School GIAP CME Search and Custom-List Guidance

Using Get Information About a Pupil for CME enquiries

This guidance applies conditionally to maintained and academy primary and secondary schools in England investigating a pupil who may be missing education. Access to Get Information About a Pupil (GIAP), responsibility for searching, and any custom CME-list arrangement should reflect the actual roles of the school and [local authority or school role].

Establish whether the child is registered elsewhere

Where the school has access and responsibility for the search, use GIAP to help establish whether the child considered to be missing education is on another school's roll. GIAP allows schools and local authorities to access the National Pupil Database to retrieve pupil-level census data.

Use the child's unique pupil number (UPN), where available, or other identifying characteristics to search for the child. Record the identifiers used, the date of the search, and the search result in the CME case record.

Retain and revisit search information

Save the identifying data and search information obtained through GIAP so that it can be revisited. Retain the relevant search result with the CME case record, including [giap search reference or location].

Use the result to inform the next contact or safeguarding action recorded for the case, where such action is applicable to the school's role.

Create and check a custom CME list

Where the school or local authority uses a custom CME list, add the relevant CME case using the identifiers needed to identify the child and retain the associated search information.

Regularly check the custom CME list and GIAP, where that arrangement and access apply, to identify whether a child is on another school's roll. Record each check and any resulting contact or safeguarding action in [cme case record location].

Roles and local arrangements

The school and local authority should use GIAP only in accordance with their actual access and responsibilities. Confirm the responsible role as [responsible giap search role] and the local arrangement for any custom CME list as [custom cme list arrangement].