General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Policy for Students and Parents
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Who are the Data Controllers?
Each of the Educational Institutions, e.g., Institutions, Colleges, University, Literacy Centers, Training Centers, and others (hereinafter referred to as the "Institution" or "Institutions") are the Data Controllers for the purposes of GDPR. You may contact the Institution at the address and contact information provided to you on the Institution's home page.
Purpose of this Policy
This policy is intended to provide information about how the Institution will use (or "process") personal data about individuals including its academic and administrative staff; its current, past and prospective students; and their parents or guardians (hereinafter referred to as the "Parents"). Collectively, these individuals are referred to as the Institution’s Community.
This information is provided because GDPR gives individuals rights to understand how their data are used. Staff, parents, and students are all encouraged to read this Policy and understand the Institution’s obligations to its entire Community. This Policy shall apply alongside any other information the Institution may provide about a particular use of personal data, for example when collecting data via a survey or a paper form.
This Policy shall also apply in addition to the Institution's other relevant terms and conditions and policies, including:
- any contract between the Institution and its staff or the parents of students;
- the Institution's policy on taking, storing, and using images of students;
- the Institution’s retention of records policy;
- the Institution's safeguarding, health, or safety policies, including as to how problems or incidents are recorded; and
- the Institution's Information Technology Acceptable Use policy.
Anyone who works for, or acts on behalf of, the Institution, including staff, volunteers, principals, headmasters, directors, and service providers, should also be aware of and comply with the Institution's GDPR Policy for Staff, which also provides further information about how personal data about those individuals will be used.
GDPR Responsibilities
The Institutions would have appointed one of their staff as their GDPR Leads. The GDPS Leads will deal with all user requests and inquiries concerning their Institution’s uses of personal data and endeavor to ensure that all personal data are processed in compliance with this Policy and GDPR Law.
Reasons for Processing Personal Data
To carry out its ordinary duties to staff, students, and parents, the Institution needs to process a wide range of personal data about individuals, including current, past and prospective staff, students, or parents, as part of its daily operation. Some of this activity the Institution must carry out to fulfill its legal rights, duties or obligations – including those under a contract with its staff, or parents of its students.
Other uses of personal data will be made in accordance with the Institution’s legitimate interests, or the legitimate interests of another, provided that these are not outweighed by the impact on individuals, and provided it does not involve special or sensitive types of data. The Institution expects that the following uses fall within that category of its, or its Community’s, legitimate interests:
- For the purposes of student selection and to confirm the identity of prospective students and their parents;
- To provide education services, including musical education, physical training, career services, and extra-curricular activities to students, and monitoring and reporting on student progress and educational needs;
- To provide transport to and from the Institution;
- For maintaining relationships with alumni and the Institution's Community, including social activities and fundraising activity;
- For the purposes of management planning and forecasting, research and statistical analysis, including that imposed or provided for by law, such as tax, diversity, or gender pay gap analysis;
- To enable relevant authorities to monitor the Institution's performance and to intervene or assist with incidents as appropriate;
- To give and receive information and references about past, current and prospective students, including relating to outstanding fees or payment history, to/from any Institution that the students attended or where it is proposed they attend; and to provide references to potential employers of past students;
- To enable students to take part in national or other assessments, and to publish the results of public examinations or other achievements of students of the Institution;
- To safeguard students' welfare and provide appropriate care;
- To monitor, as appropriate, use of the Institution's information technology and communications systems in accordance with the Institution's IT: Acceptable Use Policy;
- To make use of photographic images of staff, students and/or parents in the Institution's publications, on the Institution's website and where appropriate on the Institution's social media channels in accordance with the Institution's policy on taking, storing, and using images of students;
- For security purposes, including Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) in accordance with the Institution’s CCTV policy;
- To carry out or cooperate with any Institution or external complaints, disciplinary, or investigation process; and
- Where otherwise reasonably necessary for the Institution's purposes, including to obtain appropriate professional advice and insurance for the Institution.
In addition, the Institution will on occasion need to process special category personal data concerning health, ethnicity, religion, biometrics, or sexual life, or criminal records information in accordance with rights or duties imposed on it by law. This includes as regards safeguarding and employment, or from time to time by explicit consent where required. Reasons for processing will include:
- To safeguard students' welfare and provide appropriate care, and where necessary, medical care, and to take appropriate action in the event of an emergency, incident, or accident, including by disclosing details of an individual's medical condition or other relevant information where it is in the individual's interests to do so: for example for medical advice, for social protection, safeguarding, and cooperation with police or social services, for insurance purposes or to caterers or organizers of Institution trips who need to be made aware of dietary or medical needs;
- To provide educational services in the context of any special educational needs of a student;
- In connection with employment of its staff, for example payroll payments, welfare, union membership, or pension plans;
- As part of any Institution or external complaints, disciplinary or investigation process that involves such data, health, or safeguarding elements; or
- For legal and regulatory purposes, e.g., for example child protection, diversity monitoring, and health and safety, and to comply with its legal obligations and duties of care.
Types of Personal Data Processed
Personal data processed shall include by way of example:
- names, addresses, telephone numbers, e-mail addresses and other contact details;
- car details, such as those who use the Institution's car parking facilities;
- bank details and other financial information, e.g., about parents who pay fees to the Institution;
- past, present, and prospective students' academic, disciplinary, admissions, and attendance records, including information about any special needs, and examination scripts and marks;
- personnel files, including in connection with academics, employment, or safeguarding;
- where appropriate, information about individuals' health and welfare, and contact details for their next of kin;
- references given or received by the Institution about students, and relevant information provided by previous educational establishments and/or other professionals or organizations working with students;
- correspondence with and concerning staff, students, and parents past and present; and
- images of students (and occasionally other individuals) engaging in the Institution's activities, and images captured by the Institution's CCTV system (in accordance with the Institution's policy on taking, storing, and using images of children);
How are Data Collected?
Generally, the Institution receives personal data from the individual directly, including, in the case of students, from their parents. This may be via a form, or simply in the ordinary course of interaction or communication, such as email or written assessments. However, in some cases personal data will be supplied by third parties; for example another Institution, or other professionals or authorities working with that individual.
Who has Access to Personal Data and How are Data Shared?
Occasionally, the Institution will need to share personal information relating to its community with third parties, such as:
- professional advisors, e.g., lawyers, insurers, advisers, and accountants;
- government authorities, e.g. police or the local authorities;
- organizers of sporting or extra-curricular events in which the Institution’s students are participating;
- operators of transport services for the Institution;
- examination boards; and
- appropriate regulatory bodies e.g., the teaching regulation entity,
For the most part, personal data collected by the Institution will remain within the Institution, and will be processed by appropriate individuals only in accordance with access protocols, i.e., on a ‘need to know’ basis. Particularly strict rules of access apply in the context of:
- medical records, which are held and accessed only by the Institution nurses and appropriate medical staff under his or her supervision, or otherwise in accordance with express consent; and
- safeguarding files.
However, a certain amount of any student’s relevant information will need to be provided to staff more widely in the context of providing the necessary care and education that the student requires. Staff, students, and parents are reminded that the Institution is under duties imposed by law and statutory guidance to record or report incidents and concerns that arise or are reported to it, in some cases regardless of whether they are proven, if they meet a certain threshold of seriousness in their nature or regularity. This is likely to include file notes on personnel or safeguarding files, and in some cases referrals to relevant authorities such as law enforcement agencies.
Finally, some of the Institution’s processing activity is carried out on its behalf by third parties, such as IT systems, Web developers, or cloud storage providers. This activity is always in accordance with GDPR, and only in accordance with the Institution’s specific directions. It is always subject to contractual assurances that personal data will be kept securely, including data that are transferred to the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway; or outside the European Economic Area (EEA). If the parent of a student is based in the EU Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway; or outside the EEA, we may transfer a student’s personal data to the correspondence address provided by that parent, explaining to the Data Controller at the end destination that we can still share personal data lawfully with them now that the UK has left the EU. We will take all reasonable steps to ensure that such transfers are secure. When the Institution receives data from the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, or Norway, then the GDPR Lead at the Institution will need to identify where within the EU the data originated and determine who the data controllers and processors are and where the data are stored.
Data Retention
The Institution will retain personal data only for the length of time necessary for a legitimate and lawful reason. To determine the appropriate retention period for personal data, Institutions consider the amount, nature, and sensitivity of the personal data, the potential risk of harm from unauthorized use or disclosure, the purposes for which your personal information is processed, and whether those purposes can be achieved through other means. At Institutions, usually files for accounting purposes are retained for three years, ordinary student files are normally retained until a student’s 25th birthday, and ordinary staff files are normally retained for six years following the conclusion of employment. However, incident reports and safeguarding files are retained in accordance with specific legal requirements. Where a minimum retention period is required by law, the Institutions shall comply with that minimum period plus up to 12 months to allow time for its system administrators to anonymize or delete information in accordance with our internal processes.
A limited and reasonable amount of information will be kept indefinitely for archiving purposes. Access to archives is strictly limited. If you have any specific queries about how our retention policy is applied, or wish to request that personal data you no longer believe to be relevant is considered for erasure, please contact the GDPR Lead at the Institution. However, please bear in mind that the Institution will often have lawful and necessary reasons to hold on to some personal data, even following such request. Also, note that even where you have requested we no longer keep in touch with you, we will need to keep a record of the fact to fulfill your wishes.
Communications with Institutions
The Institution will use the contact details of parents, alumni and other members of the Institution community to keep them updated about the activities of the Institution, or alumni and parent events of interest, including by sending updates and newsletters, by email and by electronic notifications. Unless the relevant individual objects, the Institution will also:
- Share personal data about parents and/or alumni, as appropriate, with organizations set up to help establish and maintain relationships with the Institution's Community;
- Contact parents and/or alumni by email to promote and raise funds for the Institution or other worthy causes;
- Should you wish to limit or object to any such use, or would like further information about them, please contact the GDPR Lead at the Institution. You always have the right to withdraw consent, where given, or otherwise object to direct marketing or fundraising. However, the Institution is nonetheless likely to retain some of your details, not least to ensure that no more communications are sent to that particular address, email, or telephone number.
User Rights
Rights of Access
Individuals have various rights under GDPR to access and understand personal data about them held by the Institution, and in some cases ask for it to be erased or amended, to have it transferred to others, or for the Institution to stop processing it – but this is subject to certain exemptions and limitations. Individuals wishing to access or amend their personal data, or wishing said data to be transferred to another person or organization, or who has some other objection to how their personal data are used, should put their request in writing to the GDPR Lead at the Institution.
The Institution will endeavor to respond to any such written requests as soon as it is reasonably practicable and in any event within statutory time-limits, which vary between one and three months depending on the type of requests for access to information, or more complex requests. The Institution will be better able to respond quickly to smaller, targeted requests for information made during the academic year. If the request for information is manifestly excessive or similar to previous requests, the Institution may ask you to reconsider, or require a proportionate fee, but only where data protection laws in your country allow such fees.
Unfulfilled Requests
You should be aware that the right of access is limited to your own personal data, and certain data is exempt from the right of access. Such exempted data include information that identifies other individuals (parents must be aware this exemption may include their own children, in certain limited situations), or information which is subject to legal privilege, e.g., legal advice given to or sought by the Institution, or documents prepared in connection with a legal action.
The Institution might not be required to disclose any student examination scripts or other information consisting solely of student test answers, provide examination or other test marks ahead of any ordinary publication, or share any confidential reference given by the Institution itself for the purposes of the education, training, or employment of any individual.
You may be familiar with the "right to be forgotten". However, Institutions will sometimes have compelling reasons to refuse specific requests to amend, delete, or stop processing your (or your child's) personal data, e.g., a legal requirement, or where it falls within a legitimate interest identified in this Policy. All such requests will be considered on their own merits.
Student Requests
Students can make subject access requests for their own personal data, provided that, in the reasonable opinion of the Institution, they have sufficient maturity to understand the request they are making (see section Whose Rights? below). A student of any age may ask a parent or other representative to make a subject access request on his or her behalf. Indeed, while a person with parental responsibility will generally be entitled to make a subject access request on behalf of younger students, the law still considers the information in question to be the child’s. For older students, the parent making the request may need to evidence their child's authority for the specific request. Students aged 13 and above are generally assumed to have this level of maturity, although this will depend on laws and regulations in your country, the child, and the personal data requested, including any relevant circumstances at home. Slightly younger children may however be sufficiently mature to have a say in this decision, depending on the child and the circumstances.
Parental Requests
It should be clearly understood that the rules on subject access are not the sole basis on which information requests are handled. Parents may not have a statutory right to information, but they and others will often have a legitimate interest or expectation in receiving certain information about students without their consent. The Institution may consider there are lawful grounds for sharing with or without reference to that student. Parents will in general receive educational and behavioral updates about their children, in accordance with the Institution’s Terms & Conditions for educational services. Where parents are separated, the Institution will in most cases aim to provide the same information to each person with parental responsibility, unless there is a court order to the contrary, or there are other reasons which justify withholding information to safeguard the welfare and best interests of the child. All information requests from, on behalf of, or concerning students – whether made under subject access or simply as an incidental request – will therefore be considered by the Institution on a case by case basis.
Consent
Where the Institution is relying on consent as a means to process personal data, any person may withdraw this consent at any time, subject to similar age considerations as above. Examples where Institutions do rely on consent are: use of student images together with full name. However, please be aware that the Institution may not be relying on consent but have another lawful reason to process the personal data in question, even without your consent. That other lawful reason will usually have been asserted under this Policy, or may otherwise exist under some form of contract or agreement with the individual, e.g., an employment or parent contract, or because a purchase of goods, services, or membership of an organization, such as an alumni or parents/teachers association has been requested.
Whose Rights?
The rights under GDPR belong to the individual to whom the data relate. However, the Institution will often rely on parental authority or notice for the necessary ways it processes personal data relating to students, e.g., under the parent contract, or via a form. Parents and students should be aware that this is not necessarily the same as the Institution relying on strict consent (see section on Consent above).
Where consent to process data is required, it may in some cases be necessary or appropriate to seek the student's consent. Parents should be aware that in such situations they may not be consulted, depending on the interests of the child, the parents’ rights at law or under their contract, and all the circumstances. In general, the student will assume that students’ consent is not required for ordinary disclosure of their personal data to their parents, e.g., for the purposes of keeping parents informed about the student's activities, progress, and behavior, and in the interests of the student's welfare. That is unless, in the Institution's opinion, there is a good reason to do otherwise.
However, where a student seeks to raise concerns confidentially with a member of staff and expressly withholds their agreement to their personal data being disclosed to their parents, the Institution may be under a legal obligation to maintain confidentiality. Exceptions to this may be if, in the Institution's opinion, there is a good reason to do otherwise; for example where the Institution believes disclosure will be in the best interests of the student or other students, or if required by law. Students are required to respect the personal data and privacy of others, and to comply with the Institution's IT Acceptable Use Policy and the Institution rules. Staff are under professional duties to do the same covered under the relevant staff policies.
Data Accuracy and Security
The Institution will endeavor to ensure that all personal data held in relation to an individual are as up to date and accurate as possible. Individuals must notify the relevant Institution staff of any significant changes to important information, such as contact details, held about them. An individual has the right to request that any out-of-date, irrelevant, or inaccurate information about them is erased or corrected, subject to certain exemptions and limitations under GDPR. Refer to the sections above for details of why the Institution may need to process your data, and who you may contact if you disagree. The Institution will take appropriate technical and organizational steps to ensure the security of personal data about individuals, including policies around use of technology and devices, and access to Institution systems. All staff and directors will be made aware of this policy and their duties under GDPR and receive relevant training.
Conflict with Local Laws and Regulations
In the event that any provision, term, or condition within this Policy, including any related documents, guidelines, or agreements, contradicts or conflicts with applicable local laws or regulations, such provision, term, or condition shall be deemed null and void to the extent of such contradiction or conflict. The remaining provisions, terms, and conditions of this Policy shall remain in full force and effect. This clause is intended to ensure that this Policy remains compliant with the prevailing legal requirements of the jurisdiction in which it operates. In cases where any part of this Policy is found to be in contravention of local laws or regulations, such conflicting portion shall not be enforceable, and all other aspects of this Policy shall continue to apply as intended.
Updates to the GDPR Compliance Policy
Smart Innovations may update this GDPR Compliance Policy to reflect changes in legal requirements, industry practices, or the operation of the Application. In case of material changes, the Company will provide notice through appropriate channels and obtain any required verifiable parental consent.
Questions and Complaints
If you have a question about this Policy or the Institution's handling of your information, you can send contact the Institution's GDPR Lead mentioned on its home page. If you believe that the Institution has not complied with this Policy or acted otherwise than in accordance with GDPR, you should utilize the Institution's Complaints procedure and should also notify the Institution's GDPR Lead and its principal or headmaster. You can also make a referral to or lodge a complaint with the regulator, although the regulator recommends that steps are taken to resolve the matter with the Institution before involving the regulator.
If you have any other questions, you may contact us at:
Smart Innovations Inc.
Privacy Officer
1032 E Brandon Boulevard #1550
Brandon, Florida 33511-5509
United States
Tel: +1 (813) 322-2780
legal@EpicEMIS.org
Last Updated: 20 August 2023