Schools Privacy Notice
Under data protection law, individuals have a right to be informed about how the school uses any personal data that we hold about them. We comply with this right by providing privacy notices to individuals where we are processing their personal data.
This privacy notice explains how we collect, store and use personal data about pupils and parents/carers.
We, Newhouse Academy, are the ‘data controller’ for the purposes of data protection law.
The personal data we hold
Personal data that we may collect, use, store and share (when appropriate) about pupils and parents/carers includes, but is not restricted to:
- Contact details, contact preferences, date of birth, and identification documents
- Parental names, addresses and contact details and details of other family members
- Results of internal assessments and externally set tests and exams
- Curricular records
- Characteristics, such as ethnic background, eligibility for free school meals, or special educational needs
- Pastoral information including behavior incidents
- Exclusion information
- Details of any medical conditions, including physical and mental health issues
- Attendance information
- Safeguarding information
- Details of any support received, including care packages, plans and support providers
- Photographs
- CCTV images captured in school
- Records of a pupils use of the school ICT facilities
- Biometric information for use in the schools cashless catering system
We may also hold data about pupils that we have received from other organisations, including other schools, local authorities and the Department for Education.
Why we use this data
We use this data to:
- Support pupil learning
- Ensure the safe and efficient operation of the school
- Monitor and report on pupil progress
- Provide appropriate pastoral care to pupils
- Protect the welfare of our pupils and ensure they are safe
- Assess the quality of our provision so that we can improve
- Carry out research
- Comply with the law regarding data sharing with other public bodies and organisations
Our legal basis for using this data
- We need to comply with a legal obligation
- We need it to perform an official task in the public interest
Less commonly, we may also process pupils’ personal data in situations where:
- We have obtained consent to use it in a certain way
- We need to protect the individual’s vital interests (or someone else’s interests)
While the majority of information we collect about pupils is mandatory, there is some information that can be provided voluntarily.
Whenever we seek to collect information from you or your child, we make it clear whether providing it is mandatory or optional. If it is mandatory, we will explain the possible consequences of not complying.
Where we have obtained consent to use pupils’ personal data, this consent can be withdrawn at any time. We will make this clear when we ask for consent, and explain how consent can be withdrawn.
Some of the reasons listed above for collecting and using pupils’ personal data overlap, and there may be several grounds which justify our use of this data.
We keep personal information about pupils while they are attending our school. We may also keep it beyond their attendance at our school if this is necessary in order to comply with our legal obligations. Generally speaking, we are required to keep key information about our pupils until they reach the age of 25.
Data sharing
We do not share information about pupils with any third party without consent unless the law and our policies allow us to do so.
Where it is legally required, or necessary (and it complies with data protection law) we may share personal information about pupils with:
- Our local authority – to meet our legal obligations to share certain information with it, such as safeguarding concerns and exclusions
- The Department for Education
- The pupil’s family and representatives
- Examining bodies
- Ofsted
- Suppliers and service providers, such as our catering provider, to enable them to provide the service we have contracted them for
- Central and local government
- Survey and research organisations
- Health authorities and health and social welfare organisations
- Professional advisers and consultants
- Police forces, courts and tribunals
The National Pupil Database
We are required by law to provide information about pupils to the Department for Education as part of statutory data collections such as the school census.
Some of this information is then stored in the National Pupil Database (NPD) which is owned and managed by the Department for Education and provides evidence on school performance to inform research.The information is securely collected from a range of sources including schools, local authorities and exam boards.
The Department for Education may share information from the NPD with other organisations which promote children’s education or wellbeing in England. Such organisations must agree to strict terms and conditions about how they will use the data.
For more information, see the Department’s webpage on how it collects and shares research data: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/national-pupil-database.
Youth support services
Once our pupils reach the age of 13, we are legally required to pass on certain information about them to the careers service as it has legal responsibilities regarding the education or training of 13-19 year-olds.
This information enables it to provide youth support services, post-16 education and training services, and careers advisers.
Transferring data internationally
Whilst we would not normally do so, where we transfer personal data to a country or territory outside the European Economic Area, we will only do so in accordance with data protection law and at the request of the data subject.
Parents and pupils’ rights regarding personal data
Individuals have a right to make a ‘subject access request’ to gain access to personal information that the school holds about them.
Parents/carers can make a request with respect to their child’s data where the child is not considered mature enough to understand their rights over their own data (usually under the age of 12), or where the child has provided consent.
If you make a subject access request, and if we do hold information about you or your child, we will:
- Give you a description of it
- Tell you why we are holding and processing it, and how long we will keep it for
- Explain where we got it from, if not from you or your child
- Tell you who it has been, or will be, shared with
- Let you know whether any automated decision-making is being applied to the data, and any consequences of this
- Give you a copy of the information in an intelligible form
Individuals also have the right for their personal information to be transmitted electronically to another organisation in certain circumstances. Parents/carers also have a legal right to access to their child’s educational record. If you would like to make a request please contact the school.
Other rights
Under data protection law, individuals have certain rights regarding how their personal data is used and kept safe, including the right to:
- Object to the use of personal data if it would cause, or is causing, damage or distress
- Prevent it being used to send direct marketing
- Object to decisions being taken by automated means (by a computer or machine, rather than by a person)
- In certain circumstances, have inaccurate personal data corrected, deleted or destroyed, or restrict processing
- Claim compensation for damages caused by a breach of the data protection regulations
To exercise any of these rights, please contact the school or our data protection officer.
Complaints
We take any complaints about our collection and use of personal information very seriously.
If you think that our collection or use of personal information is unfair, misleading or inappropriate, or have any other concern about our data processing, please raise this with us in the first instance.
To make a complaint, please contact our data protection officer at dposchools@rochdale.gov.uk
Alternatively, you can make a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office:
- Report a concern online at https://ico.org.uk/concerns/
- Call 0303 123 1113
- Or write to: Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF
Contact us
If you have any questions, concerns or would like more information about anything mentioned in this privacy notice, please contact the school.
This notice is based on the Department for Education’s model privacy notice for pupils, amended for parents and to reflect the way we use data in this school.
If you need more information about how our Local Authority and/or DfE collect and use your information, please visit:
- our local authority at Rochdale Council or
- the DfE website at Department for Education
If you need to raise a concern about our use of your personal information to our Data Protection Officer please contact DPOSchools@Rochdale.Gov.UK or Information Governance Unit, Number One Riverside, Smith Street, Rochdale OL16 1XU
If you want to receive a copy of the information about you that we hold, please contact:
Mr Graham Beaumont
Newhouse Academy
Newhouse Road, Heywood, Lancashire OL10 2NT
Tel: 01706 369436
Email: beaumontg@newhouseacademy.co.uk
