Assuming parental consent

[sparkeh]

So I am in a 'debate' with a member of staff who wants to send a letter to parents saying "We are doing XYZ with the kids and will be taking photos. The photos will be shared with Organisation ABC. We are assuming parental consent unless you fill in and return the slip below stating that you do not consent"

 

I am of the mind that this really is not a good idea and consent should be obtained, not assumed and parents given an opt out.

 

Is there actually any guidance/rules on this practice?

[elsiegee40]

If these photos are being shared with a third party organisation then it is definitely best practice to get explicit consent from all concerned.

 

In many schools, parents have already signed or declined a consent for photos that can be used internally and/or the school website. In this case, the letter you specify would be fine. It's the third party organisation that worries me.

Edited March 3, 2015 by elsiegee40

[davyboi]

Any school I have worked in have had the exact opposite policy. letter sent to parents asking permission to take photos/video. If nothing is returned it is assumed that consent is NOT given. Only students that have returned a slip giving permission are included in the photo/video.

[mthomas08]

Policies I have dealt with are all in the original school agreements when Students join us.

 

If they wish for photos to be removed, controlled they need to fill in a form or inform us in writing. Otherwise the School will use the images as it wants - within reason

[halbaradkenafin]

I've seen that method used for two reasons; because parents/pupils are forgetful about letters etc and because it's considerably less paperwork/record keeping on the school's side. If it's for a third party site/publication/whatever then I'd go with Elsiegee40 that it should be done so that the parents give consent rather than assuming it but for most internal things either way works.

[Trapper]

For external use it should be active consent not assumed. If one parent takes issue with it the school can say hello to special measures at the next Ofsted.

[witch]

Policies I have dealt with are all in the original school agreements when Students join us.

 

If they wish for photos to be removed, controlled they need to fill in a form or inform us in writing. Otherwise the School will use the images as it wants - within reason

 

This is our policy too but in this case the third party makes it a bit more specific and so IMHO consent needs to be given

[sparkeh]

Thanks everyone. The letter has been rewritten to ask for consent

[PotNoodleTech]

You must have explicit consent, or it's not worth the paper it's written on!

 

Glad you go there in the end Sparks!