School Improvement and Pupil Services privacy notice

Last updated: April 2026 

What this notice is about 

School improvement and pupil support services include things like school admissions and appeals, support for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), attendance and inclusion services, safeguarding in education,  and enforcement of statutory duties, child employment and performance licensing, and support services for children missing education/ out of school. 

You should also read our Children’s Services privacy notice and our main privacy notice, which gives more details about your rights and how to contact us.  

What information we collect, hold and use 

The categories of child and young person’s information that we process include: 

• personal identifiers and contacts (such as name, date of birth, unique pupil number, contact details and address) 
• characteristics (such as, gender, ethnicity, language, and free school meal eligibility) 
• safeguarding information (this is particularly sensitive information), such as details of any court orders or professional involvement in the child’s life; whether the child is or has been looked after by a local authority; and information from support services (like Early Help, Family Help, Social Care or health professionals) that relates to the child’s welfare. 
• special educational needs (SEN) details -information about a child’s special education or health additional needs and associated support plans or assessments, provision, placement and any relevant health information in order to fulfil our statutory duties  (for example, Pastoral Support Plans (PSPs), Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs), SEND Support Plans, Individual Support Plans (ISPs), Individual Health Care Plans or Personal Education Plans (PEPs) for children in care) 
• attendance such as school attendance records (sessions attended, absences and reasons) and details of any previous schools attended 
• attendance enforcement data (such as records of any penalty notices or statutory actions related to non-attendance) 
• assessment and attainment – results of school assessments and exams (including Early Years Foundation Stage outcomes, key stage results, GCSEs/A levels and other qualifications) and any teacher assessments or predicted grades 
• behavioural, suspension and exclusion information (such as records of suspensions, exclusions and any alternative provision placements made as a result) 
• school preferences – your school application choices and related information (managed in line with the School Admissions Code issued under Section 84 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1989) 
• child employment and performance licensing information such as details of any work permits for students or performance licences issued (including application details and approvals).

Where we get your information from 

We get your information from:

• you give it to us directly.

We may also receive personal information indirectly from:

• health professionals such as GPs, school nurses or therapists involved in your or your child/young persons care or assessment.
• other council departments, such as Children’s Social Care, Youth Services (e.g. Targeted Youth and Youth Offending Services) Housing, Benefits and Early Years services (nurseries and children’s centres)
• carers, advocates and family members who may provide information on your behalf and with consent.
• schools and academies
• pre-school providers
• from our own work with you – for example, notes and assessments from meetings, phone calls or sessions with our staff, including contact with parents or carers
• Government Bodies such as the Department for Education and the Department of Health and Social Care
• other Local Authorities. 

How we use this information 

We use children's and young person’s data to:

• administer key education services – such as processing school applications and appeals, coordinating in-year school placements, and managing home education registrations
• carry out statutory assessments of children with special educational needs, including Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or Individual Support Plan (ISP) needs assessments, and arrange appropriate support. Ongoing statutory duties for young people with Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or Individual Support Plan (ISP)
• fulfil our safeguarding duties
• plan and improve services by deriving statistics, monitoring school performance, determining school funding and resources and for the purposes of school place planning
• identify and support children not receiving suitable education (Children Missing Education) so they can be reintegrated into schooling or other education provision promptly
• support educational planning and wellness – e.g. through our Educational Psychology Service and by sharing necessary information with health professionals to promote pupils’ well-being
• fulfil our statutory reporting obligations (such as termly school census returns to the Department for Education. 

Our legal reasons (under GDPR) for processing (using) your data 

Under UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) and the Data Use and Access Act 2025 (DUAA 2025) we use your data because: 

• it’s our legal obligation (the law says we must) 
• in your vital interest (to protect your life or safety) 
• we are doing something in the public interest or as part of our official duties (public task). 

This means we usually do not need consent to use your data when we are carrying out our legal duties or statutory functions 

For special category (sensitive) data, such as information about your child’s health or ethnicity we rely on: 

• Article 9(2)(g) “Substantial public interest” (supported by DPA 2018 Schedule 1, e.g. for safeguarding children or preventing fraud) 
• Article 9(2)(h) “health or social care purposes” (for providing health or SEN support) 
• Article 9(2)(c) “vital interests” (if necessary to protect someone in an emergency). 

We only use this kind of sensitive information where the law allows us to, and where it is necessary to provide services, protect children, or meet our legal responsibilities. 

Some of the reasons listed above for collecting and using pupils’ personal data overlap, and there may be several grounds which justify our use of this data.   

Other laws that apply to our services 

We follow these laws: 

• Children and Families Act 2014 
• Education Act 1996 and 2011 
• School Standards and Framework Act 1998 
• Education and Skills Act 2008 
• Children Act 1989 and 2004 
• Childcare Act 2006 
• Health and Social Care Act 2012 

Any statutory guidance or regulations from the Department for Education including: 

• Education (Information About Individual Pupils) (England) Regulations 2013 
• Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006 (and the 2016 Amendment to those regulations) 
• Working together to improve school attendance, 2024 
• Education and Inspections Act 2006 
• Children (Performances and Activities) (England) Regulations 2014 
• School Admissions Code 2021 and School Admission Appeals Code 2022 
• Children missing education: statutory guidance for local authorities and schools, 2024 
• Suspension and permanent exclusion from maintained schools, academies and pupil referral units in England, including pupil movement Guidance for maintained schools, academies, and pupil referral units in England, 2025 
• SEND Regulations 2015 
• SEND Code of Practice 2015. 

Who we share your information with 

Where it is legally required, or necessary, we may share personal information about pupils with: 

• other council departments such as Children’s Social Care and Housing 
• education providers, including the child’s current, past or future school, academy or college 
• disclosure to any person in connection with the young person’s application for a Disabled Students Allowance in advance of taking up a place in higher education, when requested to do so by the young person 
• disclosure to the principal (or equivalent position) of the institution at which the young person is intending to start higher education, when requested to do so by the young person
• examining boards and organisations involved in qualifications 
• youth support and welfare partners such as youth support services (for over-13s), organisations providing services on our behalf, or charities working with young people. 
• health and social care organisations such as the NHS or health authorities, social services agencies, etc., when needed to support a child’s well-being or safety 
• police and safeguarding agencies for example law enforcement, family courts, probation services, or local safeguarding partnerships, where required to protect a child or prevent crime 
• government bodies and auditors such as the Department for Education (for statutory data collections), Ofsted (for oversight of services), other local or central government bodies, and auditors who ensure we are complying with our obligations 
• service providers and consultants to enable them to provide the service we have contracted them for 
• research organisations or surveys – if we participate in research projects or surveys to improve services, personal data is usually anonymised unless you have consented otherwise
• disclosure to persons engaged in research on SEN on the condition that the researchers do not publish anything derived from, or contained in, the plan which would identify any individual, particularly the child, young person or child’s parent
• SEND tribunal when the child’s parent or the young person appeals, and to the Secretary of State if a complaint is made to him or her under the 1996 Act  
• disclosure for the purposes of investigations of maladministration under the Local Government Act 1974. 

Why we regularly share child and young person’s information 

We do not share information about our children and young people with anyone without consent unless the law and our policies allow us to do so. 

Education and training 

We hold information about young people living in our area or attending our schools, including their education and training history. This is to support the provision of their education up to the age of 20 (and to the end of the academic year in which they turn 25 for those with a special educational need or disability) and to allow the London Borough of Islington to comply with its obligations to encourage, enable or assist young people to participate in education and training and to track their participation in accordance with our obligations under the Education and Skills Act 2008. Under parts 1 and 2 of the Education and Skills Act 2008, education institutions and other public bodies (including the Department for Education (DfE), police, probation and health services) may pass information to us to help us to support these provisions. 

Youth support services (for pupils aged 13+) 

These services support young people as they move toward adulthood, education, training or employment. 

Once our pupils reach the age of 12, we pass pupil information to youth support services as they have responsibilities in relation to the education or training of 13-19 year olds under section 507B of the Education Act 1996. 

This enables them to provide services as follows: 

• youth support services 
• careers advisers 
• post-16 education and training providers. 

The information collected is limited to the child’s name, address and date of birth. However, where a parent or guardian provides their consent, other information relevant to youth support services will be collected. Once the child reaches 16, they can control what information is shared. 

Data is securely transferred to the youth support service database - IYSS and is stored in the system and held in accordance with the law and the council’s retention policy. Pupil level data may be shared with services under section 17 and also to promote fulfilment of duty imposed by section 2 of Education and Skills Act 2008. 

For more information about services for young people, please visit the children and families section on our website. 

Department for Education 

The Department for Education (DfE) collects personal data from educational settings and local authorities via various statutory data collections. We are required to share information about our children and young people with the Department for Education (DfE) for the purpose of those data collections. 

All data is transferred securely and held by DfE under a combination of software and hardware controls which meet the current government security policy framework (GOV.UK). 

How the Government uses your data 

The pupil data that we lawfully share with the DfE through data collections: 

• underpins school and further education funding, which is calculated based upon the numbers of children and their characteristics in each school. 
• informs ‘short term’ education policy monitoring and school accountability and intervention (for example, school GCSE results or Pupil Progress measures). 
• supports ‘longer term’ research and monitoring of educational policy. (for example how certain subject choices go on to affect education or earnings beyond school).

Data collection requirements 

To find out more about the data collection requirements placed on us by the Department for Education (for example; via the school census) go to GOV.UK. 

The National Pupil Database (NPD) 

Much of the data about pupils in England goes on to be held in 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. 

Find out more about the NPD (GOV.UK)

Sharing by the Department 

The law allows the Department to share pupils’ personal data with certain third parties, including: 

• schools 
• local authorities 
• researchers 
• organisations connected with promoting the education or wellbeing of children in England
• other government departments and agencies 
• organisations fighting or identifying crime. 

Find more information about the Department’s NPD data sharing process (GOV.UK)

Organisations fighting or identifying crime may use their legal powers to contact DfE to request access to individual level information relevant to detecting that crime. Whilst numbers fluctuate slightly over time, DfE typically supplies data on around 600 pupils per year to the Home Office and roughly 1 per year to the Police. 

Find information about which organisations the Department has provided pupil information, (and for which project) or to access a monthly breakdown of data share volumes with Home Office and the Police (GOV.UK)

How we store your data 

Data is stored in secure council databases (such as our education management system and youth support system). The information is kept secure and only staff who need it can see it.  It is only used for the purposes identified in this privacy notice. 
 
We only keep information for as long as the law requires or for as long as it is needed to provide our services. 

For details on how long different types of education data are kept, please check our main privacy notice and retention schedule. 

Your individual rights 

Children and young person’s data is essential for the council to do its job. Whilst the majority of personal information you provide to us is required by law (mandatory) some of it is requested on a voluntary basis. When we collect information, we will tell you if you must provide it by law or contract, or if it is optional. We will explain any consequences of not providing optional data. Most of the information we ask for is needed to carry out our legal duties, but some is given to us voluntarily (for example, your opinions in a survey about our service). 

You have rights over your personal data. For more details see our main privacy notice and the page about your individual rights.  

Children and young people can exercise these rights themselves if they understand what they are asking for. Parents or carers can also usually act on their behalf. 

Complaints 

If you are unhappy with how we use your data please see the council’s main privacy notice to find out how to contact our Data Protection Officer and make a complaint.  

You can find details of the Children’s Services complaints procedure on our website if you want to complain about the service that you have received.