Data protection
Schools hold information on pupils in order to run the education system, and in doing so have to follow the data Protection Act 1998. This means, among other things that the data held about pupils must only be used for specific purposes allowed by law. We are therefore writing to tell you about the types of data held, why that data is held, and to whom it may be passed on.
The school holds information on pupils in order to support their teaching and
learning, to monitor and report on their progress, to provide appropriate
pastoral care, and to assess how well the school as a whole is doing. This
information includes contact details, National Curriculum assessment results
(where appropriate), attendance information, characteristics such as ethnic
group, special educational needs and any relevant medical information.
In order to administer the National curriculum tests we are required to pass on
some of this data to the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) which
is responsible for the National Curriculum and associated assessment
arrangements.
QCA uses information about pupils to administer the National Curriculum tests
and assessments for Key Stages 1 to 3. The results of these are passed on to
DfES in order to compile statistics on trends and patterns in levels of
achievement. The QCA uses the information to evaluate the effectiveness of
the National Curriculum and the associated assessment arrangements, and to
ensure that these are continually improved.
Pupils, as data subjects, have certain rights under the Data Protection Act,
including a general right of access to personal data held on them, with parents
exercising this right on their behalf if they are too young to do so themselves.
If you wish to access the personal data about your child, this can be done
through a subject access request. This is a formal procedure which is started
in the first instance by contacting the school. If you believe QCA holds
personal data then the data protection officer for these organisations should
be contacted to initiate a subject access request process.
Please note that all rights under the Data Protection Act to do with information
about your child rest with them as soon as they are old enough to understand
these rights. This will vary from one child to another and you will wish to consider the position of your child, but, as a broad guide, it is considered that most children will have a sufficient understanding by the age of 12.
The School is required to confirm that all parents have read and understood this Data Protection statement before pupils do their assessments in May. Please email the School to confirm you have read and understood the above, or if you are unclear about anything, please ask us.
