Children Index - some database fields announced
Some details about the massive Children Index centralised database of 12 million children and their parents and guardians has emerged via a Parliamentary Written Answer Commons Hansard 6 July 2006 : Column 1384W:
Note that there is no mention of the Audit Trail log files which, just as with the controversial centralised biometric National Identity Register, inevitably must exist in a system so large.
This Audit Trail will indirectly reveal and betray sensitive personal data e.g. if and when a child abuse specialist or a drug abuse advisor etc. has been examining the child's record
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Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will list the (a) personal attributes and (b) fields which the electronic Children’s Database will have the capability to hold. [83060]Beverley Hughes: The information sharing index will contain only limited and basic information about children in England and contact details for other services working with the child or young person. It will enable practitioners to identify and contact one another easily and quickly, so that they can share relevant information about children who need services or about whose welfare they are concerned.
It will not record information on personal attributes such as children’s diet, church attendance or school attainment. The Children’s Act 2004 specifically prohibits the inclusion of any case information on the index. There will be no subjective opinions or observations about a child or parent, no details of assessments such as the Common Assessment Framework and no automatic triggers for action or investigation.
However the unique child identification number willl be used as a computerised cross reference for all the existing databases just mentioned.
Since this database will contain much of the same information as the National Identity register, it too must be protected as part of the Critical National Infrastructure.
Note, however, that the budget for setting up this Children Index is "only" £224 million over 3 years, and £41 million a year to run it thereafter. This is orders of magnitude less than that budgeted for in the National Identity Register, which is only 4 times larger. See "Children Act 2004 centralised databases to cost £224 million to set up ?"
Information fields on the index will hold for each child or young person:basic identifying information: name, address, gender, date of birth, and a unique identifying number based on the existing child reference number/national insurance number;
basic identifying information about the child’s parent or carer;
What are the plans and costs associated with the National Identity Register and this scheme ?
Contact details for services involved with the child: as a minimum school and GP practice, and other services where appropriate and if consent from the child or family has left obtained in respect of a sensitive service.the facility for practitioners to indicate to others that they have information to share, have taken action, or have undertaken a Common Assessment Framework, in relation to a child; and
other information included solely for the purposes of identifying and managing the quality of data in the index, for example the date of the last update to the record.
We will consult over the autumn on draft regulations that will bring the index into operation. The draft regulations will be laid before both Houses for debate under affirmative resolution procedures. Subject to the will of Parliament, the index is expected to be available in all local areas in England by the end of 2008.
Where are the criminal offences which will prevent civil servants and IT consultants etc. from carrying large portions or the entire Children Index database on their laptop computers, unprotected by Government Approved Encryption such as Kilgetty, some of which will inevitably be lost or stolen ? Surely the recent "identity theft" scandals involvingl aptop computers and USB memory sticks in the USA have been learned from ?
Comments
I don't want to sound like a nutcase, but it is pretty obvious what the government intends to do.
National ID Information + Criminal Records + Child Records = Complete Database of someone's life and death
Eventually all three will be linked into one giant database - guaranteed.
Honestly though, the two pieces of information that concern me the MOST are: Dietary Information (Children's Database), and DNA Information (Police / Criminal Records Database).
Those two pieces of information alone could, in the future, lead to some serious profiling of people.
Posted by: Manip | July 8, 2006 5:38 PM
I just had an awful thought... What if they added all our grades to this big computer database? ...
Can you imagine not getting a job because you got a poor grade in maths on your year 5 exam? :-|
Just imagine how much pressure that would put children under!
But the sad part is, that on the basis of child safety I could come up with a justification (e.g. looking for a pattern of worsening scores might indicate a problem at home).
Posted by: Manip | July 8, 2006 5:43 PM
Link doesn't work. Is there a summary of the d/b fields? I'm particularly interested about the data they'll be trying to collect on parents.
Posted by: A Tench | July 8, 2006 5:47 PM
How are they proposing to keep the contact details up to date? For the NIR it's straightforward threats (of massive fines) but would they dare fine someone £2000 for forgetting to re-register their child and themselves on this blasted database? Per child?
Posted by: Tom | July 8, 2006 5:55 PM
They'll keep the contact details up-to-date by using school records. No one really objects to informing the school of where you and your child live - that info will be submitted to the database. It's like when you tell the bank that you've moved. They then inform the credit reference agencies - so you don't have to. That's bloody good of them isn't it?
Posted by: A Tench | July 8, 2006 6:16 PM
The Children’s Index will hold the ‘basic’ data mentioned on every child. It’s an identity-management system combined with a directory of all practitioners who are in contact with the child. The real information-gathering is done through the ‘Common Assessment Framework’.
Where a practitioner thinks that a child is failing to progress towards the government’s five targets, laid down in ‘Every Child Matters’ (and therefore needs more services) s/he is expected to carry out a common assessment. The estimate is that around 4 million children a year will need these additional services.Useful detail about what they are looking for is in Annex A of the CAF practitioner guide at http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/_files/A19154AA073AF2F7216B25A693916CF6.pdf
Once a common assessment has been carried out, the practitioner will place a marker on the Children’s Index to show that it is available. There will also be a facility to indicate that there is other information to share.
@manip: a national school census has been carried out since 2001, and this year it has moved to being a termly census. Around 40 data items for each child are taken (by Capita) directly from every state school's computer system and put on to the National Pupil Database, together with Key Stage and public exam results.The govt confirmed several years ago that there is no intention ever to delete files on the NPD. Because the census is carried out under a statutory duty, there is no requirement to obtain consent - or to let data-subjects know that it is taking place.
Posted by: Terri | July 8, 2006 6:27 PM
I repeatedly feel as if I am missing a beat when it comes to government reassurances about what will and what will not be stored on the database. OK, so information that is quite likely be entirely subjective and collated by people with minimal training (ie: the common assessment framework) is not directly stored on the database, but it will be flagged as being there and will be accessible to people from any number of different agencies.
I fail to see how the above is any sort of consolation for any family hoping to preserve their privacy and I therefore think that everyone would be wise never again to talk frankly to any professional from the statutory bodies, including their GPs.
I cannot understand how the BMA have not realised that this effectively marks the end of doctor/ patient confidentiality and with that the possibility of an effective relationship.
Posted by: Carlotta | July 8, 2006 6:42 PM
The reason for the apparent confusion is that there are in fact *two* 'core' databases. In giving the reassurances about only holding 'basic' data, the govt is referring to Database 1, the Information-Sharing Index, aka the Children's Index. They are absolutely right when they say this won't hold case records of any kind.
The closely-related Database 2 is the Integrated Children's System, which will hold the entire social care record of every child who comes into contact with the 'social care' function of the local authority children's trust. (NB there are no longer separate agencies - all services have been 'joined-up' into a single children's trust.)
What is not currently clear is where a child's Common Assessment will physically be held. Does it go straight on to the ICS? Does it remain on individual department's systems and only go on to the ICS if social workers become involved? Or will there be a third system to hold common assessments, pending social worker involvement? Will let you know when we have an answer!
Posted by: Terri | July 8, 2006 9:55 PM
I don't know why they don't just tattoo our NI number on our arm at birth ... or implant a chip - but only if they can figure out a way to use 666 as a cipher code embedded in the chip of course!!
Posted by: drk | July 10, 2006 9:17 AM