School attendance and children missing education privacy policy

The Attendance and Children Out of School Service works with children, parents and carers, schools and other professionals. Our approach is to understand the reasons for absence and offer support first. Where support has not worked, has not been accepted or is not appropriate, we may consider formal or legal action in line with the law and Department for Education guidance. 

• support children and families to improve regular school attendance, including through attendance meetings and School Attendance Panel
• provide advice, training, challenge and traded attendance support to schools to improve individual and whole-school attendance
• identify, locate, track and support children missing education (CME), and help children access suitable education
• make enquiries where a child may be out of school, or their education arrangements are unclear
• use formal attendance measures where appropriate, including attendance contracts and Notices to Improve
• administer legal interventions where the relevant tests are met, including penalty notices, Education Supervision Orders, school attendance prosecutions and applications for Parenting Orders
• use the School Attendance Order process where it appears that a child of compulsory school age is not receiving suitable education
• administer child employment permits, child performance licenses and chaperone approvals

Where a child missing from education has not been located after proportionate local enquiries, the Council may send a limited referral to HMRC under the Children Missing Education process. HMRC may search relevant Benefits and Credits records. This is to help establish the child’s whereabouts and educational status.

If you have questions regarding this service or our privacy practices, you can contact us by e-mail or in writing at the address below:

Contact us by email

Attendance@walthamforest.gov.uk  

Contact us by post

Please write to:

Attendance and Children Out of School Service,

Waltham Forest Council, 

Waltham Forest Town Hall, 

Forest Road, 

Walthamstow E17 4JF 

Please note that face-to-face meetings are by appointment only and can be arranged with the service.

• to understand barriers to attendance and agree suitable support with children, families, schools and professionals; 
• to arrange and review attendance support, attendance contracts, School Attendance Panels and Notices to Improve; 
• to identify children missing education, establish their whereabouts and education status, and support access to suitable education; 
• to assess referrals, monitor cases and prevent children from becoming lost from education; 
• to decide whether formal or legal intervention is necessary, fair and proportionate; 
• to issue and administer penalty notices, apply for Education Supervision Orders or Parenting Orders, and prepare attendance cases for court where necessary; 
• to make enquiries, issue notices and use School Attendance Orders where a child may not be receiving suitable education; 
• to assess, issue, monitor and enforce child employment permits, performance licenses and chaperone approvals; 
• to provide traded attendance support, advice, training, quality assurance and service improvement; 
• to respond to complaints, audits, legal claims and information requests; and 
• to produce statistics and service reports. We use anonymised or grouped information wherever possible. 

Where proportionate local enquiries have not located a child missing education, the Council may ask HMRC to search relevant records. Any address returned by HMRC will only be used to continue lawful Children Missing Education and safeguarding enquiries.

No decision is made solely by automated means. Any address returned by HMRC is reviewed by an authorised officer, and further enquiries will be made before the information is treated as confirmed.

We do not usually rely on consent when carrying out statutory education, safeguarding, enforcement or licensing functions. Our main lawful bases under the UK GDPR are Article 6(1)(c), legal obligation, and Article 6(1)(e), public task. In an emergency, Article 6(1)(d), vital interests, may apply.

Our work has a legal basis including the Education Act 1996, particularly sections 7, 14, 19, 436A, 437 to 443 and 444; the Education and Inspections Act 2006; the School Attendance (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2024; the Education (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2007, as amended; the Children and Young Persons Acts 1933 and 1963; the Children (Performances and Activities) (England) Regulations 2014; the Children Act 1989; and the Education Act 2002.

Where we use sensitive information, such as health, ethnicity or religion, we also rely on an appropriate condition under Article 9 of the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. Criminal offence information is only used where the law allows it and appropriate safeguards are in place. Contract may also apply to the administration of optional traded services purchased by schools.

We may collect information directly from children, parents, carers, applicants and schools. We may also receive information from other education settings, other councils, NHS services, social care, Early Help, police, probation, Youth Justice, courts, government departments, including HMRC, employers, agents, production companies, chaperones, professionals, members of the public and anonymous referrals. We may check Council records where this is necessary to confirm identity, address, eligibility or accuracy. Where the Children Missing Education process applies, HMRC may provide a possible current address or confirm that no trace was found from relevant Benefits and Credits records.

For the HMRC Children Missing Education process, the Council relies primarily on Article 6(1)(e) of the UK GDPR, public task. This supports the Council’s Children Missing Education functions. Section 436A of the Education Act 1996 is the principal statutory duty identified in the DPIA. HMRC disclosures take place through the lawful gateway set out in the Children Missing Education Memorandum of Understanding.

For more details on the Lawful Basis see the ICO guidance.

We only share information where it is necessary, proportionate, and lawful. Depending on the circumstances, we may share it with:

• relevant Waltham Forest Council services, including School Admissions, SEND, Early Help, Children’s Social Care, MASH, Housing, Revenues and Benefits, Legal Services, Complaints, Internal Audit and Counter Fraud.
• schools, academy trusts, education settings and alternative provision.
• other local authorities and education services.
• the Department for Education and organisations processing statutory education information on its behalf.
• HMRC, where the Children Missing Education referral criteria are met. HMRC may receive limited information and may return a possible address or a no-trace response. Waltham Forest Council and HMRC act as separate controllers for their own processing activities.
• NHS organisations and health professionals.
• the police, probation, Youth Justice Service, courts and magistrates’ services.
• the Home Office or other government departments where there is a lawful reason.
• employers, agents, production companies, venues and authorities involved in child employment or performance licensing.
• service providers acting on the Council’s instructions.
• legal advisers, auditors, regulators and insurers.
• We may share information without consent where the law requires or allows it, including to safeguard a child or another person, prevent or detect crime, locate a child, support access to education, or establish, exercise or defend legal claims. We will not share more information than is needed.

International transfers 

We do not routinely send personal information outside the United Kingdom. If this is necessary, for example to make lawful enquiries about a child believed to be abroad, we will use appropriate legal safeguards.

We keep information only for as long as it is needed and in line with the Council’s approved retention schedule. The period depends on the type of record, the child’s age, safeguarding needs, statutory and licensing requirements, enforcement or court action, complaints and legal claims. Records are then securely deleted or anonymised unless there is a lawful reason to keep them for longer. Detailed retention periods are available from the service on request.

Children Missing Education referral records and HMRC responses will be kept in line with the Council’s approved retention arrangements. Temporary referral workbooks and duplicate attachments will be securely deleted when they are no longer needed.

Our Data Protection Officer

Our Data Protection Officer is Mark Hynes. You can contact him by email at data.protectionofficer@walthamforest.gov.uk

Protecting your information

Read the how we use and protect your personal data section of the Corporate Privacy Notice.

Your information choice and rights

Read the your rights to your personal data section of the Corporate Privacy Notice.

Complaints and contact details

These are included in the relevant section of the Corporate Privacy Notice.

Information Commissioner’s Office

If we’re unable to resolve your complaint to your satisfaction, you can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)