The Scottish Government/NHS Test and Protect, in partnership with the UK Department of Health and Social Care, is responsible for the overall delivery of COVID-19 Lateral Flow Device (LFD) testing of staff in primary, secondary and special schools and Early Learning and Childcare and secondary school pupils (S4-S6) in Scotland.

The testing of asymptomatic people can support education settings to identify positive cases, break chains of transmission and reduce risks in settings.

This privacy notice covers the processing of personal data by the Council as part of the LFD testing programme.

There is a separate privacy notice in place to cover the role of the Department of Health and Social Care, the NHS National Services Scotland and Public Health Scotland in the LFD testing programme.

Frequently asked questions

  1. Table of contents

Why do we need to collect this data?

We are processing your personal data to assist the Scottish Government and NHS Test and Protect in tackling the Coronavirus (COVID-19) public health epidemic. Participation in the LFD testing programme is voluntary.

This will involve the gathering and, when necessary, the sharing of information with NHS Scotland and other partners. Your data will not be used for any other purpose.


What data will we collect and share?

We will collect minimal personal data in order to facilitate the distribution of at-home testing kits. We will collect consent forms, with your name and signature (and, where relevant, the name and signature of a parent/guardian). We will collect information about the lot number of test kits distributed to you in a test kit log.

The results of the test are entered into an online LFD testing portal directly by you. We will not have access to the portal nor the test results. If you have a positive test result, you are asked to share this with us so that we can ensure that contact tracing is carried out. We may then need to share this information with others as part of the contact tracing process.

We may be asked to share copies of our test kit logs with the UK Department for Health and Social Care.


What is our lawful basis for collecting this data?

Under data protection law, GDPR Article 6(1), we have a number of lawful bases that allow us to collect and process personal information. In this case, the lawful basis for processing your data is public task.

Our reason for processing your data is to assist with the LFT programme and NHS Scotland's Test and Protect strategy in relation to the coronavirus public health epidemic to help protect you and others. For further information on the NHS Scotland Test and Protect strategy, please visit the NHS website.


How long will we retain the data?

Your personal data will be retained only for the purposes stated in this privacy notice.

We are required to keep test kit logs for 8 years from the date of the last entry.

We will keep copies of consent forms in employee records (for staff) or school record (for pupils) in line with our Business Classification and Retention Schedule.

If you let us know that you have tested positive for COVID-19, this will be recorded and retained on the following systems in line with our Business Classification and Retention Schedule.

  • Pupils – SEEMiS attendance
  • Employees – MyView attendance

All personal data will be held, and disposed of, in a safe and secure manner.


Do you have a complaint?

If you consider that your personal data has been misused or mishandled by us, you can raise this with the data controller. In this instance, the data controller is Falkirk Council. You can contact the data protection officer at:

Data Protection Officer
Municipal Buildings
West Bridge Street
Falkirk
FK1 5RS

If you remain dissatisfied you can make a complaint to the Information Commissioner, who is an independent regulator. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow, Cheshire
SK9 5AF

or if you prefer to use a national rate number:


This notice was last updated March 2021.