Build - How to create reports in the Custom Report Writer

Let's take a look at the different methods to create reports in Arbor's Custom Report Writer.

Check permissions

You'll want to make sure everyone in your school has the right permissions to access data through the Custom Report Writer:

• You need the School: General Admin: Export Data permission to access this area of Arbor and create reports in your own area
• The Superuser permission gives you the ability to see all reports at your school

Read up on our guidance here on how to make sure everyone has the right level of access: Who can access Custom Report Writer reports and fields?

Creating your report

Go to School > Custom Report Writer to access your personal All Reports page. Here you can see and manage all of your reports - more details here: The All Reports page

From here, click the green Create New Report button in the top right-hand corner of the page. There are three ways to create a report in just a few clicks!

Create a report from a template

These are our built-in reporting templates - just select the template you would like to use and click Create Report from Template! There's more detail about what these reports include in the links below.

• Student Starter Template
• Leavers
• Parent Contact Details
• Attendance of ASP Groups
• Covid-19 Related Absences or Covid-19 Related Absences 2020/2021
• Single Central Staff Record
• Free School Meal Students' Primary Guardian information for Supermarket Vouchers - this was used during the Covid-19 school closures, so you won't need to use this template.

Top Tip: The date range will pull in any students who were enrolled in your school between these dates into your report.

In Step 2 of the wizard, you'll find all the fields pre-populated with the info you need. Why not click the Skip setup wizard link at the bottom of the page.

This will take you to the report Edit page. You can then click Save & View report and you're done!

Import a custom report

Follow the steps to import a report from another source, so you don't need to set it up from scratch.

• If your school is part of a MAT, you can send report templates across to other schools to ensure you're all reporting in the same way. Follow the details here: Importing a Custom Report Writer template or exporting a template to send to another school
• We've got a huge array of commonly requested pre-built templates available on the Help Centre which you can also download and import! Start exploring these here: Creating common Custom Report Writer reports

Create a new report from scratch

Our handy 8-step wizard will take you through the whole process of setting up a report for the first time: Creating bespoke reports in the Custom Report Writer

Let's have a look at building an example report in the video below.

More support

How can I build the report I need?

First, just have a play around with the reporting! Try creating reports about different topics, as the fields available to you will vary.

Don't worry - creating a report doesn't change your school's data at all, and any reports you create can be deleted by you whenever you need!

• Take a look at our commonly requested reporting area on our Help Centre that you can import: Creating common Custom Report Writer reports
• Try looking for reporting options built in to the area you're looking at. For example, the Students > Attendance > Statistics page should be a go-to: Viewing statistics for attendance

You can find these areas by searching on the Help Centre homepage, or scrolling down and clicking into an area.

Hit Ctrl+F (on Windows PC, Chromebook, or Linux system), or Command+F (on a Mac) on the keyboard to find key words

Can Arbor build reports for me?

If you're on Standard Support, our Support Team won't be able to edit your reports directly or build reports for you from scratch. However if you've had a go building a report but can't quite get it working the way you want, we can help with any questions you've got!

If you are supported by one of our Support Partners, please contact them for help with reporting.

There's also Advanced Support, our premium support service with a direct line to an expert. Schools on Advanced Support get a bank of 10 custom reports and 2 live feeds, which we'll set up for you. You can contact your Account Manager for further details.

Having trouble with reporting?

Let's get you sorted. Here are the most common issues you may have, and how to easily fix them:

• Custom Report won't load, is broken or not working
• I'm getting a banner saying reports have expired

You can also check out the rest of our FAQs here: Custom Report Writer FAQs