Privacy Policy

Smart Tots Early Education is committed to safeguarding your privacy. The Privacy Act 1998 (Cth) (“Privacy Act”), Australian Privacy Principles and any relevant registered privacy codes govern the way we must manage your personal information. This policy demonstrates how Smart Tots Early Education collects, uses and discloses the personal information we collect during your interaction with Smart Tots Early Education.

Collection of Personal Information

Purpose

Smart Tots Early Education collects and holds personal information about you or your child (that is, information relating to an individual or which can be used to identify an individual) that is reasonably necessary for or related to our activities and the services we provide. The purposes for which your personal information is collected will usually be obvious at the time it is collected. Smart Tots Early Education collects personal information of parents and guardians, children, employees and stakeholders for the primary purposes of providing early childhood education and care services and advocating for the well-being, protection and development of children. Smart Tots Early Education will only use your personal information for the purpose it was collected or a reasonably expected or related secondary purpose.

Kinds of Information Collected

Kinds of personal information Smart Tots Early Education collects and holds may include your: name, gender, address, phone numbers, facsimile number, email address, date of birth, bank account details, credit card number, tax file number, Centrelink Customer Reference Number, date of birth (for CRN holder), custody arrangements and/or other information relevant to providing you with services.

Additional specific information Smart Tots Early Education collects and holds about children may include their: name, former name, gender, address, Centrelink Customer Reference Number, immunisation status, date and place of birth, birth certificate, Medicare number, custody arrangements or parenting orders, dietary requirements, languages spoken, doctor’s details, medical conditions, additional needs, photographs and videos of children, samples of children’s work and general information about your child and your family that assists us in providing individualised early learning and care for children.

Method of Collection

Personal information will be collected from you directly through the use of our standard forms, over the Internet via our website, via email or written communication with you, or through a telephone conversation with you. Photos and videos of children and children’s work samples are collected at Smart Tots Early Education centres. Name, address and phone numbers of children’s additional emergency contact people are collected from children’s parents or guardians.

There may be on occasion instances where personal information about you will be collected indirectly because it is unreasonable or impractical to collect the personal information from you directly. We will usually notify you about these instances in advance, or where that is not possible, as soon as reasonably practicable after the information has been collected.

Failure to Provide Information

If you do not wish for your personal information to be collected you should discuss this with the Smart Tots Early Education Nominated Supervisor. Smarttots Childcare employees will act strictly in accordance with this policy and will be happy to discuss the reasons for seeking to collect your personal information. They will also discuss with you any consequences of not providing your personal information, or providing incomplete or inaccurate personal information, which may include an effect on what services Smart Tots Early Education can provide to you.

Use of Personal Information

Smart Tots Early Education takes seriously its obligations when dealing with your personal information. Smart Tots Early Education will collect, hold, and use that personal information for purposes associated with providing early childhood education and care services; advocating for the well-being, protection and development of children; documenting children’s learning; managing children’s current or prospective enrolment; providing you with information about our organisation, services and activities via letters, email, SMS and other centre or organisation communication channels; and requesting information from you about our organisation and services via surveys.

Direct Marketing

If Smart Tots Early Education has collected your information directly from you and we believe you reasonably expect us to, we will use or disclose your personal information to communicate directly with you to promote our services. Smart Tots Early Education will provide you with a way to easily opt out of receiving direct marketing messages, and will stop sending direct marketing communications if you ask us to.

Job Candidates

If you apply for a job with Smart Tots Early Education we will collect and hold personal information about you relevant to your application for employment, including your name and contact details, curriculum vitae or resume, employment history, academic records, working with children and police checks, and comments made to Smart Tots Early Education or its agents about you by your referees. We will use reasonable endeavours to keep such information confidential and if you do not commence employment with Smart Tots Early Education, we will destroy such records when no longer required concerning your application. We reserve the right, however, to retain for our records any file notes or observations we make in interviews with you or your referees with respect to your qualifications and suitability for a role.

Sensitive Information

In some circumstances, Smart Tots Early Education may seek to collect personal information that is sensitive. This may include information such as your child’s racial or ethnic origin or any cultural or religious requirements. We are also required by the Education And Care National Regulations to collect and hold details of your child’s medical conditions, immunisation history and additional needs. We collect this information as it is reasonably necessary for ensuring the well-being, protection and development of children in our care.

For example, staff may wish to develop an educational programme that includes reference to a child’s country of origin.

Smart Tots Early Education will only collect your sensitive information with your consent and will ensure that it is stored securely. If you do not wish for your sensitive information to be collected by Smart Tots Early Education, you should discuss this with a Smart Tots Early Education employee.
Smart Tots Early Education employees will act strictly in accordance with this policy and will be happy to discuss the reasons for seeking to collect your sensitive information. They will also discuss with you any consequences of not providing your sensitive information, which may include an effect on the services, Smart Tots Early Education Centre can provide to you.

Disclosure

Smart Tots Early Education will only disclose your personal information for the purpose it was collected or a reasonably expected or related secondary purpose.

We may disclose personal information about you or your child to:

third-party service providers, who assist us in operating our business (including credit reporting bodies, collection agencies, legal advisors and technology service providers). We will take reasonable steps to ensure these service providers do not breach the Australian Privacy Principles.
a purchaser of the assets and operations of our business or a part of it, provided those assets and operations are purchased as a going concern child protection agencies or family support agencies when we reasonably believe that a child is at risk of significant harm, as required by Smart Tots Early Education’s Child Protection Procedure.
Smart Tots Early Education will not otherwise disclose personal information to a third party for any other purpose without your consent unless it is authorised or required by law.

Access and Correction

You may request access to your personal information. Ordinarily Smarttots Childcare will require you to make a request for access in writing directed to the Smart Tots Early Education Privacy Officer. Smarttots Childcare employees other than the Privacy Officer are not generally able to provide you with access.

If at any time you believe that Smart Tots Early Education’s record of your personal information is incorrect, please let Smart Tots Early Education know. We will take reasonable steps to correct the information so that it is accurate, complete and up to date.

In some circumstances, which are prescribed by the Privacy Act, such as where to do so might put a person at risk of harm or have an unreasonable impact on the privacy of others, Smart Tots Early Education may decline access to personal information. If your request for access is denied, Smart Tots Early Education will tell you why.

Internet

If you access our website, we may collect additional personal information about you in the form of your IP address or domain name. Our website may contain links to other websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of linked websites and any linked websites are not subject to our privacy policies and procedures.

Amendments to this Privacy Statement

Smart Tots Early Education may change this Privacy Statement at any time without prior notice. When we do so, we will notify you of the changes by posting an updated version of the policy on our website.

Privacy Act 1998 (Cth)

This notice is provided for your information and is not intended to limit or exclude your rights under the Privacy Act 1998 (Cth). If you have any queries or concerns about our privacy policy or the way we handle your personal information, please contact our Privacy Officer at Telephone: 1800 827 234

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