Guide

Choosing school management software without asking the wrong questions.

Reviewed on 5 October 2026

The short answer

Before looking at screens, ask for the data processing agreement, where the data will be hosted and how you leave when you want to: these are the hardest things to change later.

Then have them show you, with test data, the hard cases at your school: separated parents, a pupil with a court order, the register with no signal, a direct debit batch with returns.

Decide between April and July and migrate between July and September: switching systems mid-year is what hurts.

Data: the contract, the location and the way out

The school is the data controller and the provider is the processor. Article 28 of the GDPR requires a contract stating what the provider does with the data, which sub-processors it uses and what happens at the end. Ask for it before any real data is loaded.
The list of sub-processors (hosting, email, backups) and where each one is. Children’s data are best kept inside the European Union.
The way out. The same article says that when the service ends the processor must delete or return the data, as the school chooses. Ask in what format: open files, not a PDF per pupil.
Switching provider. The Data Act, Regulation (EU) 2023/2854, applicable since 12 September 2025, requires cloud services to allow switching with a transition period of no more than 30 days, and bans switching charges from 12 January 2027.

Children, health and separated families

Who sees what. A teacher should not see health data or court orders; lunchtime staff should see the diet but not the diagnosis. Ask for the permissions table by role.
Pupil accounts. In Spain, processing based on consent for children under 14 needs their parents’ consent (LOPDGDD, art. 7). Ask what a 12-year-old can do with their account.
Separated families: two logins, two sets of notifications, split bills, and a court restriction the system never reveals to anyone who should not know.
The audit log: who looked at sensitive data, when and why.

Day to day: what everyone notices

The app on families’ and teachers’ phones: whether it is in the app stores and what it does without signal.
Taking the register in a room with no network, without losing it.
Speed: open the daily overview with a full-size school, not with ten pupils.
The interface languages available to families.

Collecting fees

SEPA direct debit batches with pre-notification, returns handled by reason, and paper mandates that can be imported without signing them again.
VERI*FACTU: if the school issues invoices, the software must be adapted before 1 January 2027 (corporation tax payers) or 1 July 2027 (everyone else), under Royal Decree-law 15/2025. Ask whether the maker has signed the responsible declaration.
The pricing model: per pupil, per teacher or per module, and what setup and exit cost.

The ENS, only where it applies

Spain’s National Security Framework (ENS) applies to the public sector and to private providers serving it. A state-funded or private school is not legally required to demand it, though it is a good reference list of measures. A public school or a municipal one is.

The checklist, with what Auladia does today

The checklist questions, what to ask to be shown and what Auladia does today
The question	Ask to be shown	Auladia today
Processing agreement and sub-processors	The contract and the list, before signing	Yes. It is signed before any real data is loaded, and the sub-processor list is public.
Where the data are	The country and the provider	With a caveat: data will be hosted in the European Union (Amazon Web Services), encrypted backups too. Production is ready and starts with the first school.
Who sees what	The permissions table by role	Yes. No teacher sees health data or court orders, and every sensitive look-up is logged.
Separated families	One family with two logins and a 50 % bill	Yes. Each parent has their own login, notifications and bills.
Register with no signal	The classroom in airplane mode	Yes. It is stored encrypted on the phone and sent when the network returns.
The app in the stores	The App Store and Google Play links	With a caveat: the iPhone, iPad and Android app is in pilot.
SEPA batches and returns	A batch with three returned payments	Yes. Pre-notification, returns by reason and imported paper mandates.
Card or Bizum payments	A bill paid online	Not yet: in preparation. Today, direct debit or the school office.
VERI*FACTU	The signed responsible declaration	With a caveat: built; it is switched on once we have signed the responsible declaration and tested submission with the Tax Agency.
Official records and RALC	Minutes, academic history and the exchange with the education authority	Partly: end-of-year records and the academic history, yes; the RALC, transfers and the guidance report, not yet.
Data export	A full test export	Yes: tables in CSV and JSON, PDFs, VERI*FACTU, direct debit files, documents and photos.
ENS	The certification	Not yet: many measures are in place, but there is no certification.

Frequently asked questions

When is the best time to switch systems?

Decide between April and July, and migrate between July and September, when there are no lessons. Mid-year, the school ends up working with two systems at once.

Should a state-funded school in Spain require ENS certification?

Not by law: it applies to the public sector and those who provide services to it. It is a useful reference for asking what measures a provider has.

What should I ask about getting my data out?

Which format (open files), what is included (records, families, bills, photos), how long you have to download it and when it is deleted. The processing agreement should say so.

Per pupil or per teacher: which pricing model is better?

Per pupil, the cost follows the size of the school. Per teacher or per family, every new hire or family makes it dearer. Check the setup cost too, and whether there is a minimum term.

How do I know the software will cope with a school my size?

Ask for a demo with test data from a school like yours, not a class of ten, and open the day’s screens: the register, the bills, the leadership overview.

How Auladia does it

In the demo we go through this checklist with a full-size made-up school: you log in as the head, as a class tutor and as a separated mother, and see what each can do and what each cannot see.

Today Auladia does not exchange data with the RALC or produce the transfer report, and it has no ENS certification. If your school needs them, we will tell you before anything else.

Request a demo

Sources

The rules and official documents this guide cites.

This guide explains the rules; it is not legal or tax advice. Published on 5 October 2026.

Want to see it on screen?

In the demo we show you how Auladia handles it with a made-up school’s data, and what it does not do yet.

Request a demo