Sims Parent App What is the SIMS Parent App?

What will you find in the SIMS Parent App: 

School term, inset dates and contact details available at the click of a button

• Access to electronically update your contact details, for up-to-date emergency information
• Important push messages from school, including event reminders and newsletters
• Information about your child’s attendance, assessment and school clubs
• Homework, Options Online and SIMS Pay, should your school subscribe to these options 

The SIMS Parent App is an on-demand app, which can either be downloaded to an Android or Apple phone, or accessed via a website. There is no charge for accessing the Parent App. 

Please read through this Quick Start guide in full, before proceeding. 

What do I need to register for the SIMS Parent App?   

Before beginning the registration process, you will need the following: 

Your unique registration email. 

Your school will send to you a registration email that contains a registration link and an invitation code. This email will be sent from Capita SIMS (noreply@sims.co.uk). If you cannot find this email, please check your junk mail and ensure it has not been marked as spam/junk.  Alternatively, you can register at https://registration.sims.co.uk using the invitation code you have received.

The date of birth of one of your children who attends the school. 

Either a Microsoft (including Office 365), Google, Facebook, Twitter or SIMS ID account. You can use an existing account (e.g. a Hotmail account) or create a new one online – they are free and easy to set up and you can use any valid email address and password.

How do I register for the SIMS Parent App? 

Open your unique registration email and click the link as instructed. A new internet window will open and you will be asked to log in.   

User should register with either a Microsoft (including Office 365), Google, Facebook or Twitter account. Click the icon for the relevant Third Party account and you will be directed to sign in using your existing details (i.e. your username and password for that existing account). 

IMPORTANT NOTE: Before completing the registration process, you should be signed out from the chosen account you’re planning on using to register with e.g. Facebook. Alternatively, the registration process should be carried out in a private browser window.  

You will be guided through the login process. Once logged in, you will be asked if you want to authorise SIMS Parent to use your account.  

You will now be asked for an invitation code. If you were able to click the link in the email you received, this field will be populated automatically. If you had to select the web address in the email, you will need to copy the invite code from the email and paste it into the space provided. 

Enter the Date of Birth of one of your children attending the school (not your date of birth). This is for security purposes only and this information will not be used in the SIMS Parent system. Click the Register button to continue. 

NOTE: Users with multiple roles need to register only once. For example, users who are both a parent and a teacher at the same school should register as either a parent or a teacher but should not register as both. Once registered, all of the relevant parent and teacher information will be available. 

How do I download the SIMS Parent App?  

The SIMS Parent app can be downloaded for free from the Apple Store (iOS) or the Play Store (Android). 

• Open the Play Store or Apple Store on your device. Using the Search facility, enter SIMS Parent.

• Select SIMS Parent by Capita Plc from the search results.
  
  
• Tap INSTALL to download the app.

Once the app has downloaded successfully, tap Open to register and start using the app. 

Please allow any notifications, if prompted to do so. 

How do I sign in to the SIMS Parent App? 

Click the icon for the relevant Third Party account that you registered with e.g. Google or Facebook. Enter your Sign in details. 

I don’t have a smart phone, how can I access the SIMS Parent App? 

If you have access to a tablet device, laptop, desktop computer you can sign in via the following website https://www.sims-parent.co.uk , selecting the icon for the relevant Third Party account that you previously registered with. 

Ensure that you sign out of the Parent App website after use, if you are using a shared computer or a computer at a public library or internet café. 

How to use the Data Collection Sheet feature 

Once you have signed into the SIMS Parent App or SIMS Parent website, you will be able to see your child(ren), tap on each child to go through to the options available, in this case Data Collection Sheet. You may also be able to see timetable, reports, homework, conduct, activities and SIMS Pay, depending on the set up of your school. 

Click Data Collection Sheet to view the data which your school has requested you to add/update. The first Addresses and Telephone & Emails section that you are able to see, underneath your child’s name are their contact details, not your contact details. 

If you wish to amend the emergency contacts, including your own, scroll down the page, and you will see a Contacts section. If you can only see yourself under the Contacts section, this is a school setting for security purposes. You will need to contact the school to update other contacts’ details. 

If, once you have reviewed the data, there are no changes, please ensure that you tap/click the Confirm No Changes button. If you have made any changes, please make sure you tap/click all of the following buttons to ensure that changes are submitted back to the school: 

• Save
• Back to Student
• Finish Changes
• Submit Changes

Once the school has reviewed your changes, you will receive a message within the SIMS Parent App Messages section to confirm that they have been approved. 

If you have submitted changes, but have not yet had them approved, the Data Collection Sheet will show with a Padlock icon, which means no further changes can be made until the school has approved the last submission. Once they have approved the previous changes, the Padlock icon will disappear. 

Accessing the School Details screen  

On the right hand top corner of the screen, there is a Menu option. If you tap/click on Menu, a list of options will be presented. If you tap on School Details, you will be presented with the Address and Contact Details of the school, as well as useful Term Dates for the current Academic Year, including any planned Inset Days. 

Accessing the Messages/School Calendar screens 

To access the messages or school calendar screen, click the relevant icon from the menu.  Messages and Calendar events can be filtered by child or by category, by clicking the Filter option. 

Troubleshooting 

Accessing the App 

What devices can I use to access SIMS Parent? SIMS Parent can be accessed via any desktop PC or laptop. The SIMS Parent app can be accessed on Apple or Android devices. SIMS Parent supports Android version 4.4 and above, and IOS version 8 and above. 

How do I download the app? The SIMS Parent app can be downloaded for free from the Apple Store or the Play Store. 

How do I log in for the first time? Full instructions for registering a SIMS Parent account can be found in this guide. 

I can’t find my account registration email. What should I do? If you cannot find the account registration email, please check your junk mail and ensure it has not been marked as SPAM. If you still have not received your account registration email, please contact your school directly. Registration emails expire after a certain time, so you may need to request a new registration email if yours has expired. 

Logging In 

How do I log in? You will have received an email invitation from your school directing you to complete the registration process for SIMS Parent. Parents can access the SIMS Parent website by going to https://www.sims-parent.co.uk or via the SIMS Parent app. Once the SIMS Parent app is downloaded onto a mobile device, a purple SIMS Parent icon will be available on the device menu that will take you directly to the app. 

I can’t remember my password. What should I do? Visit the website of your account provider (i.e. Microsoft, Google, Facebook or Twitter) and follow their instructions for resetting your password. 

Do I need to register separately for each of my children of school age? No. When you sign in to SIMS Parent, events and information for all of your children attending this school will be displayed in one place. It is possible for parents to use the same login details to register with multiple SIMS Parent schools. This will allow users to change school once inside SIMS Parent from a drop-down menu located on the school name in the top right-hand corner of the page. This means only one app for all children. 

Using the App 

Why can’t I access the SIMS Parent site? Why does the page not load correctly? Ensure your internet browsers are up-to-date. If your internet browser is up-to-date and you are still experiencing problems, please contact your school directly for assistance. 

I have signed into SIMS Parent before but I can’t sign in now. What should I do? Ensure you are logged in with the correct account (i.e. the account you used during the SIMS Parent registration process). To sign out of an incorrect account, visit the account provider’s website (e.g. Google, Facebook, etc.) and sign out. Close the browser completely. Open a new browser window and log in to SIMS Parent, using the account details you used during the registration process. If you still cannot sign in to SIMS Parent having followed the advice in this section, please contact your school directly for assistance. 

I have signed into SIMS Parent but I can’t see any data/all of my children . What should I do? If you cannot see any data or all of your children, please contact your school directly for assistance. 

Data Collection Sheets 

Why can’t I open the Data Collection Sheet for my child? If the Data Collection Sheet is not visible from SIMS Parent for your child, you may not meet the criteria required for submitting changes to your child’s account. Currently a registered child contact must have parental responsibility, be priority 1 or 2 without a no-contact court order in place. Some schools may also opt in to the contact having to live at the same address as the child. Contact your school directly for assistance. 

There is a padlock icon on the Data Collection Sheet area, what does this mean? If you can see the Data Collection Sheet but it is locked (a padlock icon will be displayed), the Data Collection Sheet has been previously submitted and is waiting for a school administrator to authorise and apply the changes. Once the changes have been applied, the Data Collection Sheet will become available again. 

I can only see my own contact details and none of my child other contacts? This is a school setting. Please contact the school directly to amend other contacts’ details. 

Any questions? 

Please contact your child’s school directly for any queries relating to the SIMS Parent App.  

Should changes need to be made to the school’s SIMS database, these will reflect in the Parent App after the hourly synchronisation process, but it is worth waiting overnight if the changes have not yet updated.