Department for Education: privacy notice for academy trust data collections

Last updated: April 2023
Date of next review: April 2024
We might make changes before the review date. Check regularly for updates.

This privacy notice explains how the Department for Education (DfE) uses personal information in academy trust data collections. This includes information you give to us, or information that we may collect about you.

We receive your personal data from the online forms you complete. This is part of the information telling us how your Trust budgets and spends its money.

The aim for this project is to provide an online service for Trusts to send their financial data to the department.

This is a requirement from the H M Treasury to account for the spending of public funds.

Why we get your personal data

When we collect and use this information, we need to follow the law. The main laws are the Data Protection Act (DPA) and the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The DfE is the data controller for your personal data. We must have a reason to collect your personal data. This is called a ‘lawful basis’.

We can use these lawful basis to process your personal data. For the purpose of this project, the relevant condition is;

• public task – this is when we need your personal data to do our work, to provide or fund education.

What we need

We will collect the following types of personal information for this project;

• IP address

Why we need it and what we do with it

We collect and process your personal information to:

• to inform you on the progress in completing the return
• contact you if there is a problem with the information you have supplied
• check that you are a registered user for the Trust you are reporting on
• monitor use of the service and produce anonymised statistics
• to help us understand how easy our services are to use and how we can improve them

We use AppInsights software to collect information about how you use the Academy Trust Data Collections.

AppInsights processes information about:

• the pages you visit on Academy Trust Data Collections
• how long you spend on each Academy Trust Data Collections page
• how you got to the site
• what you click on while you’re visiting the site

We will not combine analytics information with other data sets in a way that would identify who you are.

How long we keep it

The Department for Education will only keep your personal information for as long as we need it. We decide how long to keep your personal information based on the needs of the department and the law. We will keep your information for up to twelve months.

We will take necessary steps to keep your information safe. It will then be securely destroyed when it is no longer needed.

Do we use any data processors?

A data processor is an organisation that processes your information on DfE’s behalf.

No, we do not use data processors for our activities.

Do we transfer your personal information overseas?

When DfE stores personal information outside the UK, we will make sure we keep your personal data safe. We follow the data protection law. We also use extra security measures, contracts and data sharing agreements.

Do we share your personal information?

If the law allows it, we might share your personal information with other parts of DfE including the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), and with other government departments.

We will share your personal information with:

• organisations that request information to help prevent and detect crime or fraud

DfE may share your personal information to:

• safeguard children or young people - sharing is under the statutory guidance ‘Keeping children safe in education’ and ‘Working together to safeguard children’.
• investigate complaints
• ensure schools/academies follow their funding contract; and
• provide a quality education under the regulations (Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014)

The DfE Personal Information Charter gives you more information on how we use your personal information.

What are your rights

You have rights about how and why your information is collected and used.

These include:

• The right to see the personal information we have about you – this is called ’right of access’
• The right to ask us to change any information you think is not accurate or complete – this is called ‘right to rectification’
• The right to ask us to delete your personal information – this is called ‘right to erasure’
• The right to ask us to stop using your information – this is called ‘right to restriction of processing’, and
• Your ‘right to object to processing’ of your information

For more information on your rights, please see the ICO website.

Finding out what information we have

You have the right to ask for access to your personal information. This is known as a subject access request (SAR).

To make a SAR, you can use the DfE contact form.

Or you can post your request to the Data Protection Office at the above address.

Include as much information as you can about the information you need. Include the years you need the information for. If possible, tell us which part of the department holds the information. You’ll also need to tell us your telephone number and address.

We may need to check your identity and your right to access the information you’re requesting. To check your identify, we may ask for a copy of your passport, photo driving licence or proof of your address.

We’ll try to respond to your request within one month. But, if your request is complex, this could take a further two months, but we’ll tell you if this is the case.

How to contact us or make a complaint

If you have a question, or feel your data has been mishandled, you can contact us by:

using our secure DfE contact form

or writing to:

Emma Wharram
Data Protection Officer
Department for Education (B2.28)
7 & 8 Wellington Place
Wellington Street
Leeds
LS1 4AW

You can also complain to the ICO by writing to:

Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Helpline number: 0303 123 1113. Or use the online ICO contact form