FREE Assessment Content
The following content is free for schools in England to use, view Scottish and Welsh content below.
FREE Frameworks for Connecting Steps
We have developed a range of assessment content to help show progress for students from birth into early adulthood. We have created content for schools in England, Scotland, Wales and the United Arab Emirates. Alongside the content schools purchase, we have a range of content that is FREE* for schools who use Connecting Steps.
*FREE for the number of Connecting Steps licences you have.
The below frameworks are for schools in England.
Already have Connecting Steps?
Here’s how to activate your free assessment frameworks
Pre-Key Stage Standards
We have created a free framework for the pre-key stage standards, containing the standards for Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2. The content is as specified by the Government, there is no additional detail.
You will find the statements from the pre-key stage standards are already included in our Progression Steps, Primary Steps and Early Steps content. The skills are linked between the different frameworks. If a pre-key stage standard skill is marked as achieved for a pupil in Primary Steps, it will also be achieved in the pre-key stage standards.
Primary Curriculum
Our free Primary Curriculum framework covers all areas of the Primary National Curriculum from Year 1 to Year 6.
It’s based on the end of year objectives (where they exist) and the programmes of study. It is designed to be used with mainstream pupils working at Age Related Expectations (ARE).
For pupils with SEND or pupils working below ARE, we recommend using Primary Steps. It has more detail than the Primary Curriculum and goes below Year 1. Primary Steps starts at a level that is equivalent to P4/18 months/pre-key stage standard 1.
If you use the Primary Curriculum and Primary Steps together, you can analyse your whole school data together in Analytics.
Including…
– English
– Maths
– Science
– Computing
– PSHE
– PE
– Art & Design
– Design & Technology
– Geography
– History
– Languages
– Music
– Religious Education
Development Matters
Our Development Matters structure is based on Development Matters. This free framework is designed to be used with mainstream pupils making typical rates of progress.
For pupils with SEND or pupils working at a lower level we recommend using our Early Steps. It has more detail than the Development Matters and we have split Birth to 3 Years into smaller levels so settings can show progress for pupils with SEND.
If you use the Early Steps and Development Matters together, you can analyse all of your early years data together in Analytics.
find out how connecting steps simplifies assessment
Phonics for Pupils with SEN
Using Phonics for SEN, created by Ann Sullivan, this free framework enables pupils with a range of special educational needs to find reading and spelling success. It is suitable for those with specific learning difficulties, autism, moderate and severe learning difficulties. It also supports those with developmental language disorder, communication needs and complex needs. This includes pre- and nonverbal pupils, as well as those with significant physical disability.
Working through the programme, the pupil:
-
learns about and understands the concepts that underpin how the written English is constructed,
-
learns, practices and masters the skills they need to work with sounds and letters, and
-
develops the knowledge they need to learn, build up and retain to be able to read and spell well.
Using the EAL Assessment Framework created by The Bell Foundation, this free framework helps staff assess, track, and support pupils’ English language development. It covers listening, speaking, reading and writing. It shows how pupils progress through stages of English acquisition, not just whether they have reached fluency.
The framework makes EAL pupils’ language development visible, meaningful, and easy to interpret. This helps teachers respond effectively to each learner’s needs and support sustained progress.
It enables schools to:
– Record pupils’ proficiency in English stage (A–E)
– Assess against detailed strand descriptors
– Track progress for pupils, groups, or whole cohorts
– Compare EAL progress with attainment and SEND data
Maths for Life
Using the Maths for Life* programme, created by Karen McGuigan, this framework helps staff assess, track, and support pupils’ mathematical understanding. It focuses on skills that are functional, practical, and meaningful for real life. It shows small steps of progress and clear next steps. This helps pupils build independence, confidence, and problem-solving skills.
The framework makes learning visible and easy to interpret, helping teachers and leaders understand how pupils are developing and applying skills.
*Schools need to hold an active Maths for Life subscription to use it for free within Connecting Steps.
For schools in Scotland
QS Nationals 1 – 6
Our software includes free frameworks for over 100 Qualifications Scotland (QS) National 1 to 6 courses and modules. The content is used exactly as QS publishes it, without breaking it down into smaller steps. Every course was added because a school asked for it. If yours isn’t there yet, get in touch and we’ll add it.
Schools can also use Evisense, our evidence system, to collect evidence for each course. Link the evidence to the criteria, then print it or save it as a PDF for each pupil.
Including…
– English and Literacy
– Mathematics, Applications of Mathematics and Numeracy
– Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Science
– And much more…
Education for Sustainable Development Goals
This free framework is based on UNESCO’s Education for Sustainable Development Goals: Learning Objectives. It has a single level covering all 17 goals, with learning objectives split into three types: cognitive (knowing), socio-emotional (feeling) and behavioural (doing). It supports Learning for Sustainability, an entitlement for every learner in Scotland and a key part of the Scottish Government’s Target 2030 action plan.
Developing the Young Workforce
This free framework is based on Education Scotland’s Career Education Standard ‘I can’ statements. They describe what learners can do as they learn about the world of work, from talking about the jobs people do to preparing CVs and interviews.
The statements are a starting point for talking with learners about what success could look like. Schools can track progress in Connecting Steps. In Evisense, they can record those conversations, and the progress that follows, using photos, videos and observations as evidence.
Areas covered…
– Skills
– Ambitions
– Enterprise
– Preparing for work
Stages covered…
– Early Level (pre-school and P1)
– First Level (to the end of P4)
– Second Level (to the end of P7)
– Broad General Education (S1–S3)
– Senior Phase (S4–S6 and college)
Skills for Learning, Life and Work
This free framework is based on Education Scotland’s Building the Curriculum 4. It covers the skills Curriculum for Excellence aims to develop in every learner, from pre-school to college. The framework is linked to Steps to Excellence, so the assessments Scottish schools already make also show progress in these skills, without assessing twice.
Areas covered…
– Literacy across learning
– Numeracy across learning
– Thinking skills across learning
– Health and wellbeing across learning
For schools in Wales
Developmental Pathways
This free framework is based on the curriculum for funded non-maintained nursery settings. This contains a single level called Nursery, and contains all 5 areas.
Literacy, Numeracy & Digital Competencies
This free framework is based on the literacy, numeracy and digital competencies. It contains all the statements from the competencies for Welsh Progression Steps 1 – 3 and the ABC Steps. In Connecting Steps, Pre-Progression Steps 4 – 6 are equivalent to the ABC steps.
Want an easy way to show pupil progress?
Click on the button to arrange a FREE online meeting to find out how we can help make assessment easier for your school