SEND Team privacy notice

Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Team for children and young people whose SEND is being assessed or those with an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan.

What personal information is being processed and what for

As part of the EHC needs assessment, your educational setting (nursery, school, college etc.) will send us information about you which is known as personal data This will allow us to provide you with the level of support you need, and personalise the package of help we can offer you.

Personal data we will need to collect will include:

• your name
• your address
• telephone number
• email address
• date of birth

The SEND Team’s work is split into five areas:

1. Macclesfield
2. Congleton
3. Knutsford, Wilmslow, Poynton
4. Crewe
5. Nantwich and we will hold information on which of the 5 areas of Cheshire East you live in. 

We also hold information about your social, health and special educational needs, religion and ethnicity. This data is classed as special category data under Data Protection law and is extended further protections.

We will collect the views and opinions of your parents/carers and we will also need to speak to you (the child or young person), without your parents/carers with you, in order to ensure that we really understand your views, needs and wishes.

Why we are allowed to use your information

We use your information to make sure that the educational settings you go to/may go to know about your special educational needs. We need to ensure that you are given the right support and help so that you can learn.

We provide this help and service within the requirements and provisions of the Children and Families Act 2014, Education Act 1996, Care Act 2014 and the Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014.

The following conditions of Article 6 of the General Data Protection Regulations therefore apply:

• 1(c) processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the controller is subject
• 1(e) processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller

The following conditions of Article 9 of the General Data Protection Regulations means that we can use your special category data; this includes information about your health, racial or ethnic origin and  religious beliefs:

• Article 9(g) processing is necessary for reasons of substantial public interest, on the basis of Union or Member State law which shall be proportionate to the aim pursued, respect the essence of the right to data protection and provide for suitable and specific measures to safeguard the fundamental rights and the interests of the data subject
• 9(h) processing is necessary for the purposes of preventive or occupational medicine, for the assessment of the working capacity of the employee, medical diagnosis, the provision of health or social care or treatment or the management of health or social care systems and services on the basis of Union or Member State law or pursuant to contract with a health professional and subject to the conditions and safeguards referred to in paragraph 3

Who we will share your information with

Different children and young people have different needs and have different people who work with them. We will talk to you/ your parents or your carers about who this will be.

Our decisions are made by a panel which has health and social care, mainstream and special school staff and SEND Team managers/0-25 SEND Officers. We need to share your information with panel members to make sure that we know enough about you and your needs to make the right decisions about what you need and where your education should take place.

If you are going through an EHC needs assessment, your information will be sent to everyone who we have asked for advice. This is to make sure that you only have to tell your story once. We will agree who we will ask for advice with you and your parents during our first meeting.  See the list of whom we must contact on page 155/156 of the SEND code of practice.

We will also need to share your information with educational settings including your current nursery, school or college, other settings for which you and/or your parents/carers have told us they would like to be named in your EHCP and any other settings that we feel may be able to meet your special educational needs and offer a place for you.

We will tell you/your parents/carers which settings we are sharing your information with. The information we share will include your EHC Plan, the advice that came in to help us write it and information from reviews of your EHC Plan that you will have every year.

Where we get your information from

Your educational setting may also send us your information or it may come from you and/or your parents. This information may include reports from the following individuals or organisations:

• psychiatrist
• advocate
• social worker
• family support worker
• psychologist
• community paediatrician
• educational psychologist
• educational welfare officer
• family centre worker
• GP
• Head teacher, teacher or teaching assistant
• health visitor
• hearing or visual impairment worker
• nurse
• occupational therapist
• physiotherapist
• nursery, school or college
• speech and language therapist

The SEND Code of Practice explains who we must ask for advice if you are having an EHC needs assessment and your parents/carers may add to this list.

How long we will keep your personal information

Cheshire East Council’s Information Asset Register for General Data Protection Regulations will provide details on the length of time that we will keep your personal information.

How your information is stored

Your information is held on an electronic case management system called ‘Liquid Logic’ and paper files. Any paper information that you or others provide will be scanned onto ‘Liquid Logic’ or put on a paper file. You will have an individual reference number and your electronic record can only be looked at by workers who know you and work within the SEND Team or children’s social care/family support services. Each worker has a separate user number and a password and checks are made regularly to make sure that only workers that need to look at your case file does so.

What happens if you don't provide us with your information

If you do not share your information with us we will not be able to assess your EHC needs.

Will your information be used to make automated decisions

Your information will not be used for any automated decisions.

Will this information be transferred abroad

This information will not be transferred abroad

Your rights

You have a number of rights regarding your personal data. You can ask for a copy of the information we hold about you, ask us to correct anything that is wrong and object (with justification) to its continued use.

For detailed information about your rights please see our data protection information and  Overall privacy notice.