Click Start with The Open University – Data Privacy Statement

The Open University (OU) is a partner in the Institute of Coding (IoC) consortium.

For the purposes of relevant data protection legislation, the OU, the University of Bath and Nominet are independent data controllers for the personal information processed for administering this programme, and associated research. The University of Bath are the lead organisation in the IoC consortium, funded by Nominet to deliver the Click Start programme.

The OU will collect and use your personal data provided in the Click Start with The Open University application form and in subsequent progress surveys to administer the programme and your progress – please see the student privacy notice for more details about how we process student personal data generally, and your rights.

The information below covers the data that we share with the University of the Bath (and subsequently Nominet). Please note that the data shared will be anonymised. It will not be possible to identify any individual from the information shared.

We will share the following with the University of Bath (all anonymised):

• application data
• details of progress and engagement during the programme
• attitudes to work and learning and their change over time
• successful course completions and withdrawals
• the job roles applied for / offered during the programme or after it has ended
• any further education courses applied for / embarked on during the programme or after it has ended

Per the stated eligibility criteria, we will require your participation in surveys as part of the evaluation of the programme and will share this data in anonymised form as well.

Our purposes for sharing this data with the University of Bath are to

• make sure that all data has been collected correctly and in full
• review course completions and career outcomes
• supply Nominet with the data required to fulfil the IoC contract to deliver the Click Start programme
• allow the IoC to review information across all its delivery partners to see where there are similarities and differences across the country and for different providers.

The lawful basis is for this is that it is part of our public task, and the legal gateway is Section 87 of the Education and Skills Act 2008.

Nominet will use the data to help them understand how well the courses are working and if they are achieving their outcomes.

The University of Bath and Nominet have appointed external evaluators, CFE Research, to evaluate the Click Start programme. Your contact information will only be shared with CFE Research if you provide your consent within the application form or subsequently whilst on programme. Your contact details will never be shared in conjunction with any data you provide in the application form or through participation in the Open University course or post-programme surveys.

If you consent, CFE Research will follow up with you directly to invite you to take part in qualitative interviews or a survey to understand your experience of participating in the Click Start programme.

Aggregated, anonymised and summarised data may be shared between IoC consortium partners to support the development of best practice and identification of improvements which could be made to Click Start delivery.

If you decide you do not want your personal data used on an ongoing basis for research, you can notify us and request to be withdrawn from training. No further data will be collected or linked beyond that point. This request must be made to us in writing as the training provider.

We will keep your application data for a maximum of 3 years, after which point it will be securely destroyed.

Please find the University of Bath’s Privacy statement for the Click Start programme below.

University of Bath - Institute of Coding Privacy statement for the Click Start Programme

Who we are

This privacy notice explains how we receive and use personal information for the Click Start programme, an initiative funded by Nominet. The University of Bath is the lead partner for the Institute of Coding (IoC) and will be responsible for receiving and processing data about applicants, participants and employers connected with the projects which make up the Click Start programme for evaluation purposes.

Click Start is an initiative designed to support people into technology and digital roles through education. It seeks to focus on diversity of talent and equality of opportunity to support learners from disadvantaged backgrounds to take up digital skills. Through the provision of inclusive technical training (courses) alongside tailored personal and professional skills support, this programme will combine best practice in digital skills provision with wraparound support.

The primary beneficiaries of the Click Start Programme will be 26,500 learners who engage with our programme, 25,000 of whom will receive broad outreach support. A further 1,500 learners will receive personalised 1:1 support.

The IoC is a group of industry, government, higher education and outreach partners who have come together to create more than 150 new courses that have engaged 900,000 diverse learners to date. Our partners have created a variety of courses (many of which are online) so you can keep learning wherever you are in your life or career.

Personal information and Click Start  

For the purposes of relevant data protection legislation, the partner collecting data for each project funded through the Click Start programme is a data controller.

We, University of Bath, will process data on applicants, participants and employers, but these data will be anonymised before they reach the IoC so we will be unable to identify individuals.

Please see each learning provider’s Privacy Notice for detailed information on:

• why they are collecting your personal information
• which information will be collected
• the legal basis for this data collection
• how your information will be used
• how long the information will be stored
• who will be able to see your personal information
• how you can request to access, rectify or erase your information from their records

Personal information and University of Bath, the Institute of Coding

The University of Bath, the lead partner in the Institute of Coding (IoC), will receive, analyse and store the data outlined in this Privacy Notice in connection with the Click Start programme. We will share this data with our externally appointed evaluators for the purpose of analysis.

Data collected by each learning provider will be anonymised and shared with the IoC to:

• build up a picture of those interested in and/or registered to participate in the programme
• review the status of learners towards completion of their training at various stages
• review pre- and post- course survey data to assess how successful the programme has been
• analyse the outcomes and impact for learners and employers as a result of engagement with the programme

Your personal, individualised data will not be available to the IoC or any other partner within the IoC consortium. Aggregated, anonymised and summarised data may be shared with IoC consortium partners and Nominet (the funder) to support the development of best practice. 

Why we collect information

We are collecting information on ‘Click Start’ applicants, participants and employers for the purposes of helping us understand how well the courses are working and whether they are achieving their anticipated outcomes.

Consent for marketing or evaluation purposes

If you have given your consent to either be added to IoC mailing lists or to be given further information about the IoC’s Ambassador programme, your contact details will be passed to the IoC and used for this purpose until you ask us not to send you further information.

If you have consented to be contacted by either the IoC or our externally appointed evaluators for the Click Start programme for the purposes of evaluation, your contact details will be passed to the IoC and shared with the external evaluators. We will keep your contact data for a maximum of 5 years, after which time they will be securely destroyed.  

If you wish to withdraw consent at any time, please contact both your training provider and ioc@bath.ac.uk. 

For further information please contact the University of Bath Data Protection Officer:

Sam Sherry
Data Protection Officer