Parenta Magazine February 2018

What is GDPR?
GDPR stands for the General Data Protection
Regulation.
In very simple terms, the General Data Protection
Regulation can be likened to an up-to-date version
of the Data Protection Act.
When the first data protection laws were
introduced in 1998, Google didn't even exist. The
GDPR recognises that our world - and the way
our personal data is processed - has changed
significantly in the last two decades.
As a childcare provider, you'll handle a lot of
sensitive personal data about children, families
and staff members. This data needs to be
processed safely and kept secure, to stop it
falling into the wrong hands or being used for
a purpose other than what it was intended for.
What is the GDPR aiming to achieve?
The GDPR was created to strengthen data
protection for people within the EU. It aims to
give individuals more control over their personal
data and make it easier for them to access.
In an early years setting, it falls to a person
with parental responsibility to provide consent
for processing personal data relating to a child.
Regardless of who provides consent, the
information you store and process about
children and their families still needs to be
adequately safeguarded.
The new rules introduced by the GDPR are
"designed to make sure that people's personal
information is protected - no matter where it is
sent, processed or stored - even outside the EU,
as may often be the case on the internet."
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Parenta