Confidentiality statement
We offer free, confidential and impartial information, advice and support to children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities, and their families.
We understand personal information is often shared with us and treat this with care, respect and sensitivity.
Our aim is to create a safe and trusted space where you can discuss concerns, ask questions and access support with confidence.
What confidentiality means to us
Confidentiality means information shared with us is kept private and treated respectfully.
In practice, this means we:
→ Respect your right to privacy
→ Keep information you share with us secure and only accessible to members of our team
→ Only collect information needed to provide support and meet our legal and reporting requirements
→ Are open and transparent about how information is used
→ Seek consent before sharing information with others wherever possible
Our approach to confidentiality
→ The Children and Families Act 2014
→ The SEND Code of Practice (2015), Chapter 2, (paras 2.1–2.8), which sets out how confidential and impartial information, advice and support should be provided
→ UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018
→ Relevant safeguarding legislation and guidance
For more information about how we collect, store and use personal information, see our Privacy Notice.
Accessing our service
You can contact us directly without involving other services or organisations.
You may also choose to access our service anonymously, without providing personal details. If we need information to provide support, we will explain this to you.
Working with children and young people
Children and young people can access information, advice and support directly from us, in their own right.
When children and young people can engage with us independently, their views, wishes and feelings guide our approach to confidentiality and information sharing.
Working with families
We appreciate there may be times when parents, carers, children and young people have different views and perspectives.
Where we support more than one person in a family, we will be clear about confidentiality, information sharing and consent.
Our role is to maintain trust and remain impartial.
When we may share information
This may include situations where:
Where possible, we will explain what information is being shared and why.