Privacy Statement
‘To Future Me’ is a product of Kids First Australia (trading name of Childrens Protection Society Inc. (ABN 52 303 567 862)) (Kids First). Kids First respects your privacy and is bound by the provisions of the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (the Privacy Act) and other appliable laws that protect your privacy. Kids First will handle personal information in accordance with applicable laws and this Privacy Statement.
This Privacy Statement describes how Kids First handles your personal information in connection with its To Future Me program and e-learning platform. Kids First may modify or update this Privacy Statement from time to time. Kids First encourages you to periodically check this To Future Me webpage to ensure that you stay up-to-date with any changes to this Privacy Statement as it relates to the To Future Me program. Kids First’s own separate privacy policy (relating to its other programs and services) is available at: www.kidsfirstaustralia.org.au/privacy-policy/
In this Privacy Statement, ‘Personal information’ means information or an opinion about an identified individual or an individual who is reasonably identifiable, whether the information or opinion is true or not, or recorded in a material form or not.
What personal information does Kids First collect about you and why?
Kids First will only collect personal information if it is relevant and reasonably necessary for Kids First to carry out its work, including making the To Future Me program and e-learning platform available to schools, students and members of the public. The personal information which Kids First may collect about individuals includes, but is not limited to, the following types of information:
• personal details, including name, contact details, including school name and address,
course, progress, email address and telephone number; and
• other information from which relevant individuals are identifiable or reasonably identifiable.
Kids First may also collect aggregated information which tells us about visitors to the To Future Me site but not the identity of those visitors. For example, we may collect information about the date, time and duration of visits and which pages of the To Future Me site and portal are most commonly accessed. This information is used by Kids First to help monitor and improve the To Future Me site.
How does Kids First collect your personal information?
Kids First collects your personal information in a number of ways, including:
• directly from you when you contact us (including to register your interest in our activities and programs), or otherwise at the time you register for participation in the To Future Me program or to access to the e-learning platform; and
• indirectly, including when a teacher or representative provides a unique signup link for a student or young person to create an account on the To Future Me e-learning platform or when a teacher or representative inputs a student or young person’s name and email address into the signup link for students to create an account on their behalf on the To Future Me e-learning platform in order to register them for participation in the To Future Me program.
Kids First may also collect personal information about a person who makes an enquiry or complaint about the To Future Me program, so that Kids First can assist the individual with their enquiry or to consider the complaint. Kids First collects information directly from an individual making an enquiry about the To Future Me program through a form on the To Future Me website. Personal information collected via the enquiry form includes the individual’s first name, last name, email address, telephone number, post code and organisation name (as applicable).
You will be able to look at the front end pages of the To Future Me site without providing us your personal information (either directly or indirectly, as described above) but you will need to register your personal details to enrol in the To Future Me program and access the programs modules.
Why and how does Kids First use and disclose personal information?
Kids First generally uses personal information for the following purposes: to provide you with access to the To Future Me program and e-learning platform, communicate with you about our activities and upcoming events, or to respond to your query or complaint from time to time, whether directly to you or via your participating school.
Kids First may also disclose personal information to government departments or organisations who fund Kids First programs for the purpose of audit or review and to monitor Kids First’ compliance with standards set by those departments. That information is usually aggregated and de-identified.
When Kids First collects personal information, it may sometimes also use that information to collect and collate data for research, continuous improvement, or social advocacy purposes. That information is usually aggregated and de-identified.
Kids First may also disclose information to a government agency when required to do so by law (for example, to abide by laws governing the mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse).
Direct Marketing
From time to time, Kids First may contact To Future Me users and other individuals whose information has been provided to Kids First via the To Future Me program and e-learning platform, regarding To Future Me’s activities and to provide users, education providers, and referrers with To Future Me newsletters, reports, invitations and requests for support and participation. You can ask Kids First not to send you this information by contacting Kids First’s Privacy Officer using the contact details set out below.
Storage and security of information
Kids First takes reasonable steps to keep To Future Me user personal information secure. Your personal information is stored in servers located in Sydney, Australia, utilising the Google Cloud Platform, and this server is backed up daily. Kids First does not disclose your personal information to recipients located outside of Australia.
Kids First trains employees and contractors to protect your privacy and we monitor when they access your information. All Kids First employees and contractors who have direct contact with children are required to undergo both a police check as well as a Working With Children check before they work with Kids First.
In order to continue to provide programs and services, Kids First may engage third-party contractors or consultants to undergo tasks and activities that involve accessing clients’ or program users’ personal information (for instance, data analysis consultants who assist Kids First to monitor and improve programs and services). Kids First will take steps to ensure that any such third-parties comply with the Privacy Act. Kids First would only allow a consultant/contractor to access your personal information if they sign a declaration form that clearly outlines their responsibilities when accessing your information.
Accessing and correcting personal information
How can I access personal information that Kids First has about me?
You have the right to request access to personal information that Kids First holds about you. Sometimes it may not be possible for Kids First to provide you with all of your personal information, or an exemption under the Privacy Act or Health Records Act may apply. For example, Kids First may not provide access to personal information if disclosing that information would create a threat to the health and safety of someone else. Where Kids First does not provide access to personal information held about you, Kids First will usually tell you why.
When you request access to personal information, Kids First may need to verify your identity before we can provide you with that information. In most circumstances, you may be required to provide a certified copy of proof of identity.
Kids First will not charge you to submit a request to access your personal information but it may charge a reasonable fee to provide you with that information (for example photocopy fees for large quantities of documents). You can request access to your personal information by contacting Kids First’s Privacy Officer using the contact details set out above.
How can I correct personal information Kids First has about me?
You have the right to request access to personal information that Kids First holds about you.
Sometimes it may not be possible for Kids First to provide you with all of your personal information, or an exemption under the Privacy Act or Health Records Act may apply. For example, Kids First may not provide access to personal information if disclosing that information would create a threat to the health and safety of someone else. Where Kids First does not provide access to personal information held about you, Kids First will usually tell you why.
When you request access to personal information, Kids First may need to verify your identity before we can provide you with that information. In most circumstances, you may be required to provide a certified copy of proof of identity.
Kids First will not charge you to submit a request to access your personal information but it may charge a reasonable fee to provide you with that information (for example photocopy fees for large quantities of documents).
You can request access to your personal information by contacting Kids First’s Privacy Officer using the contact details set out above.
How can I correct personal information Kids First has about me?
You have the right to request that Kids First corrects any inaccurate personal information that Kids First holds about you.
If you think that any personal information that Kids First holds about you is inaccurate, you can contact Kids First’s Privacy Officer. Kids First will take reasonable steps to ensure that the information is corrected within a reasonable period of time. If Kids First decides not to correct your personal information, we will tell you in writing (unless unreasonable or impracticable to do so), and let you know about the mechanisms available to complain about the refusal.
When you request to correct personal information. Kids First may need to verify your identity before we can correct that information.
Making a complaint
If you wish to make a complaint about the way Kids First has handled your personal information (including if you believe that your privacy has been interfered with under the Privacy Act), you can make a complaint in writing to Kids First’s Privacy Officer using the contact details set out below.
Phone: 9450 0900
Email: [email protected]
Mail: Kids First Australia, 273 Settlement Road, Thomastown VIC 3074
If you are making a complaint, please include your current contact details including your email address, name, address and telephone number, and clearly describe the complaint. Kids First will investigate your complaint and respond within a reasonable period of time.
If you are not satisfied with your response, you can refer the matter to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (commonly known as the Privacy Commissioner) who may investigate the matter and make their own determination. You can contact the Privacy Commissioner via: [email protected]
Need more information?
If you have any questions about this Privacy Statement or would like more information about how Kids First handles your personal information, you can contact Kids First’s Privacy Officer. You can also contact Kids First’s Privacy Officer to:
• Request a hard copy if this statement
• Request access to the information Kids First hold about you
• Make a complaint about how Kids First has handled your information
More information about how to seek access to or correction of your information, and how to make a complaint is included below.
Contact Kids First Privacy Officer at:
Phone: 9450 0900
Email: [email protected]
Mail: Kids First Australia, 273 Settlement Road, Thomastown VIC 3074
Last updated: May 19, 2023