A newly built primary school in County Kildare, which will be run by the local Vocational Educational Committee (VEC), has had to change a question about religion on its application form after a complaint was made to the Data Protection Commissioner. An enrolment form for 2010 for Naas Community primary school, which was also posted on the VEC's website stated that, “The Community National School, as part of its inclusive ethos, welcomes children of all religious beliefs and will cater for them as part of its multi belief programme. This information is requested in order to assist the school in making provision for the timetabling of Religious Education/ Ethics classes.”
The notice continued, “This information supplied will be used for bona fide school purposes only. The information on this form may be shared with other primary schools.”
It is the last sentence of the piece with which the data protection commissioner has taken issue. A letter from the commissioner’s office of the VEC said that, “though the actual collection of the information appears reasonable, the form should be far clearer in regard to the circumstances in which the information may be shared with other primary schools.”
It claims that parents should have a full understanding of the type of information been shared with other schools before such information is shared.
Meanwhile speaking to the Leinster Leader newspaper, local Councillor and VEC chairman Cllr Willie Callaghan apologised for the error.
He said, “It was simply a case of an error on the form. Kildare VEC never has or never will share any information like that,” he concluded.
SIC: CIN