South Tyneside school issued with data protection advice following pupil information leak
The case into a data leak at Boldon School has been closed.
The Information Commissioners Office (ICO) has confirmed that it has closed its case following a reported data breach at Boldon School.
Earlier this week, the Shields Gazette reported that Boldon School had apologised to parents after a folder containing pupil and parent information was misplaced in London during a school trip.
In a letter to parents, the school, on New Road, in Boldon Colliery, confirmed that the folder was left behind in a Marks and Spencer's Foodhall on Wednesday, June 17, as pupils were being supervised through the tills.
The school revealed that the folder was left behind as pupils and staff moved onto the next activity - with staff having contacted all the locations that were visited during the day in an effort to locate the folder.
Case closed
The letter also confirmed that Boldon School had logged the incident immediately with its external Data Protection Officer and the ICO was also informed.
After the school reported the leak to the ICO, the organisation has confirmed that it has offered data protection advice and has closed the case relating to the incident.
A spokesperson for the ICO said: “We can confirm that we have had a report from Boldon School.
“After carefully assessing the information contained in the breach report we provided data protection advice and closed the case.
“We recognise that these types of incidents can be concerning. If people are worried about their personal information, they can visit our website for advice and support.”
The data in the folder included:
- Students’ names, dates of birth, addresses and any allergy/relevant medical information.
- Parental salutations and surnames, as well as their contact numbers.
Apology to parents
Writing in the letter, Mr Steven Welsh, assistant headteacher at Boldon School, hoped that parents will understand how serious the school is taking the matter.
He said: “Boldon School can only apologise for the loss of this data and we hope that informing you as early as possible will help you to mitigate any possible issues.
“I can only apologise for any inconvenience or distress this incident may have caused and I hope that parents and carers understand that we are treating this matter with the utmost seriousness and have followed all government advice and guidance.
“You shall be informed of the outcome of any ICO investigation or recommendations in due course.”
Preventing future risks
On the back of the ICO providing data protection advice, Mr Welsh also stated that the school is now reviewing how staff handle vital student information during school trips to minimise the risk of a similar incident happening in the future.
He added: “It is vital that staff can easily access some critical data for students during school trips in order to safeguard students.
“However, we are reviewing our CPD for staff around trips and student information and how this vital information is kept by staff during trips in the future in order to minimise the risks.
“We are also investigating the possible use of electronic, password-controlled devices that staff can use to access this data is required.”