While Teams, Whiteboard and Loop support collaboration, Power BI supports informed decision-making. It allows organisations to turn data into visual insight that can be shared and discussed collectively.
Rather than working with raw spreadsheets, Power BI presents information in dashboards that highlight trends, patterns and areas requiring attention.
It is important to understand Power BI’s role clearly:
- Power BI is a reporting and visualisation tool that supports analysis and discussion.
- Power BI is not a replacement for finance systems, HR systems or data entry tools
From a school perspective, Power BI helps to turn data from MIS, learning platforms, attendance systems, safeguarding tools and operational platforms into clear, manageable dashboards that support quick decision-making.
Let’s take a look at some examples of how Power BI can be put to good use in schools.
Power BI for Teachers
Purpose: Improve learning outcomes and classroom efficiency.
Teachers benefit when Power BI provides simple, quick visual insights that connect assessment, attendance and behaviour.
1. Pupil Progress Tracker
- Shows each student’s performance across subjects, highlighting who is:
- Meeting expectations
- At risk of falling behind
- Showing rapid improvement
Scenario:
A Year 6 teacher opens the dashboard before parents’ evening to quickly identify trends and key talking points for each student.
2. Attendance and Engagement Dashboard
Pulls data from MIS and learning platforms e.g. Teams
- Daily attendance pattern for their class
- Repeated late marks
- Links between absence and performance
- Online engagement/assignment completion
Scenario:
A teacher notices a pupil with falling engagement in online homework, cross-referenced with rising absence, helping them to intervene early.
Power BI for School Leaders
Purpose: Strategic insight to improve whole-school performance.
Leaders use Power BI to monitor trend, allocate resources and make data-informed decisions.
1. Safeguarding and Pastoral Overview
This will have restricted access for relevant staff only.
- CPOMS/SAIL referral trends
- Repeat incidents
- Overview of vulnerabilities
- Average response times
- High-frequency categories (e.g. anxiety, friendship issues)
Scenario:
DSL uses data to evidence the need for additional mental health support and staffing.
2. Whole-School Attendance Monitoring
Brings live data from MIS systems like SIMS, Arbor or Bromcom.
- Persistent absence (PA) tracking
- Year-group comparisons
- Vulnerable groups (SEN, PP, EAL)
- Attendance heat maps by day/week/term
Scenario:
SLT spot a trend in declining attendance for KS3 boys and commission targeted interventions.
Power BI for School Operational Staff
Purpose: Streamline school operations, improve efficiency and reduce manual work.
1. Facilities and Premises Management Dashboard
Integrated with systems like Every, Parago or internal helpdesks.
- Open/closed maintenance tickets
- Premises team workloads
- Asset lifecycle (e.g. computers, interactive boards)
- Health & safety checks compliance
Scenario:
Premises manager sees repeated HVAC issues in a specific building and escalates a replacement request.
2. IT Support and Digital Systems Dashboard
Links with helpdesk or MDM systems.
- Device usage & fault trends
- Network uptime
- Software licence usage
- Helpdesk response times
Scenario:
IT lead uses data to justify renewing laptop provision for staff.
Take a look at the video below to learn more about Power BI.
Note: this video is over 10 mins long but the key principles once you have access to Power BI can be seen between 01:57 and 11:55.