Data Protection Act !!

[Paul]

It's my lads birthday soon so SWMBO asked the teacher for the first names of all the children in his class, We knew most of the names but just wanted to make sure some of the less comon names were spelt right on the party invertations.

The head teacher spoke to SWMBO this afternoon and said that they were unable to give a list of first names due to data protection act. :shock:  :roll:

SWMBO said ''It doesn't matter now, I've looked through the window and writen the names down as they are all labeled above the coat hooks.'' :lol:

[Bob696]

due to data protection act.

Load of crap

she might have meant the child protection act or summat

[dave_2A_2.25Turbo]

Yup - beaurocracy gone mad (again).

[muddyweb]

Well, I'm quite happy knowing that schools don't give out names of the children in their classes.

Doesn't sound like "mad buraucracy" to me    :?

[beast5680]

Just shown this post to SWMBO as she owns and runs the local playgroup, stupid as it may appear to some the school are right apparently, she is not allowed to do it at the playgroup either or give parents addresses of other kids etc

[Paul]

She only asked for the first names to ensure we spell them correctly... I can't see anything wrong with that.

[dave_2A_2.25Turbo]

We're not talking about giving out names to all and sundry - we're talking about another parent, known to the school, who can get the names from their own child, and really is just aking for clarification on spellings.

[beast5680]

it should be ok for 99.9% of the population its the weirdos that screw it for everyone another reason i,m looking at emmigrating somewhere else

[muddyweb]

We're not talking about giving out names to all and sundry - we're talking about another parent, known to the school, who can get the names from their own child, and really is just aking for clarification on spellings.

Yeah, but then you get into all sorts of grey areas.   Who is responsible for someone "being known", etc.  

I can imagine the sort of messages which would have been posted here if (for example) a newspaper leaked that they had been able to obtain a list of kids names.

Can't have it all ways I'm afraid.

[Stormin]

I can see the point in not giving out names Willy Nelly, :roll:  but it does seem a bit jobsworth in this case.

[Bush Tucker Man]

Amelias class has a list that goes out to all the parents with names, addresses, birthdays, siblings, parents names, contact details, etc..

Very handy for kids parties & birthdays

Obviously the parents have to agree to be included

[dave_2A_2.25Turbo]

Proves there is common sense still out there!!

[suzota]

you cant take photgraphs of any school productions unless you have the written permition from all parents of the children taking part.
even for school use.

[Bush Tucker Man]

Proves there is common sense still out there!!

There wants to be at that price :lol:  :lol:

[thermidorthelobster]

I'm not an expert on the DPA, but I think it's an excuse rather than a valid reason.  It's concerned with digitally stored information, not what's written above coathooks.

[ChrisW]

known to the school

Like a school caretaker?
I'm happy that the schools my lads go to have this policy. Jobsworth's or not  :roll:

Prior to the Soham murders schools only used a basic CRB check carried out on peoples backgrounds, now it's an enhanced check and can take up to six weeks with all the background checks carried out.

All schools have a confidentiality responsibility under the Childrens Act to protect the children, most inner city schools have a virtually waterproof system in place to prevent unauthorised persons from obtaining information.
Smaller village type schools may not be so strict on the protection of information but will still require parents permissions to issue information.

If a parent here was able to get a list of childrens names, addresses, ages and birthdays there would be hell to pay!

[dave_2A_2.25Turbo]

[There wants to be at that price :lol:  :lol:

Hang on - I'm confused now - thought you were from Yorkshire!

Seriously tho - it's true that you get what you pay for, & if I'd had the Brass, ours would have gone to private school

[muddyweb]

Thanks Chris...

Was starting to get worried that I was the only one here with no common sense ;-)

[ChrisW]

Susie's just had her CRB check back and is doing all this stuff in her college course now  :roll:

[dave_2A_2.25Turbo]

If a parent here was able to get a list of childrens names, addresses, ages and birthdays there would be hell to pay!

I think we're straying from the original post here -

a) Pauls wife was already in the school & talking to the teacher of her own child

b) She did NOT ask for the above information, just spellings of first names.

And until recently MY wife was working as an LSA (Learning Support Assistant) so I'm well aware of the background checks etc

[ChrisW]

My apologies, I thought it was a developing discussion.

[Bulli]

Intresting debate. I work for a bank and deal with the dpa and I would say that the dpa doesnt really apply here. The Dpa is about information held electronically(computer or video) or on paper.Childrens first names are definately public knowledge.
There may be a school or local government policy that says not to give out first names, the teacher may simply be covering her back. I can understand why in the claim culture we live in.
I know that there was no malice, the opposite infact, but you cant have a rule that changes dependant upon circumstances.
Several times a day i get into heated debates with partners who "know all about the account and just want to check X" sorry but the data protection commisioner can have me sacked and personally fined up to 10k..... not nice.

[ChrisW]

Nothing to do with the Data Protection Act whatsoever, all this is covered under the Children Act and The Child Protection Act amongst other things.

Let say an offender goes into a classroom, chats to a teacher, pretends to be a parent to find out a childs first name. Goes back the next day talks to the child, calls the childs name and tells them their Mum has asked them to fetch them home from school.

All because a teacher gave out a childs first name in all innocence  

[Sheddy]

I used to belong to a voluntary service organisation.  We used to do stuff like  makeovers on old peoples gardens, build ramps for the old 'uns to improve access to thier houses and taking underpriveledged kids out for the day to the zoo or suchlike.  Basically, anything and everything that the social services told us was needed.

Because of the D.P.A. the social services etc. are no longer allowed to pass on the information and the club has folded.

[discomummy]

Hi,

I have to say that i cannot see a problem with handing out kids first names to a parent known to the teacher, but if the person is not known, then no details should be given.  I have asked for the same information from my children's teacher (to avoid offending a child/parent) and the teacher (because he knows me only too well - i am one of those involved parents) was more than happy to correct my spelling of the name.

i certainly would be very unhappy to think that the school would be handing out information to anyone, but in a situation like the original one, i could not see - as a parent- a real issue with this, however the spellings i get of Jodie are imaginative at times.  

with regards to the issue of the bank situation - whilst i understand entirely the problems the bank employees face,  i suspect most of the people who phone are wives like me, who are not the major wage earner and therefore are not the account holder in credit cards, but have a husband who does not want to be bothered with phoning up and says "you do it for me, i don't want to".  I look after the finances and usually phone up, hand the phone to geoff who answers all the questions and then says talk to my wife, i don't want to know about this!!!!  and then i still get asked, do you have the account holders permission to discuss this, at which point geoff usually explodes!!!!  the vast majority are not attempting to defraud their partners!!

however, i still think that we are falling into a swamp of bureaucracy, and for those who feel like leaving a sinking ship - i lived for 16 years in Australia and it is no better there, in fact in some ways they have taken this system and doubled it!

regards

ela

[woody]

you cant take photgraphs of any school productions unless you have the written permition from all parents of the children taking part.
even for school use.

just filled forms in for my little lad to go to school
and one form was a permission form to allow photographs and video to be taken
so do different schools have different rules???

[BrumLee]

A list of first names shouldn't be a problem. If associated with a picture of the child or pointed out in a line up, then that's a different kettle of fish.

You could supply me a list of first names for the members on this forum, it wouldn't help me know Bill from Ben  

[TimM]

A list of first names shouldn't be a problem. If associated with a picture of the child or pointed out in a line up, then that's a different kettle of fish.

I agree, if the teacher had been given a list of names and asked to correct the spelling, that shouldn't have been a problem either.