Privacy Notice – How we use your child’s information

Why do we collect and use information on your child

We collect and use our children’s information under section 537A of the Education Act 1996, and section 83 of the Children Act 1989, to comply with Article 6(1)(c) and Article 9(2) (b) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

We use the data:

to support the child’s learning
to monitor and report on the child’s progress
to provide appropriate pastoral care
to assess the quality of our services
to comply with the law regarding data sharing
to support you to decide what to do after you leave nursery

Categories of children’s information that we collect, hold and share include:

Personal information (such as name, date of birth and contact details)
Characteristics (such as ethnicity, language, nationality, country of birth)
Attendance information (such as sessions attended, number of absences and absence reasons)
Early Years Foundation Stage assessment results
Special educational needs information
Relevant medical information

Collecting information

Whilst the majority of information you provide to us is mandatory, some of it is provided to us on a voluntary basis. In order to comply with the General Data Protection Regulation, we will inform you whether you are required to provide certain information to us or if you have a choice in this.

Data collection requirements:

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

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.

We are required by law, to provide information about our children to the DfE as part of statutory data collections such as the school census and early years’ census. Some of this information is then stored in the NPD. The law that allows this is the Education (Information about Individual Pupils) (England) Regulations 2013.

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

The department may share information about our children from the NPD with third parties who promote the education or well-being of children in England by:

conducting research or analysis

producing statistics

providing information, advice or guidance

The Department has robust processes in place to ensure the confidentiality of our data is maintained and there are stringent controls in place regarding access and use of the data. Decisions on whether DfE releases data to third parties are subject to a strict approval process and based on a detailed assessment of:

who is requesting the data?

the purpose for which it is required

the level and sensitivity of data requested: and

the arrangements in place to store and handle the data

To be granted access to pupil information, organisations must comply with strict terms and conditions covering the confidentiality and handling of the data, security arrangements and retention and use of the data.

For more information about the department’s data sharing process, please visit: https://www.gov.uk/data-protection-how-we-collect-and-share-research-data

For information about which organisations the department has provided pupil information, (and for which project), please visit the following website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-pupil-database-requests-received

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

Storing pupil information

Country Buttercups keep information about you on computer systems and also sometimes on paper.

We hold your education records securely until you change setting or leave for school. Your education records will then be transferred to your new setting/school, where they will be retained until you reach the age of 25, after which they are safely destroyed. All other personal information is securely stored for 25 years and after which safely destroyed. Information held on software programs is deleted when your child leaves the setting within 28 days.

There are strict controls on who can see your information. We will not share your data if you have advised us that you do not want it shared unless it is the only way we can make sure you stay safe and healthy or we are legally required to do so.

Who do we share children’s information with?

We routinely share child’s information with:

schools or settings that the child attends after leaving us
our local authority (East Sussex County Council)
Health visitors

Requesting access to your personal data

Under data protection legislation, parents and children 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 Helen Mallion or Mrs Laura Jarvis, Country Buttercups.

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
claim compensation for damages caused by a breach of the Data Protection regulations

If you have a concern 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 Helen Mallion,
Co-Director,

Country Buttercups
Udimore Road,
Broadoak Brede,
Rye,
East Sussex

TEL: 01424 883000