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Important Inquiry News Updates

Posted: Mon Jul 04, 2005 2:43 pm
by HoHumBug
I have, reluctantly, been persuaded by Daffy to create a new string. I was reluctant to do so after all the somewhat trivial quasi-personal ones which have cluttered up the site in the last couple of weeks. However, this one is TOPICAL, RELEVANT and IMPORTANT so please do not post peripheral material to it. There a plenty of other strings for that. The message is:

Do not assume it is too late to make Inquiry submissions.
Mr Townend appears very fair and very keen to hear from all who have a relevant contribution and also appears pragmatic about timescale. HOWEVER you DO have to make the effort to articulate and write down your relevant experiences and observations.

This is time consuming and can be emotionally very difficult but the more you can work through that to the core and essence of your experience the more powerful will be the testimony and the more difficult it will be to ignore it especially if you do not make it anonymous. I suggest you do NOT post it any part of the testimony here as I believe this may devalue it.

Address to send to initially is:

CBetts@VWL.CO.UK

But don't delay.
If you get a brush off I suggest you post the fact under this string and we will find some other way to get the message across. And alert the St James main string too. The matter is in your hands not theirs.
Carpe diem.

Posted: Tue Jul 05, 2005 4:59 pm
by RobMac
This is what I have submitted to the Chairman this afternoon is response to an email which suggest that the inqury has been closed for further submissions.

I would like to register a formal objection to the inquiry being closed, I have already complained that I only discovered of the existence of the inquiry by chance from a Bulletin Board on the internet and have not so far received a letter.

As both my parents are current and active members of the SES and my mother was Bursar of the Schools until late last year when she retired, a job she held for over 10 years, it is utterly incomprehensible that the school was unable to contact me.

On this basis I submit that the Schools have not made adequate efforts to contact former pupils and that the closure of submissions to the enquiry is both premature and inappropriate.

Posted: Wed Jul 06, 2005 1:57 pm
by Stanton
Any former pupils of St James who are not already on the old boys and girls database can be put on the list by emailing martinbloomfield@yahoo.co.uk. Martin is responsible for the database.
By the way, under data protection legislation it is illegal for others (including parents) to give your contact details to a third party. The individual has to be responsible for ensuring that he or she is on a list of their choosing.

Posted: Wed Jul 06, 2005 6:27 pm
by daska
But the DPA does not forbid you passing on address, telephone or other information given with the request to pass it on. So the school could have sent a message to the parent (or even "The Occupier") giving contact details.

Though at that point it becomes the parent's decision as to whether or not they want to pass the information on - and they might choose not to for many reasons.

Posted: Fri Jul 08, 2005 8:34 am
by RobMac
I don't wish to be put on the old boys and girls database.

If I were on the old boys and girls database wouldn't it be a breach of the DPA for that information to be given to the school anyway ?

If the school were encountering difficulties in contacting former pupils then the school should have let that be known.

To proceed with the inquiry without disclosing that they had been unable to contact all those pupils who may have a grievance is dishonest in my view.

Looks like a reach-around to me

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2005 5:43 pm
by Shout
_____________________________________________________________

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2005 8:19 am
by RobMac
If I understand the Data Protection Act correctly, the fact that they are part of the same overall organisation does not allow them to share the information simply because they are part of that same organisation.

Based on what I am seeing here there does appear to have been a breach of this legislation.

I am curious to know whether any ex St James or St Vedast pupils who didn't join SES have had any communication from them.

This could be very useful in demonstrating that SES, the schools, and the Old Boys and Girls organisations are sharing information in breach of the Act

Posted: Wed Jul 20, 2005 1:30 am
by daska
They don't share information. All they do is address and post prefilled envelopes provided. Same deal as any time you give your address out, unless you or they specify otherwise, your address can be used by them for mailing you unrelated information. (Do I believe they don't? yeah right and oh look pink oinky things are floating overhead.) Also, a lot of this information will have been shared before the DPA legislation came into force.

I had a crap time at school and I didn't get a letter, my sister came through looking ostensibly as if she'd had an OK time and she did get a letter. She's moved since last giving her address. I haven't. You work it out.