Roding Primary School Strengthens Absence Oversight and Staff Wellbeing
Roding Primary School moved from separate Excel-based absence and leave processes to Activ People HR, improving consistency, reporting visibility, and shared ownership across managers and staff.
The challenge
Managing absence and leave across different staff contracts had become complex, with teachers and support staff working under different terms and requiring separate processes.
Core pain points
The school relied on separate spreadsheets for different staff groups, creating duplication and making it harder to analyse absence data consistently.
- Different leave and absence rules for staff groups
- Separate processes for teachers and support staff
- Heavy reliance on accurate manual input
- Increased risk of inconsistent data
Operational impact
Significant time was spent maintaining records rather than using the data to identify trends, support wellbeing, and respond proactively to attendance concerns.
- Harder to identify absence patterns
- Time-consuming reporting
- Limited comparison across staff groups
- Less proactive support for staff wellbeing
Before Activ People HR
Roding Primary School used a detailed Excel-based process to manage absence and leave, but the approach became harder to maintain as complexity increased.
A detailed but manual process
The school maintained separate spreadsheets for teaching staff and support staff to reflect different contractual arrangements. These spreadsheets recorded absence details, leave requests, approvals, and actions such as contract or hours changes.
While individual audit trails were strong, producing meaningful summary reports required additional work. Emergency leave and unpaid leave were not always easy to manage, and data accuracy depended entirely on manual entry.
Key features used
Activ People HR helped Roding Primary School move towards a more consistent, shared, and proactive approach to managing absence and leave.
Employee self-service
Staff can submit leave requests directly, reducing central manual data entry and improving consistency.
Manager approvals
Line managers can manage absence, approvals, and wellbeing processes directly, increasing ownership and accountability.
Centralised reporting
Reporting, particularly for unpaid leave and overall absence, is clearer than under the previous Excel-based process.
Workflow prompts
Long-term absence prompts help ensure appropriate actions are taken, including the option to temporarily reassign direct reports.
The results
By moving to Activ People HR, Roding Primary School reduced manual administration and improved consistency across absence and leave management.
Reduced admin time
Basic absence requests and approvals now require fewer manual updates, reducing administrative effort.
Improved consistency
Standardised processes have helped create more consistent absence records across the school.
Greater manager ownership
Managers are more engaged in monitoring attendance and wellbeing, supporting earlier conversations with staff.
Moving from a manual Excel-based system to a dedicated absence management platform has improved consistency and shared ownership of staff attendance across the school.
Outcomes at a glance
Activ People HR helped Roding Primary School strengthen absence oversight, reduce manual effort, and support a more proactive approach to staff wellbeing.
Managing school absence across different staff contracts?
Activ People HR helps schools reduce manual admin, improve reporting, and give managers the tools they need to manage attendance and wellbeing more effectively.