The Safe, Secure & Trackable Gold Standard for Online and Flexible Learning Provision

Local Authorities increasingly commission education that takes place beyond the traditional classroom.

This may include:

• online tuition
• Alternative Provision providers
• hospital education services
• medical education programmes
• EOTAS or specialist support packages

However, this provision is often delivered through multiple platforms and providers, making it difficult for Local Authorities to maintain consistent oversight.

Bloom provides a shared infrastructure layer through which flexible and online provision can operate.

Local Authorities can use Bloom as a common environment that enables:

• consistent safeguarding and oversight
• visibility of learning engagement across providers
• structured evidence of provision delivered
• shared communication between schools, providers and LA teams

In this way, Bloom can act as the gold standard environment for delivering and monitoring online or flexible education commissioned by a Local Authority.

Rather than each provider using different systems, Bloom creates a shared framework that ensures learning remains visible, accountable and connected.

The Challenge Facing Local Authorities

Across the country, LAs are being asked to:

• Improve early identification and intervention
• Strengthen mainstream inclusion
• Reduce reliance on independent specialist placements
• Rebuild trust with families
• Ensure funding leads to measurable outcomes
• Demonstrate impact under increasing accountability

At the same time, teams are navigating:

• Fragmented data across multiple systems
• EHCPs, SEN Support plans and health advice held in silos
• Inconsistent visibility across schools
• High administrative burden
• Parental dissatisfaction driven by lack of clarity

Inclusion cannot thrive in fragmentation.

Local authorities need a shared, live view of provision and impact — not more spreadsheets, emails or disconnected reports.

Supporting Virtual Schools and Medical Education Pathways

Local Authorities are responsible for ensuring learners continue to access education even when they cannot attend school.

This often includes learners who are:

• receiving hospital education
• accessing medical tuition
• supported through CAMHS or health pathways
• temporarily unable to attend school due to physical or mental health needs
• educated through EOTAS or specialist support packages

These learners are often supported through Virtual Schools, medical education teams, or LA-commissioned providers.

However, learning delivered through these pathways can become fragmented and difficult to monitor, particularly when multiple providers and settings are involved.

Bloom provides a shared infrastructure that allows Local Authorities to maintain visibility of learning activity, engagement and support across these pathways.

Through Bloom, LA teams can:

• track learner engagement in education delivered outside school
• monitor participation in medical or therapeutic learning programmes
• support communication between schools, providers and families
• maintain evidence of learning activity during periods of absence
• support structured reintegration planning

This helps ensure that learners remain connected to education, even when learning takes place beyond the school environment.