By Sheila Mckenzie-
The Information Commissioners office is investigating a school after cameras were spotted by shocked parents taking part in a recent coffee morning tour of classrooms at Mitchell Brook Primary School, prompting the action.
The incidence occurred at Mitchell Brook primary school, North West London, leading to a petition which has now gathered 80 signatures. The petition has been dubbed, “our children are not criminals, respect their privacy” now has more than 80 signatures and the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) confirmed it’s investigating after a complaint. The cameras were spotted by a parent who mistook the toilet for a changing room when they discovered a camera on top of the toilet cubicle looking down on sinks.
” In a letter to one family by headteacher, Theresa Landreth, she said a discussion on the use of cameras took place in June following “serious concerns regarding the number of costly repairs incurred through misuse of the taps in the bathrooms”.
Ms Landreth said: “There was never any intention not to inform the parents.” However, the head was did not say why they had not consulted parents before installing CCTV.
Letters from Ms Landreth and her governing body chair Angela Turner, sent to worried parents after the discovery, defended the use of cameras.
They explained the decision was taken by the governing body which, with a parent governor on the board, deemed it “sufficient representation of parent’s views and consultation with the wider parent body is not required here.”
There had also been “an incident reported regarding adults in the children’s toilets during school functions (with their own children) which the school considered a safeguarding concern.”
The parent, who wished to remain anonymous, added: “Implying that parents taking their own children to the toilet is a safeguarding issue is offensive to parents.
“We were never supposed to find out about this. It’s only when I cc’d Cllr Muhammed Butt in an email that she (headteacher Ms Landreth) put it in the newsletter.”
An ICO spokesperson told The Eye Of Media.Com: “We have received a complaint in relation to Mitchell Brook Primary School and we are making enquiries. We will only be able to determine whether any safeguarding issues have been breached by the school when our inquiries have concluded.”
mb.brent.sch.uk