Privacy Notice

The categories of pupil information that we process include:

  • personal identifiers and contacts (such as name, unique pupil number, contact details and address)
  • characteristics (such as ethnicity, language, and free school meal eligibility)
  • safeguarding information (such as court orders and professional involvement)
  • special educational needs (including the needs and ranking)
  • medical and administration (such as doctors information, child health, dental health, allergies, medication and dietary requirements)
  • attendance (such as sessions attended, number of absences, absence reasons and any previous schools attended)
  • assessment and attainment (such as key stage 1 and phonics results, post 16 courses enrolled for and any relevant results)
  • behavioural information (such as exclusions and any relevant alternative provision put in place)
  • Trips/visits and clubs
  • Free School Meals Information

Why we collect and use pupil information

We collect and use pupil information, for the following purposes:

  1. to support pupil learning
  2. to monitor and report on pupil attainment progress
  3. to provide appropriate pastoral care
  4. to keep children safe (food allergies, or emergency contact details)
  5. to meet the statutory duties placed upon us for DfE data collections
  6. legal obligation

The Lawful basis on which we use this information

We collect and use pupil information under Article 6(1)(e) of the GDPR 2016, Public Task which states that “processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller”.

We process Special Category Data, such as medical information under Article 9(2)(c) of the GDPR 2016, Vital Interests which states that “processing is necessary to protect the vital interests of the data subject or of another natural person where the data subject is physically or legally incapable of giving consent”.

How we collect pupil information

We collect pupil information via:

  • Data Collection forms at the beginning of the school year
  • Common File Transfer (CTF)
  • Secure File transfer from another school

Pupil data is essential for the schools’ operational use. Whilst the majority of pupil information you provide to us is mandatory, some of it requested on a voluntary basis. In order to comply with the data protection legislation, we will inform you at the point of collection, whether you are required to provide certain pupil information to us or if you have a choice in this.

How we store pupil data

We hold pupil data for the duration of the pupils’ time at school with us, after which it is transferred to the next school which the pupil attends.

Who we share pupil information with

We routinely share pupil information with:

  • schools that the pupil’s attend after leaving us
  • our local authority
  • the Department for Education (DfE)
  • the school nurse team
  • children and young people services

Why we regularly share pupil information

We do not share information about our pupils with anyone without consent unless the law and our policies allow us to do so.

We share pupils’ data with the Department for Education (DfE) on a statutory basis. This data sharing underpins school funding and educational attainment policy and monitoring.

As a maintained school, we are required to share information about our pupils with our local authority (LA) and the Department for Education (DfE) under section 3 of The Education (Information about Individual Pupils) (England) Regulations 2013.

Data Collection

To find out more about the data collection requirements placed on us by the Department for Education (for example; via the school census) go to https://www.gov.uk/education/data-collection-and-censuses-for-schools.

Requesting access to your personal data

Under data protection legislation, parents and pupils have the right to request access to information about them that we hold. To make a request for your personal information, or be given access to your child’s educational record, contact Mrs Jo Raby Data Protection Officer.

You also have the right to:

  • object to processing of personal data that is likely to cause, or is causing, damage or distress
  • prevent processing for the purpose of direct marketing
  • object to decisions being taken by automated means
  • in certain circumstances, have inaccurate personal data rectified, blocked, erased or destroyed; and
  • a right to seek redress, either through the ICO, or through the courts

If you have a concern or complaint about the way we are collecting or using your personal data, you should raise your concern with us in the first instance or directly to the Information Commissioner’s Office at https://ico.org.uk/concerns/

Contact

If you would like to discuss anything in this privacy notice, please contact Mrs Jo Raby, Data Protection Officer.

How Government uses your data

The pupil data that we lawfully share with the DfE through data collections:

  • underpins school funding, which is calculated based upon the numbers of children and their characteristics in each school.
  • informs ‘short term’ education policy monitoring and school accountability and intervention (for example, school GCSE results or Pupil Progress measures).
  • supports ‘longer term’ research and monitoring of educational policy (for example how certain subject choices go on to affect education or earnings beyond school)

Data collection requirements

To find out more about the data collection requirements placed on us by the Department for Education (for example; via the school census) go to https://www.gov.uk/education/data-collection-and-censuses-for-schools

The National Pupil Database (NPD)

Much of the data about pupils in England goes on to be held in the National Pupil Database (NPD).

The NPD is owned and managed by the Department for Education and contains information about pupils in schools in England. It provides invaluable evidence on educational performance to inform independent research, as well as studies commissioned by the Department.

It is held in electronic format for statistical purposes. This information is securely collected from a range of sources including schools, local authorities and awarding bodies.

To find out more about the NPD, go to https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-pupil-database-user-guide-and-supporting-information

Sharing by the Department

The law allows the Department to share pupils’ personal data with certain third parties, including:

  • schools
  • local authorities
  • researchers
  • organisations connected with promoting the education or wellbeing of children in England
  • other government departments and agencies
  • organisations fighting or identifying crime

For more information about the Department’s NPD data sharing process, please visit:

https://www.gov.uk/data-protection-how-we-collect-and-share-research-data

Organisations fighting or identifying crime may use their legal powers to contact DfE to request access to individual level information relevant to detecting that crime. Whilst numbers fluctuate slightly over time, DfE typically supplies data on around 600 pupils per year to the Home Office and roughly 1 per year to the Police.

For information about which organisations the Department has provided pupil information, (and for which project) or to access a monthly breakdown of data share volumes with Home Office and the Police please visit the following website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dfe-external-data-shares

To contact DfE: https://www.gov.uk/contact-dfe