Privacy notice for job applicants

Under data protection law, individuals have a right to be informed about how the Unity Schools Partnership (“the Trust”) uses any personal data we hold about them. We comply with this right by providing ‘privacy notices’ (sometimes called ‘fair processing notices’) to individuals where we are processing their personal data.

This privacy notice explains how we collect, store and use personal data about individuals applying for jobs within our trust.

We, Unity Schools Partnership, Park Road, Haverhill, Suffolk CB9 7YD, are the ‘data controller’ for the purposes of data protection law. The Data Protection Officer for the Trust can be contacted at dpo@unitysp.co.uk.

Successful candidates should refer to our staff privacy notice for information about how their personal data is collected, stored and used.

 

DBS Policy

Our "Revised Code of Practice for Disclosure and Barring Service" is available for download here.

 

The personal data we hold

We process data relating to those applying to work within our trust. Personal data that we may collect, use, store and share (when appropriate) about you includes, but is not restricted to:

  • Contact details
  • Copies of right to work documentation
  • References
  • Evidence of qualifications
  • Employment records, including work history, job titles, training records and professional memberships

We may also collect, use store and share (when appropriate) information about you that falls into “special categories” of more sensitive personal data. This includes, but is not restricted to:

  • Information about race, ethnicity, religious beliefs, sexual orientation and political opinions
  • Information about disability and access requirements
  • Photographs and CCTV images (more details about this are in our combined data protection and freedom of information policy, which is on the trust’s website)

We may also collect, use, store and share (when appropriate) information about criminal convictions and offences.

We may also hold data about you that we have received from other organisations, including other schools and social services, and the Disclosure and Barring Service in respect of criminal offence data.

Why we use this data

We use the data listed above to:

  1. Enable us to establish relevant experience and qualifications
  2. Facilitate safer recruitment, as part of our safeguarding obligations towards pupils
  3. Enable equalities monitoring
  4. Ensure that appropriate access arrangements are provided for candidates that require them

Reviewed April 2020

Our lawful basis for using this data

Under the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR), the lawful bases we rely on for processing staff information are:

  • for purposes (a), (b), (c) and (d) the legal basis of ‘legal obligation’: we need to process data to meet our responsibilities under law as set out here:
    • for purposes (a) and (b): Keeping children safe in education - Statutory guidance for schools and colleges
    • for purposes (c) and (d): The Equality Act 2010

Where you have provided us with consent to use your data, you may withdraw this consent at any time. We will make this clear when requesting your consent and explain how you go about withdrawing consent if you wish to do so.

For ‘special category’ data, we only collect and use it when we have both a lawful basis and one of the following conditions for processing as set out in data protection law:

  • We have obtained your explicit consent to use your personal data in a certain way
  • We need to perform or exercise an obligation or right in relation to employment, social security or social protection law
  • We need to protect an individual’s vital interests (i.e. protect your life or someone else’s life), in situations where you’re physically or legally incapable of giving consent
  • The data concerned has already been made manifestly public by you
  • We need to process it for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims
  • We need to process it for reasons of substantial public interest as defined in legislation
  • We need to process it for health or social care purposes, and the processing is done by, or under the direction of, a health or social work professional or by any other person obliged to confidentiality under law
  • We need to process it for public health reasons, and the processing is done by, or under the direction of, a health professional or by any other person obliged to confidentiality under law
  • We need to process it for archiving purposes, scientific or historical research purposes, or for statistical purposes, and the processing is in the public interest

For criminal offence data, we will only collect and use it when we have both a lawful basis, as set out above, and a condition for processing as set out in data protection law. Conditions include:

  • We have obtained your consent to use it in a specific way
  • We need to protect an individual’s vital interests (i.e. protect your life or someone else’s life), in situations where you’re physically or legally incapable of giving consent
  • The data concerned has already been made manifestly public by you
  • We need to process it for, or in connection with, legal proceedings, to obtain legal advice, or for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal rights
  • We need to process it for reasons of substantial public interest as defined in legislation

 

Collecting this data

While the majority of the information we collect about you is mandatory, there is some information that can be provided voluntarily.

Whenever we seek to collect information from you, we will make it clear whether you must provide this information (and if so, what the possible consequences are of not complying), or whether you have a choice.

Most of the data we hold about you will come from you, but we may also hold data about you from:

  • Local authorities
  • Government departments or agencies
  • Police forces, courts, tribunals

 

How we store this data

We keep personal information about you during the application process. We may also keep it beyond this if this is necessary. Our records retention policy sets out how long we keep information. It is available on the trust’s website.

We have put in place appropriate security measures to prevent your personal information from being accidentally lost, used or accessed in an unauthorised way, altered or disclosed.

We will dispose of your personal data securely when we no longer need it.

 

Data sharing

We do not share information about you with any third party without your consent unless the law and our policies allow us to do so.

Where it is legally required, or necessary (and it complies with data protection law), we may share personal information about you with:

  • The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) - for the purposes of carrying out checks on your suitability for work with children
  • Local authorities – to meet our legal obligations to share certain information
  • The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) – if you are applying under the Kickstart Scheme, which provides funding to employers to create job placements for 16 to 24 year olds on Universal Credit, we will provide them with your basic details so that they can confirm your eligibility for the scheme and as evidence of your job hunting. Our legal basis for sharing the information is that of ‘contract’: we need to process the personal data to fulfil a contract with you or to help you enter into a contract with us.
  • Suppliers and service providers – to enable them to provide the service we have contracted them for, such as recruitment support
  • Professional advisers and consultants
  • Employment and recruitment agencies

 

Transferring data internationally

If we transfer personal data to a country or territory outside the European Economic Area, we will do so in accordance with data protection law.

 

Your rights

How to access the personal information we hold about you

You have a right to make a ‘subject access request’ to gain access to personal information that we hold about you.

If you make a subject access request, and if we do hold information about you, we will (subject to any exemptions that may apply):

  • Give you a description of it
  • Tell you why we are holding and processing it, and how long we will keep it for
  • Explain where we got it from, if not from you
  • Tell you who it has been, or will be, shared with
  • Let you know whether any automated decision-making is being applied to the data, and any consequences of this
  • Give you a copy of the information in an intelligible form

You may also have a right for your personal information to be transmitted electronically to another organisation in certain circumstances.

If you would like to make a request, please contact our data protection officer.

 

Your other rights regarding your data

Under data protection law, you have certain rights regarding how your personal data is used and kept safe. For example, you have the right to:

  • Object to our use of your personal data
  • Prevent your data being used to send direct marketing
  • Object to and challenge the use of your personal data for decisions being taken by automated means (by a computer or machine, rather than a person)
  • In certain circumstances, have inaccurate personal data corrected, deleted or destroyed, or restrict processing
  • In certain circumstances be notified of a data breach
  • Make a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)
  • Claim compensation for damages caused by a breach of the data protection regulations To exercise any of these rights, please contact our data protection officer.

 

Complaints

We take any complaints about our collection and use of personal information very seriously.

If you think that our collection or use of personal information is unfair, misleading or inappropriate, or have any other concern about our data processing, please raise this with us in the first instance.

To make a complaint, please contact our data protection officer.

Alternatively, you can make a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO):

 

Contact us

If you have any questions, concerns or would like more information about anything mentioned in this privacy notice, please contact our data protection officer at dpo@unitysp.co.uk