Firefly: Why is a parent unable to log in?

This guide suggests solutions to issues that may cause problems for a parent when logging in via Firefly.

Check the Email Address in Firefly Matches your Management System

This is the most common issue: When a parent logs in using Firefly, SchoolCloud matches the email address they enter against the one it obtained from your school management system (eg SIMS, iSAMS, Facility, etc). You can check this by going to Data > Parents > Download Parents and checking the contents of the MIS Email column in the resulting spreadsheet. 

Check the Parent is Linked with the Child

If a parent has no children linked to their parental record in SchoolCloud they will be unable to log in. Please ensure that the parent has allocated children listed in your school management system then re-synchronise the system. You can find information on what to check in the relevant "What data is pulled through" guide in the School Management Systems section.

Check the Firefly URL is correct

If the Firefly URL is incorrect, you may be attempting to log into an old Firefly system. You can check the Firefly URL via Settings > Parent Authentication. Firefly URLs should always start with HTTPS as, if the connection is not encrypted, the login will not occur for security reasons.

Check that the Firefly User is a Parent

Firefly users are treated as parents when they have the "Can Set Task" permission turned off on their account. If you're not sure where to find this, please get in touch with Firefly directly and they can help you.

Check the Email Address for the Parent is Unique

If the email address for the Firefly account exists more than once in the MIS Email column of the Export Parents CSV file (which you can obtain by clicking Export Parents in the Data > Parents section) the system will try to log the parent into the first record it finds with that email. The login will be a success but the parent may not be able to see the correct children. It's important that management system email addresses are unique when using Firefly.

Further Troubleshooting

If you're still stuck with a parent that can't log in, please get in touch with us via email schoolcloud@tes.com or phone us on +44 (0)333 344 3403 from 09:00-17:00 Mon-Thurs and 09:00-16:00 Fri (UK time).