BALLARAT CHRISTIAN COLLEGE

Your privacy is important

This statement outlines the policy of Ballarat Christian College (“the College”) on how it uses and manages personal information provided to or collected by it.

The College is bound by the National Privacy Principles contained in the Australian Privacy Act.

This Policy may be reviewed and updated from time to time to take account of new laws and technology, changes to the Colleges' operations and practices and to make sure it remains appropriate to the changing school environment.

Definitions

The Act is the Privacy Act 1988 as amended by the Privacy Amendment (Private Sector) Act 2000 which is a Commonwealth Act.

National Privacy Principles (NPPs) : the 10 NPPs are the key components of the new legislation and set minimum standards which relate to the collection, security, storage, use, access, correction and disclosure of personal information.

Types of information covered by the Act:

“ Personal information ” : information or an opinion that allows someone to identify the individual that the information or opinion is about. It also includes sensitive and health information.

“ Sensitive information ” : a type of personal information that is given extra protection and must be treated with additional care. It includes any information or opinion about an individual's racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, membership of a political association, religious beliefs or affiliations, philosophical beliefs, membership of a professional or trade association, membership of a trade union, sexual preferences or practices, or criminal record. It also includes health information.

“ Health information ” : any information or opinion about the health or disability of an individual, or any expressed wishes or opinions about the individual’s health situation.

What kind of personal information does the College collect and how does the College collect it?

The type of information the College collects and holds includes (but is not limited to) personal information, including sensitive information, about:

• students and parents and/or guardians ('Parents') before, during and after the course of a student's enrolment at the College;
• job applicants, staff members, volunteers and contractors; and
• other people who come into contact with the College.

Personal Information you provide : The College will generally collect personal information held about an individual by way of forms filled out by Parents or students, face-to-face meetings and interviews, and telephone calls. On occasions people other than Parents and students provide personal information.

Personal Information provided by other people : In some circumstances the College may be provided with personal information about an individual from a third party, for example a report provided by a medical professional or a reference from another school or a church.

Exception in relation to employee records: Under the Privacy Act the National Privacy Principles do not apply to an employee record. As a result, this Privacy Policy does not apply to the College's treatment of an employee record, where the treatment is directly related to a current or former employment relationship between the College and employee.

How will the College use the personal information you provide?

The College will use personal information it collects from you for the primary purpose of collection, and for such other secondary purposes that are related to the primary purpose of collection and reasonably expected, or to which you have consented.

Students and Parents: In relation to personal information of students and Parents, the College's primary purpose of collection is to enable the College to provide schooling for the student. This includes satisfying both the needs of Parents and the needs of the student throughout the whole period the student is enrolled at the College.

The purposes for which the College uses personal information of students and Parents include:

• to keep Parents informed about matters related to their child's schooling, through correspondence, newsletters and magazines;
• day-to-day administration;
• looking after students' educational, pastoral, social and medical wellbeing;
• seeking donations and marketing for the College;
• to satisfy the College's legal obligations and allow the College to discharge its duty of care.

In some cases where the College requests personal information about a student or Parent, if the information requested is not obtained, the College may not be able to enrol or continue the enrolment of the student.

Job applicants, staff members and contractors: In relation to personal information of job applicants, staff members and contractors, the College's primary purpose of collection is to assess and (if successful) to engage the applicant, staff member or contractor, as the case may be.

The purposes for which the School uses personal information of job applicants, staff members and contractors include:

• in administering the individual's employment or contract, as the case may be;
• for insurance purposes;
• seeking support and marketing for the College;
• to satisfy the College's legal obligations, for example, in relation to child protection legislation.

Volunteers: The College also obtains personal information about volunteers who assist the College in its functions or conduct associated activities, to enable the College and the volunteers to work together and for the College to discharge its duty of care.

Marketing and fundraising: Personal information held by the College may be disclosed to an organisation that assists in the marketing of the College or in fundraising. Parents, staff, contractors and other members of the wider School community may from time to time receive fundraising information. School publications, like newsletters and magazines, which include personal information, may be used for marketing purposes.

To whom might the College disclose personal information?

The College may disclose personal information, including sensitive information, held about an individual to:

• another school;
• government departments;
• medical practitioners;
• people providing services to the College, including specialist visiting teachers and sports coaches;
• recipients of School publications, like newsletters and magazines;
• Parents; volunteers and
• anyone to whom you authorise the College to disclose information.

Sending information overseas: The College will not send personal information about an individual outside Australia without:

• obtaining the consent of the individual (in some cases this consent will be implied); or
• otherwise complying with the National Privacy Principles.

How does the College treat sensitive information?

Sensitive information will be used and disclosed only for the purpose for which it was provided or a directly related secondary purpose, unless you agree otherwise, or where the use or disclosure of the sensitive information is allowed by law.

Management and security of personal information

The College's staff is required to respect the confidentiality of students' and Parents' personal information and the privacy of individuals.

The College has in place steps to protect the personal information the College holds from misuse, loss, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure by use of various methods including locked storage of paper records and password protected access rights to computerised records.

Updating personal information

The College endeavours to ensure that the personal information it holds is accurate, complete and up-to-date. A person may seek to update their personal information held by the College by contacting the Receptionist or the Bursar of the College at any time.

The National Privacy Principles require the College not to store personal information longer than necessary.

You have the right to check what personal information the College holds about you

Under the Act, an individual has the right to obtain access to any personal information which the College holds about them and to advise the College of any perceived inaccuracy. There are some exceptions to this right set out in the Act. Students will generally have access to their personal information through their Parents, but older students may seek access themselves.

To make a request to access any information the College holds about you or your child, please contact the Bursar in writing.

The College may require you to verify your identity and specify what information you require. The College may charge a fee to cover the cost of verifying your application and locating, retrieving, reviewing and copying any material requested. If the information sought is extensive, the College will advise the likely cost in advance.

Consent and rights of access to the personal information of students

The College respects every Parent's right to make decisions concerning their child's education.

Generally, the College will refer any requests for consent and notices in relation to the personal information of a student to the student's Parents. The College will treat consent given by Parents as consent given on behalf of the student, and notice to Parents will act as notice given to the student.

A parent may seek access to personal information held by the College about them or their child by contacting the Bursar. However, there will be occasions when access is denied. Such occasions would include where release of the information would have an unreasonable impact on the privacy of others, or where the release may result in a breach of the College's duty of care to the student.

The College may, at its 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. This would normally be done only when the maturity of the student and/or the student's personal circumstances so warranted.

Enquiries

If you would like further information about the way the College manages the personal information it holds, please contact the Bursar.

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