Transparency data

Privacy Notice for SEND: User Research

Published 11 August 2026

We wrote this notice using plain English so both young people and adults can read it. 

We use shaded boxes like this one to highlight extra detail you might find useful. You can skip the boxes if you do not need them.

Who we are

We work for the Cabinet Office and Public Digital. These are organisations that help the government make services better for people. We are working together on a project called Test, Learn, and Grow. This project aims to improve services for young people with SEND.

[Illustration: [alt text]Two cartoon characters wave hello outside a red-brick building marked ‘OFFICE’, both smiling warmly. One wears a green jacket with a ‘Cabinet Office’ name badge; the other wears a blue shirt with a ‘Public Digital’ badge — introducing the 2 teams behind the project.]

Both organisations look after your information together. If you want to ask us something, start with the Cabinet Office - their details are at the end of this notice.

The Law 

The Cabinet Office and Public Digital are joint controllers of your personal data under the UK GDPR. A controller is the organisation that decides how and why your personal data is used. Our full contact details are at the end of this notice.

What this project is about

We know that planning for the future can sometimes feel a bit confusing or overwhelming. Local councils help families and young people who need support. Sometimes it is hard for councils to spot who needs different sorts of help — especially when someone needs support from more than one service. 

We want to find out about who needs help with planning their future, and what sort of help is the most useful. The goal is to help young people with special educational needs or disabilities to live happy lives — having a job you like might be one of the things that makes you happy.

Before we can do any of that, we want to talk to people first - including young people, carers, families and the people who work in these services - to find out:

• what you think about different ideas
• what worries you might have
• what your experience has been like using council services
• how we can explain things clearly and honestly
• how education, employment and social workers use information day to day

We will do this through interviews (one-to-one chats), surveys and workshops (group chats). What you tell us will help us make sure the project works for the people it’s meant to help.

[Illustration: [alt text] Four people of different ages sit in a circle of brightly coloured chairs in a sunny, plant-filled room, chatting animatedly around a tablet showing two more people on a video call. Empty thought bubbles float above each person — representing the interviews and workshops where children, families and workers share their views.]

Information we collect about you

We might collect:

• contact information like your name, email address or home address 
• things like your age, job, or your connection to social care
• information about your background, like your ethnicity, health or religious beliefs
• your opinions about the topics we discuss, which might include political opinions
• written notes, recordings or transcripts of our interviews or group discussions (we will always tell you beforehand if we are recording)

[Illustration: [alt text] A cheerful cartoon child in a blue-and-white striped top holds up a clipboard displaying five colourful icons: an envelope, a house, a birthday cake, a speech bubble, and a microphone — representing the kinds of information the project might collect, like contact details, age, opinions, and interview recordings.]

Why we can use your information

We can only use your information because you agreed. That is called giving consent. You (or your parent or carer) will have agreed to take part before we collect anything.

If we collect more sensitive information, like about your health or ethnicity, we will ask for your clear permission for that too. You can change your mind at any time by contacting us. Our contact details are at the end of this notice.

Taking part is your choice 

You do not have to give us any information if you do not want to, and saying no will not affect any council services or support you receive — now or in the future.

The things you tell us will never be used to make individual decisions about you or your family. This project is about learning from your real-world experiences to help schools and local councils build better transition support for everyone moving into adulthood. We are simply talking to you to listen, learn, and improve how support works.

[Illustration: [alt text] A young cartoon child in a purple striped top stands beside her father, a man with a beard in a green checked shirt, both grinning and giving enthusiastic thumbs-up. On a desk beside them sits a consent form marked with a bold green tick — showing that information is only collected once their consent has been given.]

The Law

Our legal reason for using your personal data is your consent (Article 6(1)(a) of the UK GDPR). For information the law treats as sensitive, also called ‘special category’ data, we need your explicit consent (Article 9(2)(a)). For consent to be valid, it has to be your free choice, given for a specific purpose, made when you have the full picture, and a clear yes: never silence or a pre-ticked box.

You do not have to give us your data, there is no law or contract that says you must, and there are no consequences if you decide not to (Article 13(2)(e) UK GDPR).

What counts as ‘sensitive’ (special category) personal data

Under the UK GDPR, the following kinds of information are treated as sensitive and get an extra level of protection:

• racial or ethnic origin
• political opinions
• religious or philosophical beliefs
• trade union membership
• genetic data
• biometric data used to identify you
• health data
• sex life or sexual orientation

We are not planning to collect information about every category on this list. We have listed them all because that is the legal definition, so you can see what kinds of information get this extra level of protection if they do come up.

Who sees your information

The people at the Cabinet Office and Public Digital who are running this research. We will also ask some companies to help us store information safely on computers (like email and file storage providers). These companies are called processors. They can only do what we ask them to with your information.

When we write up what we have learned, we will not include your name or anything that identifies you. If we ever want to use something you said (like a quote) and include your name with it, we will ask you first.

[Illustration: [alt text] Four cartoon workers handle information securely in a bright office. Two pass a padlocked envelope between them, one carries a locked metal safe, and another reviews anonymous grey figures and charts on a laptop — showing who sees your information, how it is stored safely, and how identifying details are removed before anything is shared.]

How long we will keep your information for

We will keep your information for no longer than 12 months. We will try to remove anything that identifies you even sooner than that if we can.

[Illustration: [alt text] A cartoon child in a green jumper crosses off days on a big calendar with a crayon, grinning as a cheerful cartoon paper shredder happily chews up documents beside them, confetti and stars bursting out. It illustrates that information is kept for no longer than 12 months, then destroyed.]

Your rights

You have the right to:

• find out what information we have about you and ask for a copy
• fix anything that is wrong (the right to rectification)
• add to any information that is incomplete
• ask us to delete your information if there is no longer a reason for us to use it (the right to erasure)
• ask us to stop using your information in certain situations - for example, if you think it is wrong (the right to restrict processing)
• change your mind - you can withdraw your consent at any time, and we will stop using your data
• get a copy of your information in a format you can take elsewhere (the right to data portability)

[Illustration: [alt text] Six cartoon panels show young people exercising their data rights: one looks through a magnifying glass at a folder of files, another erases a line on a form, a third drops papers into a recycling bin, a fourth holds up a red stop sign, a fifth looks thoughtful under a U-turn arrow, and the last carries a box of folders. Together they illustrate the rights to see, correct, delete, restrict, withdraw consent, and take your information with you.]

The Law

The rights listed above come from Articles 15 to 22 of the UK GDPR.

Where we store your information 

Your information is stored securely on our systems. Sometimes information might be stored in other countries, but it will always be kept safe and protected by law.

The Law

If we send your data outside the UK, we will protect it using one of these legal safeguards:

• An adequacy decision: when the UK officially recognises that another country protects data as well as we do
• Standard Contractual Clauses: approved legal contracts between us and whoever receives your data
• A UK International Data Transfer Agreement: a specific legal agreement for moving data abroad safely

Contact the Cabinet Office or Public Digital

The Cabinet Office and Public Digital are joint controllers of your data. The Cabinet Office is the main contact for queries and Subject Access Requests (formal requests to see what data we hold about you), but you can contact either of us to ask about your information.

Cabinet Office (main contact):

Address: 70 Whitehall, London, SW1A 2AS

Phone: 0207 276 1234

Webform: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/contact-the-cabinet-office

Email: dpo@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Public Digital:

Legal entity: Public Digital Holdings Ltd (Company Number 10993674)

Address: 262 High Holborn, London, WC1V 7EE

Email: data-protection-officer@public.digital

[Illustration: [alt text] Two cartoon staff members — one in a green jumper with a ‘Cabinet Office’ badge, one in a blue shirt with a ‘Public Digital’ badge — stand either side of a smiling child in a striped top, who points to each of them in turn. A banner above reads ‘We look after your data together,’ showing that both organisations share responsibility for protecting your information.]

If you want to complain

If you think we have not looked after your information properly, you can complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). They are an independent organisation that makes sure people’s information is treated fairly.

[Illustration: [alt text] A calm cartoon teenager in a green hoodie and backpack posts a letter into a smiling red postbox labelled ‘ICO – Information Commissioner’s Office’ on a quiet street. A speech bubble beside it shows a blue protective shield — representing the ICO as an independent body that helps keep people’s information safe.]

Contact the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)

Address: Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF

Phone: 0303 123 1113

Email: icocasework@ico.org.uk

Making a complaint to the ICO does not stop you from also going to court if you want to.