can make changes to the form and resubmit by 5pm on Friday, 17 July 2026. To do this, you will need to sign back in and resubmit the form. 

You will be unable to amend your data after the submission deadline. We will use your most recent submission and disregard all previous submissions.

You will receive a new unique submission reference for an amended submission.

Enquiries 

If you have read this guidance and have any questions about accessing or completing the digital form, you can contact us via the customer help portal.

If you have questions relating to the import/export adjustment and the data error process, contact high.needs@education.gov.uk after reading the 2026 to 2027 import/export adjustment: notifying DfE of data errors.

Feedback

We are committed to enhancing our user experience and improving our digital forms. We, therefore welcome and encourage user feedback.