Buyer's guide · reviewed 2 September 2026
Choosing special school assessment, evidence and planning software
A good system should help a school see each pupil’s progress over time, understand the story behind it, and recognise how the team around them is working together towards their goals.
1 · Decide what you want the system to bring together
Start with the work, not the feature list
Begin with the account your team needs to build around a pupil. Plans should set direction, everyday records should reveal what happened, and assessment and review should help everyone understand what is changing and why.
Progress over time
Test whether staff and leaders can see how everyday evidence, assessment decisions and review points build a meaningful picture of change over weeks, terms and years.
Evidence in context
Test whether a real learning event becomes part of the wider pupil story, connected to relevant planning, understood alongside other evidence and easy to revisit.
Whole-pupil planning
Look for a clear route through EHCP outcomes, goals, targets, profiles and forms, rather than separate records staff must mentally stitch together.
People and governance
Ask how each person can contribute their perspective while professional judgement, consent, approvals and a reliable history remain protected.
2 · Involve the people who know the work
Who should be involved?
Not everyone needs to select the supplier. Each group sees a different part of the pupil’s journey and can judge whether the system supports the real work rather than reducing it to data entry.
Headteacher / SLT
Connect the decision to school priorities, capacity and accountability.
Assessment lead
Test whether judgements, progress views and reporting reflect the school's approach.
Teachers
Test whether planning, assessment, moderation and review build a coherent understanding of each pupil over time.
Teaching assistants
Consider whether everyday moments can be captured and used without drawing attention away from supporting pupils.
Therapists and wider professionals
Show where specialist input enters the pupil story and where access boundaries matter.
Administrators
Test pupil setup, reviews, records, hand-offs and the work around the system.
Families
Clarify how families can see or enrich the picture of their child, and what needs consent or approval.
IT and data protection
Examine identity, devices, integrations, security, retention and exit.
3 · Evaluate the whole decision
Eight things to evaluate
Planning and EHCP connections
Can staff follow the thread from outcomes through goals and practical targets, while preserving the thinking and context behind them?
Everyday evidence capture
Can staff capture an observation, photo or video without losing the moment, then place it in the context of existing planning and assessment?
Reporting and review preparation
Can leaders inspect the evidence behind a judgement, and can staff draw together a clear account of the pupil’s journey for review?
Family and professional collaboration
Can different perspectives deepen the team’s understanding while the school retains control over access, consent and approval?
Moderation, approvals and governance
Where do drafts, professional discussion, internal sign-off, consent and a reliable history live?
Assessment approach
Can the system reflect the school’s curriculum and assessment practice, and adapt as that practice develops?
MIS integration, migration and implementation
What comes across from your MIS, what must be configured, and what work is required before staff can use the system confidently?
Pricing, support, renewal and exit
What is included, what changes the cost, what support is available, and can you retrieve a complete usable record if you leave?
4 · Put real work at the centre of the demo
Five tasks every supplier should demonstrate
Give every supplier the same roles, pupil scenario and safeguards. Ask them to show not only that each task can be completed, but how every contribution strengthens a coherent understanding of the pupil over time.
- 1
A teaching assistant captures a learning moment and connects it to an existing target.
- 2
A teacher reviews, assesses and moderates that record.
- 3
A leader follows the evidence behind an assessment judgement.
- 4
Staff prepare information for an EHCP or progress review.
- 5
An administrator exports the pupil's complete usable record.
5 · Shortlist by starting point
Products schools often consider
These options overlap, but they have grown from different starting points. Start with the approach most likely to help your team see, understand and support each pupil’s journey more clearly.
B Squared Connecting Steps and Evisense
Start here when established SEND assessment content and connected evidence sharing are central requirements.
Compare B Squared, Evisense and Voyage →Evidence for Learning
Start here when rich evidence and participation by families and wider professionals are central requirements.
Compare Evidence for Learning and Voyage →Earwig Academic
Start here when you want a broad package spanning evidence, reporting, analytics and parent engagement.
Compare Earwig Academic and Voyage →Voyage for Schools
Start here if your priority is bringing profiles, EHCP planning, targets, records, assessment and day-to-day staff work into one connected record around each pupil.
Explore Voyage capabilities →6 · Take this into demonstrations
School software evaluation checklist
School
Supplier
Demonstration date
7 · Where to go next
When you’re ready
Use the sourced comparisons to build a shortlist, or tell us what you want staff, families and leaders to understand about each pupil and how the work feels today. We can help you decide whether Voyage is worth exploring.