Privacy Policy

College’s Privacy Policy

When necessary, this policy will be reviewed and revised on a regular basis to reflect new legislation, technology, and the changing educational environment. Please double-check that you have the most recent version of this policy.
Definitions
Personal information is information or an opinion about a person whose identity is obvious or may reasonably be determined from the information or opinion – that is recorded in any form. Name, address, phone number, and date of birth, for example (age). Personal information about pupils can also be de-identified data.
Health information is personal information – whether written or not – regarding a person's physical, mental, or psychological health or impairment. This contains information or opinions concerning a person's health state and medical history, immunisation status and allergies, and counselling records, among other things.
Sensitive information refers to data or ideas concerning a person's racial or ethnic origins, political opinions or affiliations, religious beliefs or affiliations, philosophical beliefs, sexual orientation or practices, or criminal background. It also includes information on health.

What information do we collect?
Our school collects the following type of information:
• information about students and their families, provided by students, their families, and others
• information about students and their families, provided by students, their families, and others
• information submitted by job candidates, staff members, volunteers, visitors, and others regarding job applicants, staff, volunteers, and visitors.

How do we collect this information?
Our school collects information in a number of ways, including:
•    in person and over the phone: from students and their families, staff, volunteers, visitors, job applicants and others
•    from electronic and paper documentation: including job applications, emails, invoices, enrollment forms, letters to our school, consent forms (for example: enrollment, excursion, Student Support Services consent forms), our school’s website or school-controlled social media
•    through online tools: such as apps and other software used by our school
•    through any CCTV cameras located at our school.

Collection notices
When our school collects information about you, we make every effort to inform you of how that information will be used. This includes information about the collection's purpose as well as how to access, update, and rectify information about you. Upon enrollment, parents (or mature minors) receive a collection notice with information on their children and their families.

Unsolicited information about you
Our school may acquire information about you that we did not actively seek. Our school may keep records of this information if allowed or required by law. If this is not possible, lawful, or reasonable, we shall destroy or de-identify the data.

Why do we collect this information?
Primary purposes of collecting information about students and their families.

Our school collects information about students and their families when necessary to:
•    educate students
•    support students’ social and emotional wellbeing, and health
•    fulfill legal requirements, including to:
    o    take reasonable steps to reduce the risk of reasonably foreseeable harm to students, staff and visitors (duty of care)
    o    make reasonable adjustments for students with disabilities (anti discrimination law)
    o    provide a safe and secure workplace (occupational health and safety law)
•    enable our school to:
    o    communicate with parents about students’ schooling matters and celebrate the efforts and achievements of students
    o    maintain the good order and management of our school
•    enable the Department to:
    o    ensure the effective management, resourcing and administration of our school
    o    fulfill statutory functions and duties
    o    plan, fund, monitor, regulate and evaluate the Department’s policies, services and functions
    o    comply with reporting requirements
    o    investigate incidents in schools and/or respond to any legal claims against the Department, including any of its schools.
          Primary purposes of collecting information about others

Our school collects information about staff, volunteers and job applicants:
•    to assess applicants’ suitability for employment or volunteering
•    to administer employment or volunteer placement
•    for insurance purposes, including public liability and WorkCover
•    to fulfil various legal obligations, including employment and contractual obligations, occupational health and safety law and to investigate incidents
•    to respond to legal claims against our school/the Department.

When do we use or disclose information?
Our school uses or discloses information consistent with UK privacy law, as follows:
1.    for a primary purpose – as defined above

2.    for a related secondary purpose that is reasonably to be expected – for example, to enable the school council to fulfil its objectives, functions and powers

3.    with notice and/or consent – including consent provided on enrolment and other forms (the information collected will not be disclosed beyond the Department of Education and Training without consent, unless such disclosure is lawful)

4.    when necessary to lessen or prevent a serious threat to:
•    a person’s life, health, safety or welfare
•    the public’s health, safety or welfare

5.    when required or authorised by law – including as a result of our duty of care, anti-discrimination law, occupational health and safety law, child wellbeing and safety law, reporting obligations to agencies such as the Department of Health and Health and Department of Families, Fairness and Housing and complying with tribunal or court orders, subpoenas or search warrants

6.    to investigate or report unlawful activity, or when reasonably necessary for a specified law enforcement purpose, including the prevention or investigation of a criminal offence or seriously improper conduct, by or on behalf of a law enforcement agency

7.    for Department research or school statistics purposes

8.    to establish or respond to a legal claim.

A unique identifier (a CASES21 code) is assigned to each student to enable the school to carry out its functions effectively.

Student transfers between UK or Bangladesh government schools
When a student has been accepted at, and is transferring to, another UK or Bangladesh government school, our school transfers information about the student to that school. This may include copies of the student’s school records, including any health information.
This enables the next school to continue to provide for the education of the student, to support the student’s social and emotional wellbeing and health, and to fulfill legal requirements.

Responding to complaints
On occasion our school, and the Department’s central and regional offices, receive complaints from parents and others. Our school and/or the Department’s central or regional offices will use and disclose information as considered appropriate to respond to these complaints (including responding to complaints made to external organisations or agencies).

Accessing your information
All individuals, or their authorised representative(s), have a right to access, update and correct information that our school holds about them.

Access to student information
Our school only provides school reports and ordinary school communications to parents who have a legal right to that information. Requests for access to other student information must be made by making a Freedom of Information (FOI) application through the Department’s Freedom of Information Unit (see below).
In some circumstances, an authorised representative may not be entitled to information about the student. These circumstances include when granting access would not be in the student’s best interests or would breach our duty of care to the student, would be contrary to a mature minor student’s wishes or would unreasonably impact on the privacy of another person.

Access to staff information
School staff may first seek access to their personnel file by contacting the principal. If direct access is not granted, the staff member may request access through the Department's Freedom of Information Unit.

Storing and securing information
Our school takes reasonable steps to protect information from misuse and loss, and from unauthorised access, modification and disclosure. Our school stores all paper and electronic records securely, consistent with the Department’s records management policy and information security standards. All school records are disposed of, or transferred to the State Archives (Public Record Office Victoria), as required by the relevant Public Record Office Standard.
When using software and contracted service providers to manage information, our school assesses these according to the appropriate departmental processes. One example of this is that staff passwords for school systems are strong and updated on a regular basis, consistent with the Department’s password policy.

Updating your information
We endeavour to ensure that information about students, their families and staff is accurate, complete and up to date. To update your information, please contact our school’s general office.

Policy for Bullying Prevention
All kids have a right to a safe and healthy school environment, according to the BCET District. Mutual respect, tolerance, and acceptance must be promoted by the district, schools, and community.
The BCET District will not accept behaviour that jeopardizes a student's safety. A student may not use words or acts to intimidate, harass, or bully another student. Direct physical contact, such as striking or shoving; verbal attacks, such as teasing or name-calling; and social isolation or manipulation are examples of such behaviour.
The BCET District requires students and/or employees to report bullying situations to the administrator or designee as soon as possible. When it is safe to do so, staff who see such activities take quick action to intervene. Every allegation of bullying should be examined as soon as possible. This policy applies to students when on school grounds, traveling to and from school or a school-sponsored activity, eating lunch on or off campus, and participating in a school-sponsored activity.
The BCET District will provide staff development training in bullying prevention and nurture acceptance and understanding in all students and staff to improve each school's capacity to maintain a safe and healthy learning environment.
Teachers should talk about this policy with their students in an age-appropriate fashion, assuring them that they will not be bullied. Bullying students will face disciplinary action, up to and including expulsion, if they violate this policy.
Every student will be required to follow a Student Code of Conduct when on school grounds, driving to and from school or a school-sponsored activity, and during lunch hour, whether on or off campus.

The Student Code of Conduct includes, but is not limited to:
• Any student who engages in bullying may face disciplinary action ranging from suspension to expulsion.
• Students are urged to report occurrences of bullying to the principal or designee as soon as possible.
• Students may rely on staff to conduct a thorough and discreet investigation into each bullying report.
• If the complainant student or parent believes the inquiry or complaint has not been appropriately resolved, the student or parent should contact the principle or the Office of Student Services. Retaliation against any complainant or participant in the complaint procedure is strictly prohibited in the educational system.

The procedures for intervening in bullying behaviour include, but are not limited, to the following:
• A summary of this policy prohibiting intimidation and bullying will be distributed to all staff, students, and their parents at the start of the school year, as part of the student handbook and/or information packet, as part of new student orientation, and as part of the school system's notification to parents.
• Staff who observe acts of bullying must take prompt steps to intervene when it is safe to do so, and the school will make reasonable attempts to keep a report of bullying and the results of the inquiry confidential. People who observe or are victims of bullying are highly encouraged to report the incident; such reporting will have no negative consequences for the target or witnesses.