GDPR Pricavy Policy

WHO WE ARE

NIX Academy (the “School”) acts as the Data Controller for the purpose of Data Protection Law.

Registered Address:
13 Avenue Road, Teddington, Middlesex, TW11 0BT

DATA PROTECTION LAW

General Data Protection Regulation (EU 2016/679)
UK Data Protection Act 2018

INTRODUCTION

This Privacy Policy is intended to provide information about how the School will use (or “process”) personal data about individuals including: its instructors; its current, past and prospective students; and their parents, carers or guardians (referred to in this policy as “parents”). This information is provided because Data Protection Law gives individuals rights to understand how their data is used. Instructors, parents and students are all encouraged to read this Privacy Policy and understand the School’s obligations to its entire community. This Privacy Policy applies alongside any other information the School may provide about a particular use of personal data, for example when collecting data via an online or paper form. Anyone who works for, or acts on behalf of, the School (including instructors, volunteers and service providers) should also be aware of and comply with this Privacy Policy.

WHY THE SCHOOL NEEDS TO PROCESS PERSONAL DATA

In order to carry out its ordinary duties to instructors, students and parents, the School needs to process a small range of personal data about individuals (including current, past and prospective instructors, students or parents) as part of its daily operation. Some of this activity, the School will need to carry out in order to fulfil its legal rights, duties or obligations – including those under a contract with its instructors, or parents of its students. Other uses of personal data will be made in accordance with the School’s legitimate interests, or the legitimate interests of another, provided that these are not outweighed by the impact on individuals, and provided it does not involve special or sensitive types of data.

The School expects that the following uses will fall within that category of its “legitimate interests”:

• To provide performance arts education and artistic services,
• Maintaining relationships with alumni (see below) and the School community
• For the purposes of management planning and forecasting, research and statistical analysis, including that imposed or provided for by law (such as tax, diversity or gender pay gap analysis);
• To enable relevant authorities to monitor the School’s performance and to intervene or assist with incidents as appropriate;
• To give and receive information and references about past, current and prospective students, including relating to outstanding fees or payment history, to/from any educational institution that the student attended or where it is proposed they attend; and to provide references to potential
• employers of past students;
• To enable students to take part in examinations, and to publish the results of examinations or other achievements of students of the School;
• To safeguard students’ welfare
• To make use of photographic images of students in School publications, on the School website and (where appropriate) on the School’s social media channels
• To carry out or cooperate with any school or external complaints, disciplinary or investigation process; and
• Where otherwise reasonably necessary for the School’s purposes, including to obtain appropriate professional advice and insurance for the School.

In addition, the School will on occasion need to process special category personal data (concerning health, ethnicity, religion) or criminal records information (such as when carrying out DBS checks) in accordance with rights or duties imposed on it by law, including as regards to safeguarding and instructor agreements, or from time to time by explicit consent where required. These reasons will include:

• To safeguard students’ welfare and to take appropriate action in the event of an emergency, incident or accident, including by disclosing details of an individual’s medical condition or other relevant information where it is in the individual’s interests to do so: for example, for medical advice, for social protection, safeguarding and cooperation with police or social services, or for insurance purposes;
• To provide educational services in the context of any special educational needs of a student;
• In connection with employment of its instructors

TYPES OF PERSONAL DATA PROCESSED BY THE SCHOOL

This will include by way of example:

• names, addresses, telephone numbers, e-mail addresses and other contact details;
• past, present and prospective students’ attendance records, information about any special needs, and examination marks;
• personnel files, for the use of safeguarding;
• where appropriate, information about student and staff health, and contact details for their next of kin;
• references given or received by the School about students, and information provided by previous dance education establishments and/or other professionals or organisations working with students;
• correspondence with and concerning instructors, pupils and parents past and present;
• transaction and order details
• demographic information
• information relating to surveys and other feedback

HOW THE SCHOOL COLLECTS DATA
Generally, the School receives personal data from the individual directly (including, in the case of students, from their parents). This may be via an online form, the customer portal, or simply in the ordinary course of interaction or communication (such as email or written assessments). However, in some exceptionally rare cases personal data maybe supplied to third parties (for example the local authority in the event of a safeguarding incident).

HOW WE USE DATA

• We do not and never will sell, rent, trade or distribute your personal data to any third parties for marketing purposes. Data may be shared with trusted service providers who are authorised to act on the School’s behalf and have entered into data processing agreements with us.
• These services may include payment processing, event ticketing, database services, website hosting and email delivery services. In these circumstances your data will only be used for the agreed purpose relating to the service that they are providing. We do not transfer any personal data to countries outside of the European Economic Area (EEA).

WHO HAS ACCESS TO PERSONAL DATA AND WHO THE SCHOOL SHARES IT WITH?

Occasionally, the School will need to share personal information relating to its community with third parties, such as professional advisers (lawyers, insurers, PR advisors and accountants), government authorities (HMRC, DfE, police or the local authority); and appropriate regulatory bodies (e.g. The
Royal Academy of Dance, the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing, the Information Commissioner).

• For the most part, personal data collected by the School will remain within the School and will be processed by appropriate individuals only in accordance with access protocols (ie on a‘need to know’ basis). Particularly strict rules of access apply in the context of medical records held and safeguarding files.
• However, a certain amount of any SEN student’s relevant information will need to be provided to instructors more widely in the context of providing the necessary care and dance education that the student requires.
• Instructors, students and parents are reminded that the School is under duties imposed by law and statutory guidance (including Keeping Children Safe in Education) to record or report incidents and concerns that arise or are reported to it, in some cases regardless of whether they are proven, if they meet a certain threshold of seriousness in their nature or regularity.

This is likely to include file notes on personnel or safeguarding files, and in some cases referrals to relevant authorities such as the LA or police. For further information

• Finally, in accordance with Data Protection Law, some of the School’s processing activity is carried out on its behalf by third parties, such as IT systems, web developers or cloud storage providers. This is always subject to contractual assurances that personal data will be kept securely and only in accordance with the School’s specific directions.

HOW LONG WE KEEP PERSONAL DATA

• The School will retain personal data securely and only in line with how long it is necessary to keep for a legitimate and lawful reason. Typically, the legal recommendation for how long to keep ordinary instructor and student personnel files is up to 7 years following departure from the School. However, incident reports and safeguarding files will need to be kept much longer, in accordance with specific legal requirements.

KEEPING IN TOUCH AND SUPPORTING THE SCHOOL

• The School will use the personal data of parents, alumni and other members of the School community so that we may keep them informed, by post, mobile phone or email, of the School’s developments, provide opportunities to attend events, and identify ways they can support the School. We may occasionally submit surveys to gain their feedback and views to help improve the service we currently deliver.
• We may also keep personal data of alumni and provide a resource for alumni to support their professional career and/or public image.
• Should you wish to limit or object to any such use, or would like further information about them, please contact info@nixdancelondon.com. You always have the right to withdraw consent, where given, or otherwise object to direct marketing. However, the School may need nonetheless to retain some of your details (not least to ensure that no more communications are sent to that particular address, email or telephone number).

RIGHTS OF ACCESS

• Individuals have various rights under Data Protection Law to access and understand personal data about them held by the School, and in some cases, ask for it to be erased or amended or have it transferred to others, or for the School to stop processing it.
• The School will be better able to respond quickly to smaller, targeted requests for information. If the request for information is manifestly excessive or similar to previous requests, the School may ask you to reconsider or require a proportionate fee, but only where Data Protection Law allows it.

You should be aware that certain data is exempt from the right of access. This may include information which identifies other individuals, or information which is subject to legal professional privilege by the School for the purposes of the education, training or employment of any individual.

REQUESTS THAT CANNOT BE FULFILLED

You should be aware that the right of access is limited to your own personal data, and certain data is exempt from the right of access. This will include information which identifies other individuals (and parents need to be aware this may include their own children, in certain limited situations – please see further below), or information which is subject to legal professional privilege (for example legal advice given to or sought by the school, or documents prepared in connection with a legal action).

You may have heard of the “right to be forgotten”. However, we will sometimes have compelling reasons to refuse specific requests to amend, delete or stop processing your (or your child’s) personal data: for example, legal requirement, or where it falls within a legitimate interest identified in this Privacy Policy. All such requests will be considered on their own merits.

PARENTAL REQUESTS, ETC

It should be clearly understood that the rules on subject access are not the sole basis on which information requests are handled. Parents may not have a statutory right to information, but they and others will often have a legitimate interest or expectation in receiving certain information about pupils without their consent. The school may consider there are lawful grounds for sharing with or without reference to that student.

Parents will in general receive verbal updates about their children when requested. Where parents are separated, the school will, in most cases, aim to provide the same information to each person with parental responsibility, but may need to factor in all the circumstances including the express wishes of the child.

All information requests from, or on behalf of, or concerning students – whether made under subject access or simply as an incidental request – will therefore be considered on a case by case basis.

CONSENT

Where the School is relying on consent as a means to process personal data, any person may withdraw this consent at any time (subject to similar age considerations as above). Please be aware however that the School may have another lawful reason to process the personal data in question even without your consent.

That reason will usually have been asserted under this Privacy Policy, or may otherwise exist under some form of contract or agreement with the individual (eg an employment or parent contract, or because a purchase of goods, services or membership of an organisation such as a parents’ association has been requested).

WHOSE RIGHTS?

The rights under Data Protection Law belong to the individual to whom the data relates. However, the School will often rely on parental authority or notice for the necessary ways it processes personal data relating to students.
Where consent is required, it may in some cases be necessary or appropriate – given the nature of the processing in question, and the student’s age and understanding, to seek the student’s consent.
Parents should be aware that in such situations they may not be consulted, depending on the interests of the child, the parents’ rights at law or under their contract, and all the circumstances. In general, the School will assume that students’ consent is not required for ordinary disclosure of their personal data to their parents, eg for the purposes of keeping parents informed about the student’s activities, progress and behaviour, and in the interests of the student’s welfare. That is unless, in the School’s opinion, there is a good reason to do otherwise.

However, where a student seeks to raise concerns confidentially with a member of staff and expressly withholds their agreement to their personal data being disclosed to their parents, the School may be under an obligation to maintain confidentiality unless, in the School’s opinion, there is a good reason to do otherwise; for example where the School believes disclosure will be in the best interests of the student or other students, or if required by law.

Students are required to respect the personal data and privacy of others. Instructors are under professional duties to do the same.