Confidentiality and GDPR Policy
At Creative Flair Childcare we are committed to upholding confidentiality within our practice and ensuring the safe collation and storage of data and information. This policy applies to all Staff, volunteers, helpers, students and professionals.
Our Data Protection Coordinators are Claire Casey and Jennifer Faulkner.
We are registered with the ICO which enables us to stay up to date with changes to the law on data protection.
Obtaining and maintaining data
Data will be obtained through various means which includes registration forms, parents meetings, ongoing observation and records of contact and information received by other professionals. Personal information will be updated accordingly throughout the nursery year when information about changes are reported and at the end of each term you will be asked if any information has changed e.g. contact numbers and addresses.
We will ask you to confirm that you have agreed that we can keep the data and information about you and your children on file
Sharing information / keeping information secure
Any written or verbal information shared with Creative Flair Childcare is covered by the Data Protection Act and will remain confidential at all times. All staff, volunteers and parent helpers/visitors must ensure they keep nursery matters strictly confidential. There may be times that information needs to be shared to support your child / family for example through a referral to speech and language services. You will be consulted and your permission requested on these occasions.
However it is our duty to inform you that we may need to share information, without the parents/carers consent, in the interest of upholding the child’s needs and if a concern arouse around issues of a safeguarding nature and we had concerns the child may be at risk, this information will then be shared on a need to know basis. The professionals this information may be shared with may include: The police, social services and OFSTED.
Warwickshire County Council have records of families and children in receipt of NEF funding. These are stored securely on their system. APS Accountants have staff details such as name, date of birth, address, National Insurance Number and marital status and salary information.
Storing information
Registers, registration forms and all other written documents will be kept in a locked cabinet. These documents will only be accessed by staff and professionals used in accordance with their job role. Some information may be stored electronically, in the case the computers will be password protected and information will only be accessible on a need to know basis by professionals who have been appropriately vetted. Computers and storage cabinets etc will not be left unlocked or unmanned.
Parents and carers have the rights to access any written documents, which relate to themselves or their immediate family; unless it is deemed not in a child’s best interests to do so in line with the Freedom of Information Act.
Staff records will be updated as and when necessary and individual members of staff will have access to their own files. We have a staff information sheet which gives signed consent for us to store their information safely and also to use photos within the setting.
Data and information is only kept if it is relevant and is destroyed appropriately if it becomes out of date or irrelevant to the nursery and the care of the child/children.
For Child Protection Purposes, records of children who have attended the setting, accident, incident forms and child protection records are kept until the child reaches 21 years of age. In the case of child protection records, these are kept until the child is 24 years of age.
Failure to comply with confidentiality and data protection is serious and may result in disciplinary action being taken and is breaking the law.