Survey of Childcare and Early Years Providers: Privacy notice

In compliance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), there are certain things that we need to let you, a research participant, know about 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 whom you can contact with any queries or complaints. 

The information from the SCEYP annual surveys is used by DfE and other researchers to understand and analyse change in the childcare and early years sector. Results from the surveys will be aggregated and then published as Official Statistics, which will be used by the Government and its agencies to inform decisions about childcare provision. You can view last year’s publications at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/childcare-and-early-years-providers-survey-2025.

What is the legal basis for processing my data? 

This project is funded by the Department for Education (DfE) and delivered by the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen). DfE is the data controller, and NatCen is the data processor for this project. As the data controller, the DfE is responsible for deciding the purpose and legal basis for processing data. For this project, the legal basis for processing data is “public task”.

The relevant conditions for the processing of the data by NatCen are:

  • Article 6(1)(e) of the GDPR, which provides a lawful basis where “processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller”. DfE need NatCen to process the data so that they can fulfil their functions as a government department. 
  • Article 9(2)(g) of the GDPR, which permits the processing of special categories of personal data for reasons of substantial public interest.

Who will have access to my personal data?

We will treat the information you give us in the strictest confidence under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The data collected are used for research purposes only. Your name and contact details will be stored securely, and only the named members of the research team at NatCen, and other researchers appointed by DfE to carry out the SCEYP in the future, will be able to access it. 

NatCen works with UK-based subcontractors that will have access to SCEYP data to help deliver the study. This includes printers from our approved suppliers list, who will print survey materials such as the survey invitation letters. 

NatCen also works with subcontractors based outside of the UK to deliver the SCEYP study. This includes Spotler (Ireland), who will be used for sending text and email messages.

How will my personal data be stored? 

Information collected during the study will be stored securely, with settings’ unique reference numbers (URNs), names and contact details removed and held separately. URNs, names and contact details of participants in the 2026 survey will be kept for the duration of the research project for the purpose of administering the 2027 and 2028 surveys. Settings’ URNs could be linked across survey years to support analysis of time trends. 

At the end of the SCEYP contract between NatCen and DfE, URNs and unique survey identifiers of SCEYP participants will be securely transferred to DfE’s next appointed survey partner for the purposes of matching results across survey years and analysing time trends. Following this transfer, all personal data will be securely destroyed from NatCen’s systems.

Anonymised data will be archived with the UK Data Service (https://www.ukdataservice.ac.uk/).

If you would like to know more about how DfE will use your data, you can access DfE’s Personal Information Charter.

Withdrawing from the survey

You may withdraw from taking part in the study at any time, in which case you won’t receive any further contact in that survey year. Where possible, we will also remove from our records any identifying information which has not yet been anonymised. 

If you wish to withdraw from the study, please contact NatCen by telephone on 0800 652 4572 or via SCEYP@natcen.ac.uk.

Your data protection rights

Under GDPR, you have the right:

  • to ask DfE for access to information about you that they hold
  • to have your personal data rectified, if it is inaccurate or incomplete
  • to request the deletion or removal of personal data where there is no compelling reason for its continued processing
  • to restrict processing of your personal data (i.e. permitting its storage but no further processing) by DfE
  • to object to direct marketing (including profiling) and processing for the purposes of scientific/historical research and statistics
  • not to be subject to decisions based purely on automated processing where it produces a legal or similarly significant effect on you

Whom can I contact with a query or complaint?

If you would like to know more about the survey, please contact the NatCen research team via SCEYP@natcen.ac.uk or the Department for Education (quoting the Survey of Childcare and Early Years Providers) via EY.analysisandresearch@education.gov.uk. 

You can also call the NatCen freephone number on 0800 652 4572. 

If you have any questions about data protection, please contact the Department for Education’s Data Protection Officer:

Sue Wharam
Department for Education
4th floor, 2 St. Paul’s Place, 125 Norfolk Street, Sheffield, S1 2FJ
dataprotection.office@education.gov.uk     

You can also use this contact form to get in touch with the DfE.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office at ico.org.uk/. 

Last updated

We may need to update this privacy notice periodically, so we recommend that you revisit this information from time to time. This version was last updated on 8 April 2026.