Privacy Notice Students
Introduction
The college has a responsibility under data protection legislation to provide individuals with information about how we process their personal data. We are committed to holding and processing personal information fairly and lawfully. This privacy notice should be read in conjunction with the college’s Data Protection Policy.
We as a college collect and process personal data relating to our students to manage the collegestudent relationship. We are committed to being transparent about how we collect and use such data and to meeting our data protection obligations.
The contents of this privacy notice apply, as applicable, to current and former students and, in some cases, prospective students.
If you have any questions or concerns about the way in which we are processing your personal data, please contact the Executive Director (execdirector@trinitycollegebristol.ac.uk).
Collection of personal data
Personal data are normally initially provided to the college by a prospective student on an undergraduate or postgraduate application form. For successful applicants, we will add further data at registration and in the course of the student’s studies as required for the proper fulfilment of our responsibilities. After graduation or termination of studies, some data are passed to maintain our alumni database for approved purposes; other records are retained and disposed of in line with our Records Retention Schedule. The personal data of unsuccessful applicants are also retained and disposed of in line with our Records Retention Schedule.
We hold special category data (e.g. ethnicity, physical or mental health or disability) for the provision of student support services to individuals and for equal opportunities monitoring and statutory reporting.
Information on a student’s health or disability may be required prior to admission, for purposes linked with academic progress or the provision of accommodation. We may also require information on a student’s health when a student undertakes placement work, such as for health and safety or insurance purposes.
Further information may also be required if the student seeks work with the college in a paid or unpaid capacity.
Lawful basis
We process your data prior to, during and for a period after your programme of study under the basis of a contract with you. We offer student support services, in the interests of academic progression and participation in college life. We are required to demonstrate our support for students with disabilities, and for this we need to request and hold special category data and medical evidence, which we process under our legal obligations to the Equality Act 2010. At the point of being asked to disclose special category data you will be given further details on how this information will be processed. Our Learning Advisor has specific agreements outlining how special category data will be processed.
We may additionally enter into a contract with you regarding residence at one of our properties.
The College processes data to ensure that it is complying with our legal obligations, for example in respect of Council Tax, Home Office requirements regarding visas and obligations under the Equality Act 2010.
We may also use your personal information where we need to protect your (or someone else’s) interests or where it is in the public interest. When we process your personal information we will do so provided your fundamental rights do not override those interests.
Storage of personal data
Student data are held in the student management system (the Directory), in the alumni relations system (Association database), and the virtual learning environment (Moodle). Access to each system is limited to approved college staff members.
Student data are also held locally by college academic staff and professional support services in email, network storage and paper files.
Core details of each student are transferred to the college’s archives for permanent preservation.
Processing of personal data
We process data to:
- administer study, such as recording of achievements, determination of award and monitoring of attendance;
- provide student support services, such as counselling or services for students with disabilities or learning difficulties;
- provide facilities, such as the IT service and Library service;
- contact students electronically;
- administer finance, such as payment of fees;
- administer tenancies or licence agreements of college-managed properties;
- monitor equal opportunities;
- prevent and detect crime, such as using CCTV or attaching photos to ID cards;
- ensure compliance with our acceptable use policy of networked systems;
- maintain contact with alumni;
- raise funds and promote marketing initiatives;
- process student academic appeals and student discipline cases;
- inform students of activities and events;
- host mailing of services of direct relevance to student interests; and
- facilitate communication with churches and other organisations concerning opportunities for ministry and service.
Sharing of data
Personal data are shared with our validating universities in so far as it is necessary for us and them to complete all the requirements of our validation agreements. In order to fulfil our responsibilities to students’ sponsoring organisations, data, including progress reports, will also be shared with them, including, for ordinands or prospective ordinands, with the Ministry Division of the Church of England and the dioceses from or to which they are sent.
Data may be shared with our partner college, Bristol Baptist College, where it is required for us to fulfil an obligation related to our students’ courses of study, for example class lists for classes undertaken at the Baptist College or retreat days organised by Baptist colleagues.
We may need to disclose students’ personal data to organisations contracted to work on our behalf, which could include our insurers or legal consultants. In certain and extreme circumstances we may pass the personal data of student debtors to an external debt collection agency if the we have been unable to recover the debt by normal internal processes. We may also disclose data to auditors undertaking investigations, selected individuals acting on our behalf such as former students or staff organising alumni events, external organisations undertaking market research or academic researchers, provided no personal data are published.
During the course of student support, data may be shared with external agencies, for example for medical or counselling support. Students will be asked for consent to share any data with an external agency if the purpose is to secure non-urgent but specialist student support. If there is an urgent need for specialist medical help, we will seek consent to share any data, but where consent cannot or will not be given we might act without consent.
We may, in order to protect the vital interests of the student or another person, contact third parties, such as medical professionals or next of kin, concerning the health of a student when we believe it is reasonable and/or in the best interests of the student to do so. We will attempt to gain the prior consent from the student to do so but where consent cannot or will not be given we might act without consent.
We will share your information where legally obliged to, for example with law enforcement agencies, and may not be able to inform you of the sharing, for example where this may compromise any investigation.
We are legally obliged to provide student personal data to Council Tax Registration Officers and, where applicable, to the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI).
We have a statutory requirement to disclose student personal data to the following and/or their nominees/successors: Office for Students (OfS); the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA); the Learning and Skills Council; the Quality Assurance Agency; the Department for Education; the Student Loans Company and Electoral Registration Officers.
The purposes for which data are collected by HESA can be found in the HESA Student Collection Notice which is reviewed annually and any amendments to the current version will be available at https://www.hesa.ac.uk/about/regulation/data–protection/noticesalong with links to earlier versions.HESA takes precautions to ensure that individuals are not identified from the anonymised data which they process. Students have the right to a copy of the information HESA holds about them. You should make requests directly to HESA by emailing data.protection@hesa.ac.uk. If you have concerns about your information being used for the stated purposes you should contact HESA directly.
Where we participate in higher education or student surveys, such as the Graduate Outcome Survey or the National Student Survey, you will receive further privacy or data protection information if you are contacted for these surveys
We will provide data about students on the Tier 4 Student Visa to the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) in order to fulfil our duties as an approved sponsor on international students.
We may process a student’s personal data for the purpose of the prevention and detection of fraud, particularly plagiarism (this may involve disclosure to third parties e.g. in the use of plagiarism detection software). We may also process a student’s personal data in the course of disciplinary procedures or academic appeals (this may involve disclosure to third parties e.g. to seek legal advice).
Where a student’s course of study requires study or a placement at a church or another organisation it will be necessary for us to transfer personal data to the external organisation, whether this is within the UK or abroad. Students should be aware that some countries outside of the EEA have lower standards for the protection of personal data than those within the EEA.
Students are required to provide a digital image of themselves for reproduction on their identification card, which is also used for library purpose. The digital image may also be used on college lists or notice boards that may be displayed within the college and attached to electronic student records that can be viewed by members of staff. We may commission photography on campus or at specific events, such as the welcome service, for use in our promotional material. Students may appear on the resulting images, and the resulting images may be published.
We are required to obtain information about past criminal convictions prior to offering a place on some of our programmes and as a condition of employment for certain posts. We also undertake Disclosure and Barring Service checks on those students who work with young and/or vulnerable people.
Retention of personal data
Student data are kept, deleted or archived in accordance with our record retention schedule.
Website
When someone visits www.trinitycollegebristol.ac.ukwe do not currently collect standard internet log information and details of visitor behaviour patterns. Our website does not use cookies for general users, only website administrators.
This privacy notice does not cover the links within our website linking to other websites. We encourage you to read the privacy statements on the other websites you visit.
Changes to policy and practice
We regularly review our privacy information to ensure that it remains accurate and current. We will review and update this privacy information whenever we plan to use personal data for any new purpose. Any changes to this privacy information will be communicated to you.
Further information
If you have any questions which you feel have not been covered by this Privacy Notice, please email execdirector@trinitycollegebristol.ac.uk.