Access to pupil records

Access to pupil information

There are two separate rights to information held by schools about pupils.

1. The subject access right - under the Data Protection Act 1998 a pupil has the right to a copy of information about them.
2. Rights to the educational record - under the Education (Pupil Information)(England) Regulations 2005, a parent has the right to access their child's educational record.

An application should be in writing to the governing body of the school as each school is responsible. Applications cannot be made to the Council for information held by the school. To access information held by the Council a separate application needs to be made, information on this can be found on our access to information page.

The subject access right

Under the Data Protection Act 1998 a pupil has the right of subject access to personal information held about them by the school.

If a pupil is not able to understand or exercise their own rights under the Data Protection Act 1998 (for example, because they are too young – as a general guide a child of 12 or over is old enough to make a request in their own right), parents or another legal representative can make a subject access request on behalf of the child.

It is likely that most pupils' personal information will be held by the school as part of the pupil’s educational records. However the school may hold some information about the pupil which falls outside the educational record.

Requests to access this information should be made in writing and the school is entitled to ask any further information required to locate the information and satisfy itself about the identity of the person making the request.

Once the request has been made the pupil is entitled to be told whether or not the school holds the information they want and to ask what that information is. The pupil is entitled to a description of the information, the purpose it is used for, who it is released to, and any information available about the source of the information. The school must make the information clear and understandable, this means that if any codes are used they should be explained. The information should be in hard copy unless it is not possible, or if the pupil agrees to the information being provided in another format.

The parents’ right of access to their child’s educational record

The educational record includes the formal record of the pupil’s academic achievements, other skills and abilities and progress in school.

Timescales

If the subject access request includes wholly or partly the educational record the school must respond to the request within 15 school days. If however a request is made to access personal information that does not include the educational record a response must be made within 40 calendar days. If a fee is required the start date is when the both the application form and fee have been received by the school

Charges

If a subject access request is for all or part of the education record, a fee can be charged by the school depending on the number of pages provided. Schools will be able to provide details of the fees chargeable, according to their fees policy.

If a pupil or parent acting on the pupil's behalf makes a subject access request which does not include any information from the educational record, the maximum fee which can be charged is £10.

Information for young people

Young people can find information on their rights under data protection and how they can keep their personal information safe on the Information Commissioner’s website for young people.

More detailed information

More detailed guidance can also be found on the following sites:

• Information Commissioners guidance: Access to pupils' information held by schools in England
• Plymouth City Council guidance is available on the access to information pages.

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