Personal data identifying hundreds of children’s names, addresses and schools have been “misplaced”.
The missing document is believed to reveal the personal details of all Year 7 pupils in two secondary schools.
Bolton NHS Foundation Trust has launched an internal investigation after the school nursing team lost a list of 425 pupils’ names, dates of birth and addresses.
The information commissioners’ office (ICO) has also been informed of the data breach.
It took place as the school nursing service transferred records of children moving from primary to secondary school.
What the data is used for and where it was lost
To make sure the school nursing care continues efficiently, the hospital trust receives a document listing pupils in each class, but this does not include any health information.
Medical director Francis Andrews said that Bolton NHS Foundation Trust is taking the data breach “very seriously” and apologised for the error.
He said: “Regretfully, during the transfer of records this year, a list of 425 pupil names, dates of birth, address and schools has been misplaced. The records do not include any health information.
“However, as part of our commitment to transparency and the need to protect confidentiality, we have reported the data breach to the Information Commissioner and launched an internal investigation. We have also written to the parents and guardians of the young people named on the list to explain what has happened.
“While it is of no consolation to those affected, it is good that our staff felt that they could follow our processes and report the loss so that we could take action.
"Sincere apologies"
“We offer everyone affected our sincere apologies. We know that this isn’t the standard of care people expect of us and want to reassure people that we are taking it very seriously”.
Bolton Learning Alliance chair Paul Hodgkinson said that headteachers take the issue very seriously but would not comment further until details of the data breach are revealed following the internal investigation.
An ICO spokesman said: “All organisations processing personal data should do so safely and securely. Particular care needs to be taken when processing the personal data of children, and data protection law emphasises that they need specific protection. When an organisation makes a personal data breach report to the ICO, we will assess the information provided.”
Bolton NHS Foundation Trust has written directly to everyone affected and the schools concerned have been notified.
