Guardian Early Learning Group Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy applies to personal information collected by Guardian Early Learning Group and sets out how we collect, store and use your personal information and how you can access and update your personal information ,or make a complaint.

Unless otherwise notified to you that your personal information will be used in a more limited way, all personal information collected by Guardian Early Learning Group is held and used in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

What is personal information?

Personal information is any information or opinion, whether true or not, that identifies you.

Why we collect, use and disclose your information

  • We collect, use and disclose information to provide education and care services. This includes:
  • processing enquiries and applications for enrolments
  • providing education and care services
  • providing you with information about Guardian Early Learning Group and the education and care we provide
  • providing you with information about Guardian Early Learning Group and employment opportunities we have
  • managing applications from individuals seeking to work at Guardian Early Learning Group.

We will only collect personal information that is reasonably necessary for us to fulfil our functions or activities. As an approved education and care provider, some personal information we are required to collect under law, under the Education and Care Services National Law and Regulations, Family Assistance legislation and Public Health legislation.

What information do we collect?

Families

The information we collect about families includes your contact details (name, address, email, and telephone numbers), drivers’ license number, date of birth, Medicare details, relationship to the child, financial information, employment details, evidence of guardianship or parental responsibility and, where relevant, information pertaining to child custody and access arrangements, and Child Care Benefit details. For corporate users we also collect salary sacrifice information.

Children

Additional information we collect about children attending our services include gender, proposed and actual attendance days and dates, information about languages spoken by the child and in the child’s home, any school enrolment details, photos and learning documents. We collect information about development, routines, preferences and interests. We also collect information about sleep and food preferences, special needs and information about how we can best communicate and care for your child.

Other individuals

We collect information about other individuals you would like us to interact with about your child, including additional emergency contacts and individuals you agree may collect your child from our services. For these individuals we will collect names, relationship to the child, address, telephone numbers and email addresses. We also collect the name and relationship to your child of any siblings or family members that live in your household, and details of people who have contact with your child that are important for us to know.

Early childhood professionals and other jobseekers

For those seeking employment with Guardian Early Learning Group, we collect your contact details (name, address, email, and telephone numbers), details of your current employment (job status, employer, job title and current salary) and details about your preferred position with Guardian Early Learning Group. For identification verification, to ensure the best education and care for the children attending our services and to comply with the Education and Care Services National Law and Regulations, we will collect copies of your identification, qualifications and Working With Children clearance. We may also collect evidence of your ability to work in Australia, including residency or visa details. We will ask where you heard about us and our advertised positions.

We will also collect information about jobseekers’ referees and will contact referees to help us determine a person’s suitability for employment or engagement with Guardian Early Learning Group. The information we collect about referees includes contact details (name, telephone numbers and email address) and information provided by referees during reference checks.
We may collect contact information from early childhood professionals at professional events, which we will use to contact you about future recruitment opportunities with Guardian Early Learning Group.

Collecting technical information

When you visit and browse one of Guardian Early Learning Group’s websites, we use Google Analytics to collect general information that enables us to continually provide a more meaningful experience. This general information is not capable of identifying you with other data held by Google. This information is collected through code embedded in the webpages of this website. For more information, visit the Google Privacy Policy – https://www.google.com.au/intl/en-GB/policies/privacy/.

Other information, such as browser type, is included in a ‘cookie’ that is sent to your computer when you are completing certain tasks online. Cookies are an industry standard and most major websites use them. A cookie is a small text file that our site may place on your computer as a tool to remember your preferences. Cookies are designed to provide a better, more customised website experience, and to make it easier for you to use websites. You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser.

We may also use technologies similar to cookies in emails you receive either directly from us or from third party email providers sending emails on our behalf. These technologies help us understand whether you have opened and interacted with the email. They help us understand what you may find of interest. If you prefer not to be tracked in this way you can disable HTML images or refuse HTML (select Text only) within your email software, and you should not click on any links within the email (with the exception of the unsubscribe link). You can opt-out from receiving these emails at any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link within the email.

Our website may contain links to other websites, such as Storypark – https://www.storypark.com. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of such other sites. When you go to other websites from here, we advise you to be aware and read their privacy policy.

Collecting sensitive information

Sensitive information is a type of personal information that is afforded extra protection under the Australian Privacy Principles. Sensitive information includes health information, information about racial or ethnic origin, philosophical beliefs and religious beliefs.

Guardian Early Learning Group seeks to collect sensitive information with your consent. However, please note that we are required to collect some sensitive information under the Education and Care Services National Law and Regulations.

We will collect health information about your child including your child’s medical and health history (including information about any incident, injury, trauma or illness sustained) information about allergies and anaphylaxis, information about prescribed medications, immunisation details, disabilities, medical management plans, the name and contact details of the child’s doctor(s) and dentist, any intervention services used, your child’s Medicare Number and Ambulance Membership number.

We will also collect information about the cultural background of your child, and if applicable, about the child’s parents. We will collect sensitive information about any special considerations for your child, for example, any cultural, religious or dietary requirements or additional needs.

How do we collect information?

In most cases we will collect personal information from you directly. We collect your information through our standard forms, including enrolment forms, via our websites (including tour booking forms, enrolment enquiry forms and event registration forms), via the ‘My Waitlist’ website, via social networking sites, through written communication with you such as email or through talking with you, including when we talk over the telephone.

Sometimes it may be unreasonable or impracticable to collect personal information from you directly and in these instances we may collect your personal information indirectly. If we do collect personal information about you indirectly, we will take steps to let you know that we have or will do this, where it is reasonable to let you know.

What if I don’t provide information?

If you are unsure why Guardian Early Learning Group is asking for information, or you do not wish to provide personal or sensitive information, you should speak with your Centre Manager or the Guardian Early Learning Group support office.

The Centre Manager or a Guardian Early Learning Group support office staff member will discuss with you the reasons why we ask for your personal information, including any sensitive information. If you do not wish to provide the information requested we will tell you if there are any consequences, including how it will affect the education and care services we are able to provide.

Guardian Early Learning Group is required by law to collect some personal and sensitive information. If you choose not to provide us with information we are required to collect under law, we may not be able to provide you with education and care services.

Use of personal information

We only collect personal information that is reasonably necessary for us to fulfil our functions and activities. We will use the personal information we collect to provide education and care services, communicate with you about your child, manage enrolments for your child, provide you with information about Guardian Early Learning Group and education and care services, to invite you to provide us with information about our services and to manage applications for employment with us.

For early childhood professionals and other jobseekers, we may use your personal information to contact you about potential employment opportunities with Guardian Early Learning Group.

Disclosure of personal information

We only collect personal information that is reasonably necessary for us to fulfil our functions and activities. We will disclose the personal information we collect for the purpose we collected it, or for a secondary purpose that is reasonably expected or related to the purpose that we collected it. Staff and volunteers at Guardian Early Learning Group sign a confidentiality statement prior to engagement with us. The Centre Manager at your service will ensure that information about you and your child is only disclosed in accordance with this privacy policy.

Guardian Early Learning Group has relationships with corporate clients to provide employees with education and care services. If you are employed by one of our corporate clients, We will disclose your personal enquiry information (including details about your employer, date of your centre tour, and employment location), the date of your child’s enrolment, and the number of days/hours of care used by you to your employer. This information is used to verify your employment with your employer, for invoicing purposes and for reporting purposes to help our corporate clients better serve their employees.

We may disclose your personal information to a State/Territory Regulatory Authority, as required by the Education and Care Services National Law and Regulations or in accordance with child protection or other laws.

With your consent, we may disclose your personal information or your child’s personal information to individuals or agencies. For example, we may seek your consent to disclose information to inclusion support workers or medical staff. In the case of an emergency, if we are unable to contact you, we may disclose information about you or your child to a registered medical practitioner or emergency service.

We may disclose your personal information to companies that assist us with our business, for example credit report bodies, legal representatives, collection agencies, information technology providers, mailing houses. Some service providers we use may be located outside of Australia or use systems that are located outside of Australia. We will take reasonable steps to enquire that the service providers comply with the Australian Privacy Principles.

Guardian Early Learning Group will display medical condition emergency plans for children in services. We will only display other information that would be within your reasonable expectations, or with your consent.

Direct marketing

If you consent, or where you would reasonably expect us to, we may send you information related to our education and care services. We will provide you with a simple means by which you may request not to receive direct marking communications and will not send you materials if you have asked us not to.

Storing personal information

Guardian Early Learning Group is committed to protecting the personal information we hold. The Centre Manager and Nominated Supervisor will ensure that all personal information is stored safely and securely at the service. We use a range of security measures to protect personal information held at both the service and at our support office.

Non-current records will be archived and stored according to requirements under the Education and Care Services National Law and Regulations and in accordance with our Records Policy.
Guardian Early Learning Group uses the Springboard eRecruitment system to manage applications for employment. If you are unsuccessful in gaining a position with Guardian Early Learning Group, we will retain your details in the event that a suitable position arises.

Access to your personal information

You can request access to the personal information we hold about you. To access your personal information, you should contact your Centre Manager or our support office.

We will provide you with access to your personal information, or information we may hold about your child, except where not permitted under the Australian Privacy Principles. These exceptions include where we believe that giving access would pose a serious threat to the life, health or safety of an individual, giving access would unreasonably impact on the privacy of another person, and where giving access would be unlawful. If we refuse to give you access because of one of the exceptions under the Australian Privacy Principles, we will let you know in writing the reasons why.

Correction of your personal information

The Centre Manager at each Guardian Early Learning Centre is responsible for keeping your personal information accurate, relevant and up-to-date. Re-enrolling families will be asked to update their details at the beginning of each new calendar year. The Centre Manager will send regular written reminders to families asking for details to be updated.

If you believe that any personal information we hold about you is inaccurate, out-of-date, incomplete, irrelevant or misleading, please let us know and we will take all reasonable steps to correct the information.

Concerns and complaints

If you have any concerns about how we are handling your personal information, or if you would like to make a complaint, please contact your Centre Manager or our support office. Our support office can be contacted at:

Privacy Officer (Julianne Smale)
Guardian Early Learning Group
PO Box 20
Bondi Junction NSW 1355
Phone: 02 8305 2323
Fax: 02 9388 0944
Email: [email protected]

We will try to resolve the issue with you directly.

If you are unhappy with our response you can complain to the Privacy Commissioner at the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.
The Privacy Commissioner can be contacted at:

GPO Box 5218
Sydney NSW 2001
Phone: 1300 363 992
Email: [email protected]
www.oaic.gov.au