Privacy policy.
How we use student information
Westbourne College Sydney is bound by the Australian Privacy Principles contained in the Privacy Act of 1988 the Privacy Amendment (Enhancing Privacy Protection) Act 2012, and the Privacy Amendment (Notifiable Data Breaches) Act 2017. The College is bound by NSW Health Privacy Principles and Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 (Health Record Act).
In the main (unless otherwise specified below), the College’s basis for processing your and your child’s personal data is as a result of either a contractual obligation under the parent contract or as a result of legitimate interest. In other words, the College requires this information in order to carry out its ordinary duties.
We collect and use personal data in order to meet legal requirements and legitimate interests set out under the legislation referred to above.
The categories of student information that we collect, hold and share include:
names, dates of birth, nationality and contact details;
where appropriate, medical / health information;
various assessment information;
attendance records;
information relating to special educational needs or disabilities;
previous College(s) information, including references and assessment data;
images of students;
In relation to parents and/or guardians financial information
Some of this data is classified as Special Category Personal Data (sometimes called ‘sensitive personal data’ as defined in the College’s Data Protection policy) such as information about parents' and / or students' ethnic group, religious beliefs and relevant medical information. Please note this list is not exhaustive.
Personal Data processed by us includes:
We acquire Personal Data in a number of ways. For example, parents of students may provide us with Personal Data about themselves or their family in correspondence, forms, documents, during discussions with staff, and through our website. Every form completed by a parent or child containing personal data will be held in accordance with the College’s Data Protection Policy.
Data Check Form
Each academic year, a data check form is sent to parents and students (either electronically or in hard copy) that asks for personal data to be checked and data preferences to be updated. It is important that this is completed by parents and students to ensure that the College maintains accurate records.
Why we collect and use this information
We collect and hold personal information relating to our students and may also receive information about them from their previous schooling, etc.
We use the student data:
to support student learning
to monitor and report on student progress
to provide appropriate pastoral care
to assess the quality of our services
to comply with the law regarding data sharing to safeguard students
The lawful basis on which we use this information
We collect and use personal data in order to meet legal requirements and legitimate interests set out in relevant legislation. Some laws governing or relating to the operation of Colleges require certain information to be collected.
These include Public Health and Mandatory Notification Laws.
Collecting student information
Whilst the majority of student information you provide to us is mandatory, some of it is provided to us on a voluntary basis. We will inform you whether you are required to provide certain student information to us or if you have a choice in this.
We commonly use Personal Data for:
ensuring that we provide a safe and secure environment;
making decisions relating to admissions, bursaries and scholarships
providing pastoral care;
providing education and learning for our students;
enabling students to take part in exams and assessments and to monitor and report
on students' progress and educational needs;
providing additional activities for children and parents, such as extra-curricular clubs
and educational trips and visits;
protecting and promoting our interests and objectives, including fundraising;
safeguarding and promoting the welfare of students;
where there has been a suspected misuse of the College’s ICT facilities;
legal and management purposes and fulfilling our contractual and other legal obligations.
Who we share student information with:
We may share Personal Data with third parties where doing so complies with relevant legislation. For example, we may share personal data:
• with relevant statutory agencies or authorities (e.g. for safeguarding reasons or in order to comply with our reporting obligations under our duty of care);
where necessary in connection with learning and extracurricular activities and trips undertaken by students;
when a reference or other information about a student or ex-student is requested by another educational establishment or employer to whom they have applied;
to enable students to take part in national and other assessments;
to obtain professional advice and insurance for the College;
where otherwise required by law or where reasonably necessary for the operation of the College;
we may also share information about a student with their parents where permitted by data protection law, e.g. information about the student's academic attainment, behaviour and progress;
we may need to share special category data (medical for instance), in order to safeguard a student’s vital interests and welfare, to provide appropriate pastoral care, and to take appropriate action in the event of an emergency, incident or accident, including by disclosing details of an individual's medical condition where it is in the individual's vital interests to do so: for example for emergency medical advice or treatment or to insurance providers;
we may use photographs (and occasionally other media such as video or sound recordings) of students for educational purposes or in our publications, including on the College website and on social media, for marketing and promotion purposes. We may also share photographs and other media with third parties for these purposes (for example, for publication in a local or national newspaper).
Consent will be sought for the use of photos in line with the Taking and Storing Images of Children Policy.
No student image linked with the student’s name will be included in any marketing or promotional material without prior consent.
No sensitive information will be disclosed without the approval of the Principal or a delegate of the Principal. In terms of a definition of sensitive information, the following is included: information related to a person’s race, ethnicity, cultural background, political opinions, religion, philosophical beliefs, trade union or other professional or trade association membership, gender identity, sexual orientation or practices, criminal record, health, genetics and biometrics.
• Sensitive information will be used and disclosed only for the purpose for which it was provided, or a directly related secondary purpose, unless it is agreed otherwise, or the use or disclosure of the sensitive information is allowed or required by law.
Fees
We may make enquiries of students' previous Colleges for confirmation that all sums due and owing to such Colleges have been paid. We may also inform other Colleges or educational establishments to which students are to be transferred if any of our fees are unpaid.
Storing student data
Personal data relating to students at Westbourne College Sydney and their families is stored in line with the College’s Data Protection Policy. In accordance with legislation, the College does not store personal data indefinitely; data are only stored for as long as is necessary to complete the task the data was collected for originally. Please see the College’s Data Retention Policy, available from the Principal, for further details.
Why we share student information
We do not share information about our students with anyone without consent unless the law and our policies allow us to do so.
We share students’ data with the various Government Departments on a statutory basis. This data sharing underpins College funding and educational attainment policy and monitoring.
Data Retention
Personal data will be stored securely and not be kept for any longer than required for the College’s legitimate or lawful purposes. Some records have to be retained for minimum periods by law. As a general rule, when personal data is no longer needed for the purposes for which it was collected, your data will be securely and permanently destroyed as soon as practicable.
Management and Security of Personal Information
All College staff are required to respect the confidentiality of the personal data we gather. The College has in place steps to protect these data from misuse, loss, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure, by various methods including passworded access rights, secure storage and limiting the access to a minimum number of staff.
Requesting access to your personal data
Under the Privacy Act 1988 legislation, parents and students have the right to request access to information about them that we hold and to advise of any perceived inaccuracy. However, this request may be denied if, for example, access would have an unreasonable impact on the privacy of others, or where access may have result in a breach of the College’s duty of care to its students, or where students have provided information in confidence.
The College may, at the Principal’s discretion, on the request of a student grant that student access to information held by the College about them, or allow a student to give or withhold consent to the use of their personal information independently of their parents/guardians. This would only be granted if the student’s personal circumstances so warranted.
To make a request to access your personal information, or be given access to your child’s educational record, contact the College office on 8284 7601 or by email to admin@westbournecollege.com.au
Updating your personal data
We endeavour to ensure that the personal information we hold is accurate, complete and current. A parent and/or student may seek to update their personal information at any time.
Digital information
When you visit the College’s website, we automatically collect certain information. For example, as you browse our website, we collect information about the individual web pages you view, and how you interact with the website. We refer to this automatically- collected information as Device Information.
We collect Device Information using the following technologies:
Cookies – these are text files placed in your computer’s browser to store your preferences. By themselves, cookies do not inform us of your email address or other personally identifiable information. If and when you choose to provide our website with personal information, this information may be linked to the data stored in the cookie.
Log files - we may use these to track actions occurring on the website and collect data including your IP address, browser type, ISP and date/time data.
Tags – we may use these electronic files to record information about how you browse the website.
Additionally, when an online form is completed, for example, an enquiry or to book a visit, we collect certain information from you, including your name, address, email address and phone number. This is classified as enquiry data.
When we refer to personal information in this privacy policy, we refer to both device information and enquiry information.
How do we use Digital information
We use information gained digitally to help us improve and optimise our website; for example, by generating analytics about website visitors’ browsing behaviour and how they interact with the site and to assess the success of marketing and advertising campaigns).
Sharing Personal information
Please note that Westbourne College Sydney does not sell or rent personal information. Personal information is not disclosed to any organisation outside of WCS for any purpose other than those already set out above.
We use Google Analytics to help us analyse how people use our website. Please click here for more on how Google uses your personal information.