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Benchmark.Pulse

Data protection pack

Pupil survey privacy notices

Templates for schools. There are two versions: one for Years 3 to 6 (read it aloud before the survey), and one for Years 7 to 13. Replace the [placeholders]. Give the parent and carer information letter, with the chance to opt their child out, at least two weeks before the survey (the app has a ready-made letter on the survey page). Have your DPO review both, and record the lawful basis in your DPIA.

Version: draft v1.3, 12 October 2026

Version 1: Years 3 to 6 (read aloud)

About our survey

We want to know what school is like for you, so we can make it better.

  • You do not have to do it. If you do not want to, that is fine. Nobody will be cross.
  • You can skip any question you do not want to answer.
  • It is not a test. There are no right or wrong answers.
  • We will not know which answers are yours. The survey does not ask your name. Your answers are mixed together with everyone else's.
  • If you write something that makes us worried that a child is not safe, a grown-up whose job is to keep children safe will read it. They will not know who wrote it, so they cannot come and find you. If you want help, tell a grown-up you trust, like your teacher.
  • We keep the answers safe and only use them to make school better.

If you have a question about the survey, ask [teacher's name].

Version 2: Years 7 to 13

[School name] pupil survey: what happens to your answers

We are running an anonymous survey, [survey title], from [opening date] to [closing date], so we can find out what school is like for you and improve it. We use a service called Benchmark.Pulse to run it.

It is your choice. You can choose not to take part, and you can skip any question. Your parents or carers have been told about the survey and could ask for you not to take part.

What we collect. Your answers, your year group, and the day you answered (not the time). We do not collect your name, email, IP address or anything about your device. If the school sends you a link by email, your email address is deleted as soon as you use the link.

Anonymous means:

  • The school cannot tell which answers are yours.
  • Nothing is shown until at least 10 pupils have answered.
  • Results for a year group are only shown if 5 or more pupils in it answered, and any answer chosen by fewer than 5 people is hidden.
  • Names, class codes, email addresses and phone numbers are removed from comments automatically before they go into the report. The computer can miss things, so please leave out details that would show who you are or who someone else is.

If a comment worries us. Comments are checked for signs that someone may be at risk of harm. A comment like that goes only to the school's safeguarding lead, [name], who reads it as you wrote it. It is kept out of the survey report. Comments written in a language the check cannot read, such as Arabic or Urdu, also go to the safeguarding lead. Because the survey is anonymous, they will not know who wrote it, so they cannot come and find you. This survey is not the way to get help. If you need help, talk to [named staff or team], use [how to contact pastoral support], or contact Childline on 0800 1111 or at childline.org.uk.

AI. [Use one line, to match the setting the school chose. If written commentary is off: "Your comments are not sent to any AI service." If on: "A computer program called Claude, made by Anthropic, helps group comments into themes. Names are removed first, and comments flagged for safeguarding are never sent." AI commentary is off by default for pupil surveys.]

How long we keep it. Survey answers and reports are kept for [3 years], so we can see whether things get better, then deleted.

Your rights. You have rights over your information, including to see it and to ask for it to be corrected or deleted. Because your answers cannot be traced to you, we usually cannot find or change your answers after you send them.

Questions or worries about how your information is used: [name, role, email]. Our data protection officer is [name, email]. You can also contact the Information Commissioner's Office: https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/

[Date of this notice]

Notes for the school's DPO

  • Lawful basis. For state-funded schools this is usually public task (Article 6(1)(e)). Questions on mental health and wellbeing, and anything a pupil writes about health, may be special category data: consider Article 9(2)(g) with DPA 2018 Schedule 1 paragraph 6 (statutory and government purposes), and paragraph 18 (safeguarding of children and individuals at risk) for the safeguarding alert. Record your reasoning in the DPIA.
  • Children's Code. Defaults are set for high privacy: no profiling, no names, no times, small groups hidden, AI commentary off by default for pupil surveys, and kiosk mode clears answers after inactivity on shared devices.
  • Parent information and opt-out. Send the letter on the survey page at least two weeks before. Record opt-outs locally; pupils who are opted out should be given something else to do.