Registration FAQs

The ERA Video Streaming Platform is an online library of television and radio clips (and full programmes) made available for educational purposes. The library includes programmes that are ad-free and often are no longer available through regular on-demand players such as iPlayer, giving users access to historic broadcast material that enhances teaching and learning.

The Video Streaming Platform also features the BBC Shakespeare Archive and the BBC Literary Archive- two outstanding collections of BBC programming that include productions, adaptations and analysis of all of Shakespeare’s works and the most widely studied plays and texts.

The platform can be accessed by staff and students (aged 16 and over) from educational establishments covered by an ERA Licence.

• All state maintained schools in England are covered under the Licence held by the DfE
• State schools across Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are generally covered under blanket licence agreements
• Independent schools, FE colleges and universities are generally licensed on an indiviudal basis

ERA hold records for all licensed instutions in the platform’s database. If your institution is found from the drop down list in the registration form, you can be sure that your institution is covered and access to the Video Streaming Platform is permitted.

Under no circumstances will we ever charge a user who registers to the Video Streaming Platform. 

The Video Streaming Platform is a free online resource available to staff and students (aged 16 and over) of institutions which hold an ERA Licence.

Users from unlicensed schools who are interested in accessing the Video Streaming Platform will be invited to purchase an ERA Licence. See the current Licence tariffs and work out how much your Licence should cost.

Any user from an unlicensed institution who registers for the Video Streaming Platform will be suspended.

There are multiple reasons as to why you cannot find your institution in our drop down list. Please see a list of possible solutions below:

1. Check the spelling of your institution. There are often discrepencies between the names that ERA has on record with how the school is known locally. For example, St Peter’s Church of England Primary School might be recorded in our database as: Saint  Peter’s CofE Primary School. It is worth trying a few variations of your institution’s name to see if it appears. In the majority of cases we use the data supplied by DfE, so it is worth checking to see how your school is recorded at: https://www.get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/Search
2. Be aware of common school names. Names are often shared by many schools across the UK. If your school has a particularly common name, take care scrolling through the list. You should be able to identify the correct school by the postcode sector and/or postcode.
3. Your institution has recently merged or changed its name. In this instance, please try searching for both the current and previous names.
4. Search for your institution by postcode sector. The postcode sector is designated by the postcode, minus the final two letters. For example, the postcode sector for ME8 8JR is Gillingham (ME8 8).

If you think your school is registered but you still cannot find your institution, please email streaming@era.org.uk or call 020 7837 3222.

This message usually appears when you have submitted the form without actually selecting an institution. To select an institution, begin by typing the name into the box and then select the correct institution from the drop down list that should appear.

Students aged 16 or over from schools covered by the ERA Licence can register for the Video Streaming Platform. They must sign up using the email addresses provided to them by their institution. Users cannot register with a personal email address.

Only UK educational institutions can be licensed by ERA and only licensed institutions can access the Video Streaming Platform.

Any users who register from educational institutions overseas, including British Internatioanl schools, will be suspended.

Only UK educational institutions can be licensed by ERA and only licensed institutions can access the Video Streaming Platform.

Home educators in possession of a TV Licence can of course still use regular on demand services such as iPlayer.

Please begin by checking your junk inbox. If your verification email has not come through after 30 minutes, this is most likely because you have entered the email incorrectly in the registration form. Please try to reregister or alternatively, you can direct any queries to streaming@era.org.uk.