Governor email accounts

Last reviewed on 8 March 2022
School types: All · School phases: All
Ref: 32544

As a governor, the personal data you send over email must be kept secure. Use a secure school email address to help you to meet the GDPR requirement to prevent a data breach and respond to subject access requests quickly.

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Contents

  1. Use a school email address
  2. Top tips on keeping data secure
  3. Handling requests for data

This article is based on advice given to us by Paul Osborne, ex-chief technology officer at The Key, and our associate education expert Karen Mitchell, who is an IT consultant.

We also used guidance given by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), including their 'Bring your own device' (BYOD) PDF. You can find this in the 'Further reading - ICO guidance' green box in the section on technical measures here.

Use a school email address

The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) does not specifically require governors to use a school email account when communicating on governing board matters.

However, the UK GDPR does mean you should do everything in your power to prevent a breach of personal data. This means the use of secure school email accounts by all governors is strongly advised.

Personal data is kept encrypted and secure, as you will have more

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