Hi

Please see attached the response to your recent FOI request.

Kind regards,

Rebecca McLean
Customer Relations Support Officer
Customer Relations Team
Newcastle City Council
4th Floor
Civic Centre
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 8QH

Complaints tel: +44 (0191) 277 7427
Email: [email address]
 [email address]

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-----Original Message-----
From: Freedom Of Information Requests Mailbox
Sent: 09 February 2026 09:52
To: 'Jamie Halliday' <[FOI #1399709 email]>
Subject: Acknowledgement: FOI 25828 - RE: Freedom of Information request - Retention periods and disposal controls for pupil records, SEND, exclusions and EOTAS

Thank you for your request for information. We are dealing with it under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

 We have passed your request to relevant colleagues who will respond within 20 working days starting the working day after receipt of your request.

 Regards
 Freedom of Information Team

-----Original Message-----
From: Jamie Halliday <[FOI #1399709 email]>
Sent: 08 February 2026 01:15
To: Freedom Of Information Requests Mailbox <[Newcastle City Council request email]>
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Retention periods and disposal controls for pupil records, SEND, exclusions and EOTAS

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Dear Sir/Madam,

Please treat this as a request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

This request concerns records retention and disposal arrangements for education records, especially pupil files, SEND, exclusions, and education otherwise than at school (EOTAS), including home tuition and alternative provision.

1. Retention schedule entries and retention periods Please provide the recorded retention schedule entries (or equivalent documented retention rules) used by the council for the following categories, including the retention period and the trigger point (for example, DOB plus X years, closure of case, end of academic year, end of financial year):

a) maintained school pupil file / educational record
b) records held by the local authority relating to an individual pupil's education
c) exclusion records (fixed-term and permanent), including panel or decision paperwork
d) SEND records held by the local authority (assessments, notes, decisions, panel minutes, plans)
e) EOTAS / home tuition / alternative provision records, including placement decisions and commissioning referrals
f) education finance and commissioning records relating to alternative provision or tuition (purchase orders, invoices, provider contracts, budget monitoring)

2. Version in force 2010 to 2014
If your retention schedule has changed since 2010, please provide either:
a) the version that was in force between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2014 for the categories above, or
b) a change log that clearly states what changed and when, for those categories.

3. Disposal process and audit trail
Please provide the council's recorded procedure or policy for secure disposal of education records in scope of section 1, including:
a) who authorises disposal
b) what audit trail is kept (for example, destruction logs, certificates)
c) whether third-party shredding or disposal contractors are used, and how compliance is evidenced

4. Maintained schools, oversight and information rights Please provide any recorded information or guidance the council uses that explains:
a) what education records are held by the council versus held by maintained schools
b) the council's role in ensuring maintained schools comply with records retention expectations and information rights requests, including SARs and Educational Record requests

Format
Please provide the information electronically.

If any information is withheld, please cite the specific exemption(s) relied upon and explain why they apply.

Yours faithfully,

Jamie Halliday

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