MG/VM

Friday 21st November 2008

Dear Parent/Guardian

The following information is an attempt by the Government to explain why we need to keep the personal data on our computer systems.  At Waterloo Primary I can assure you that the information supplied by you is secure and is only shared with the recognised agencies listed below.

Waterloo Primary School processes personal data about its pupils and is a “data controller” in respect of this for the purposes of the Data Protection Act 1998.  It processes this data to: 
• support its pupils’ teaching and learning;
• monitor and report on their progress;
• provide appropriate pastoral care, and
• assess how well the school as a whole is doing. 

This data includes contact details, national curriculum assessment results, attendance information, characteristics such as ethnic group, special educational needs and any relevant medical information. 

This data may only be used or passed on for specific purposes allowed by law.  From time to time the school is required to pass on some of this data to local authorities, the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), and to agencies that are prescribed by law, such as the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA), Ofsted, the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), the Department of Health (DH), Primary Care Trusts (PCT), ContactPoint (mentioned above).  All these are data controllers in respect of the data they receive, and are subject to the same legal constraints in how they deal with the data.
 
The governing body of a maintained school in England is also required by law to supply basic information to ContactPoint.  This only includes the name and address of the child, contact details for their parents or carers (with parental responsibility) and the contact details of the school. 
Pupils, as data subjects, have certain rights under the Data Protection Act, including a general right to be given access to personal data held about them by any data controller.  The presumption is that by the age of 12 a child has sufficient maturity to understand their rights and to make an access request themselves if they wish.  A parent would normally be expected to make a request on a child’s behalf if the child is younger.

If you wish to access your personal data, or that of your child, then please contact the relevant organisation in writing.  Details of these organisations can be found on the following website http://www.blackpool.gov.uk/Services/A-F/FairProcessingNotices/Home.htm or for those pupils/parents where this is not practical, a hard copy can be obtained from the school office to view.

Thank you for your co-operation

Yours sincerely

Mr Mark Gray
HEADTEACHER