School admissions privacy notice

Part of: Trafford Council privacy notice

Contents

Read this alongside the Trafford Council privacy notice for information that applies to all services.

This page explains how we collect and use personal information in school admissions.

What information we collect

We may collect:

  • Name, address and contact details for the child and parent or carer
  • Date of birth and gender of the child
  • Details of current or previous school(s) attended
  • Preferences for school places
  • Evidence of home address or residency
  • Information about siblings already at a school
  • Evidence relating to special educational needs or disabilities
  • Information relevant to oversubscription criteria, such as faith or medical needs

Some of this may include special category data, such as:

  • Health information
  • Religious or philosophical beliefs (where relevant to admission criteria)

Why we collect your information

We use your information to:

  • Process applications for school places
  • Apply oversubscription criteria where necessary
  • Coordinate with schools and other local authorities on admissions
  • Verify eligibility for free school transport or other entitlements
  • Handle appeals against admissions decisions
  • Meet our legal duties under the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 and related regulations

Our lawful basis

The main legal bases we use are:

  • Public task – to carry out our duties under school admissions law
  • Legal obligation – to comply with statutory requirements for admissions

For special category data, we rely on:

  • Substantial public interest – under UK GDPR Article 9(2)(g) and Schedule 1 of the Data Protection Act 2018, for ensuring equal access to education and applying lawful admissions criteria

Who we share your information with

We may share your information with:

  • Other council teams, such as transport, special educational needs or free school meals
  • Schools, academies and admission authorities
  • Other local authorities, if you apply for a school outside Trafford
  • Independent appeals panels
  • The Department for Education
  • The police or other agencies, if required for safeguarding or law enforcement

How long we keep your information

School admissions records are kept for six years after the end of the academic year in which the application was made.

Appeal records are kept for two years after the appeal process is completed.

Automated decision‑making

School admissions does not make decisions about you based solely on automated processing.

Contact us

If you have questions about how we use your information in school admissions, see the contact us section in the primary privacy notice.