Scottish Wider Access Programme

Scottish Wider

Access Programme

Statement on Data & Information Sharing

As a charity which supports adult learners in the development of their learner journey, the Scottish Wider Access Programme (SWAP) gathers and retains data relating to Programme participants. This data is used to monitor the effectiveness of the Programme, as well as to improve the student experience and to contribute to wider research relating to widening access in Scotland. SWAP tracks SWAP students throughout their studies both at college and, if applicable, at university. This data is used to compile reports which may be shared with relevant interested parties such as SWAP partner institutions, SWAP management groups, the Scottish Funding Council, and Scottish Government bodies.

Any statistical or other reports SWAP subsequently publishes will never identify you as an individual.

In addition to the personal information requested via the SWAP Online Registration Form, SWAP may gather and use data relating to you as follows:

  • SWAP requests data from colleges and universities relating to the programme, entry, progression, retention, attainment, and destination of individual current and former SWAP students;
  • This data and the data obtained via the SWAP student registration form will be used for research and monitoring purposes, including for the publication of statistical reports. The dissemination of any such reports is limited to relevant partner organisations i.e. colleges, universities, funding and government bodies, and related educational institutions. SWAP will never publish any data which could lead to the identification of individuals.
  • SWAP may enter into dialogue and share data from your SWAP registration form and / or your UCAS application form with any universities or colleges to which you apply. This will be in order to clarify issues relating to your status as a SWAP student and / or to resolve issues relating to university offers you have received or may receive.

Privacy Notice

When registering with us - by signed form (if before 2013) or on-line and ticking the Terms and Conditions box, you agreed to allow us to store your personal data and to track your progress through college and, if applicable, through your subsequent journey in higher education. We will store your personal details and, if applicable, your UCAS offer detail, your access programme results and your onward destination. During your access year, SWAP will send regular updates to your college tutors on your UCAS application. Your college will give us data pertaining to any interim profile grades, if required by the universities to whom you have applied. The college will also give us information on your results at the end of your access programme. SWAP will also give your results data to the universities with whom you have a UCAS firm and insurance condition of offer.

SWAP uses your data to evidence widening access, monitor your progress, provide you with support, monitor equal opportunities and gather feedback. SWAP uses all of your data in order to evidence the effectiveness of SWAP access programmes as a route for adult returners from widening access backgrounds into higher education. We require this data to report to our funders, the Scottish Funding Council, our partner institutions (the list of partner institutions is listed on our website http://www.scottishwideraccess.org) and to Scottish government. There is no individual's personal data included in any reports published by SWAP. We only report using anonymous data. The legal basis for storing this data is that by ticking the box, and agreeing to the terms and conditions of becoming a SWAP student, you have entered into a contract with SWAP.

Your personal data will be kept by SWAP for 8 years after completion of your access programme. After that, only information required to identify your access programme results and onward destination will be kept. This information is kept for 80 years, for archival purposes. All SWAP data is stored within the University of Edinburgh's secure IT systems.

SWAP is a registered Data Controller and is fully compliant with the Principles and the other conditions set down in the Data Protection Act 2018.

Click on link to SWAP's home page to read SWAP's Data Protection Policy and find out more about your rights under data protection law. The link to the DP policy is at the top of the Home page.

Updated 01/04/2019