Thanks to Jennifer (36), her daughter starts secondary school with a ‘clean’ file

Why must something from the past continue to haunt us?

The point now, though, is that she is about to go to secondary school. The pupil record will therefore be transferred soon, but it still contains information about that placement in foster care. When I read that, I was really sad. It was an unpleasant period, which we would like to leave behind us. The problems of those days ceased to apply a long time ago. I have everything back on track again, and my daughter is doing very well, including at school. Why must something from the past continue to haunt us?

That is why I called the Dutch Data Protection Authority (Dutch DPA) for advice, because it really did not feel good, but also because I did not know how to deal with it. The Dutch DPA then told me that most schools have some sort of privacy contact person. And that this person must be able to give a good reason why these personal data are still in the file. And indeed, I quickly found the contact details on the website of the school. Fortunately, this person turned out to be very accessible. She took my story seriously and said she was going to look into the matter for me.

I also got a confirmation that the placement in foster care had been removed from the file.

Not very long after that, she nicely called me back and indicated that there indeed no longer was a necessity for the school to retain that sensitive information. I also got a confirmation that the placement in foster care had been removed from the file.

However, it doesn’t do any harm – especially if it concerns you children – to follow it up yourself.

Meanwhile, I have read more about the retention periods of personal data on the website of the Dutch DPA. Obviously, organisations have to monitor those themselves. But all the same there is no harm – especially if it concerns your children – in following up on it yourself. And double-checking exactly which data they have recorded and if this is still necessary. As for me, I am in any case very happy that I took these steps. I feel heard and, in particular, very relieved. It is just a nice idea that my daughter can now start secondary school with a clean slate.

* The privacy stories on this website are based on actual reports to the Dutch Data Protection Authority. Due to the privacy of those involved, the personal data and some circumstances have been changed. We use models (stock photography) for the images in these stories.