Focus4TAPS Evaluation: Privacy notice

In line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), we need to let you know how your information will be processed. In this privacy notice, we explain: 

  • the legal basis for data processing;
  • who will have access to your personal data;
  • how your data will be used, stored and deleted; and 
  • who you can contact with a query or a complaint.

Who's Who?

This evaluation is being carried out by independent evaluators, the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen), commissioned by the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF). Bath Spa University (BSU) is responsible for developing the programme, recruitment for the evaluation, and the development and delivery of the training

You can find out more about NatCen at www.natcen.ac.uk. 

You can find out more about the EEF at www.educationendowmentfoundation.org. 

You can find out more about BSU at http://www.bathspa.ac.uk/schools/education/. 

What is the legal basis for processing data?

For the duration of the evaluation, NatCen is a data controller who also processes data. This means we are responsible for deciding the purpose and legal basis for processing data. In order for the use of personal data to be lawful, we need to meet one (or more) conditions in the data protection legislation, as set out in Article 6(1) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). For the purpose of this project, the relevant condition that we are meeting is ‘legitimate interest’. This means we believe that there is a genuine reason for us to process this data (to evaluate Focus4TAPS), the data are needed to fulfil this purpose (we could not evaluate Focus4TAPS without this information) and using the data will not interfere with individuals’ interests, rights or freedoms.

BSU will be a data processor during recruitment, and AlphaPlus Consultancy will be a data processor for the pupil assessments. This means that they are responsible for following the instructions set by the data controller and abiding by UK GDPR regulations.

After the evaluation ends, data from the impact evaluation will be stored in the EEF archive (as detailed above). At this point, the EEF will become the data controller. You can find the EEF data archive privacy notice here.

Who will have access to your personal data?

NatCen are carrying out this evaluation and named individuals on the NatCen research team will have access to:

  • Sample files provided by schools containing School Unique Reference Numbers (for the National Pupil Database or the NPD) and the following details for selected Year 5 pupil classes:
    •  Unique 
    •  Unique Pupil Number (UPN) – for the NPD
    •  Date of birth
    •  Gender
    •  First name
    •  Last name
    • Free School Meal (FSM) status
    • Year group
    • Class (if a multi-form-entry school) (names and email details).
  • Pupil attainment data from the NPD and pupil assessment data from our impact evaluation (as detailed below)
  • School-level average Key Stage 1 maths and reading scores from the 2021-2022 academic year
  • School and teachers’/staff members’ names and contact details provided by Bath Spa University
  • Audio recordings from pupil focus groups and teacher focus groups
  • Teacher and pupil survey responses
  • Fieldnotes from lesson observations

BSU are delivering the programme and are responsible for recruitment. They will have access to school details and details of participating teachers and lead contacts (names and email details).

McGowan Transcriptions (www.mcgowantranscriptions.co.uk) is the transcription service NatCen use to transcribe our interview and focus group data. They will have access to recordings and transcripts from all interviews and focus groups. McGowan Transcriptions is on NatCen’s approved supplier list and is compliant with all our information security policies.

Formara Print (www.formara.co.uk) is the printing company NatCen use. They will print documents containing pupil names, UPNs and dates of birth.

AlphaPlus Consultancy (https://www.alphaplus.co.uk/) will visit schools to invigilate pupil assessments (a science test and a combined questionnaire/survey). They will have access to pupil details only for the classes in which they will be invigilating pupil assessments.

Experienced NatCen researchers will visit schools to conduct focus groups and lesson observations. They will have access to pupil details only for the classes in which they will be conducting focus groups and lesson observations.   

All invigilators and researchers visiting schools will have Enhanced DBS clearance.

How will the data be used, stored and deleted?

The data collected will be used for research purposes only. 

We will a) collect pupil assessment data and b) use attainment data from the National Pupil Database (NPD) in our impact evaluation. We will compare results of children who do and do not take part in Focus4TAPS, to see whether the programme makes a difference to how well they do in maths and science. All assessment and attainment data will be pseudonymised before being analysed.

For the pupil assessments, pupils will complete: 

  • a science attainment assessment (developed by the University of York for the EEF) 
  • a questionnaire about pupils’ beliefs and attitudes to science (developed by Mutjaba et al., 2022, for a previous evaluation of Focus4TAPS)

The impact evaluation questionnaire will have additional survey questions at the end about pupils’ experiences of learning science that will be used in our process evaluation. Information and opinions gathered from these additional survey questions, pupil focus groups, teacher focus groups, lesson observations, and teacher surveys will be used in our process evaluation to understand how the programme works in practice and what children and schools think of it. Only schools selected to be Case Study schools will participate in either the teacher focus groups, or the pupil lesson observations followed by pupil focus groups. All responses will be pseudonymised before being analysed. 

All impact evaluation and process evaluation data will be treated with the strictest confidence – no schools, teachers, staff members or pupils will be identified in any report arising from the research. 

NatCen will securely delete personal information about participants no more than one year after the evaluation is finished (by December 2026 at the latest). 

Assessment results will be linked with information about the pupils from the National Pupil Database (NPD). At the end of the evaluation, the pseudonymised data will be shared with the Department for Education, and with the Office for National Statistics, the EEF and the EEF’s archive manager and potentially other research teams. For the purposes of research and archiving it will also be stored in the EEF archive (managed by FFT Education) where other research teams can access it. The archive does not contain direct identifiers like pupil names, contact details and date of birth, but does hold a Pupil Matching Reference (PMR). The PMR is used for further matching to the NPD and other administrative datasets that may be required as part of subsequent research.

Who can I contact with a query or a complaint?

You have the right to raise any concerns with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) via their website at https://ico.org.uk/concerns/. 

If you are a parent/carer, you have the right to object to your child’s information being used in this evaluation. If you do not want your child’s information to be used, please contact the Focus4TAPS Lead at your child’s school. If you have any questions about the evaluation, including how personal information will be processed, please contact the NatCen research team at focus4taps@natcen.ac.uk.