What do you think?

[sillymummyornot]

Am I being sillymummy or not?

Have found out that local primary school (and probably many more) are including child's name, dob and home address on competition entries to a poetry competition run by national company. No advance permission to do so is asked of parents. Company then write direct to 'winners' parents and offer to let them have a reduced price magazine subscription to one of their publications and chance to pre-order the book poem will be printed in. This made me . Would it have annoyed you?

[MunchedTooManyMarsLady]

I'd be totally annoyed. DS1 was given an award that the school hadn't put him up for and the amount of bumpf that came through my door. It was all down to the local ed authority. We were not happy and didn't attend the ceremony. What on earth is the data protection act for? If you were to phone school to ask for another parent's phone number you'd be given short shrift.

[nnosam]

YES. surely they have to ask your permission if the child is under 16. if it was me i would take it up with the headteacher..

[PuffTheMagicDragon]

Damn stupid of the school. Complain loudly.

[marthamoo]

I would be livid. It's sheer exploitation. It's like those poetry 'competitions' where nothing is rejected and all submissions are included in a book which you have to buy to see your poem in print: they've been featured on various consumer programmes in the past, including Watchdog.

This is worse -that scam preys on gullible adults, this is targeted directly at vulnerable children. No wonder you're angry - I would be furious. I would have a word with other parents and a few of you go in and tackle the Head.

[Legacy]

Yes, would make me mad. School does not have authority to give out home addresses - why not school address?

My bet is that the school is being paid by the company to 'enter' the children's poetry as a means of obtaining a cheap list of parents who will undoubtedly be asked to fork out a vast amount to see the poem in print.

Write to the school and say you do not want your address given out in this way. You may want to checkl and refer to Data Protection law - surely the school has a responsibility to protect your confidentiality and data?

[sillymummyornot]

Thanks for making me feel better .

I am livid. Received the 'bumf' in post this morning. Sent email to school midday. Was 'invited' to speak to head at hometime.

Seems I am only person to have ever raised the issue with them and they have participated in the 'competition' before.

Schools all over the UK have been entering these 'competitions' for a few years now (wonder how many ask permission of parents first]. This one has a closing date of 30th March yet seems 'winners' are already being notified.

They 'didn't think anything of being asked to include dob/home address, yet agreed, when asked, that normally it would only be the schools details and child's name given in all other types of competition. They took advice from 'the department' before speaking to me and said they will make sure it doesn't happen again, albeit seemed not to quite understand why I was annoyed.

I asked if the school gained anything but it seems not (other than one copy of the book), by the way to buy one on the special offer would be over £15 including postage.

Eldest confirmed my suspicions about motive behind competition by saying all the class 'won' and a good number from other classes did too.

Have sent email to education department on return home. Await their comments.

Changed name to sillymummyornot as was starting to wonder if I was (silly) and why so many other parents don't seem bothered. OK I don't have to subscribe to magazine or buy the book but hey, it is certainly a wonderful marketing technique by the company to get a great mailing list..and many will feel obliged to buy as they are proud of their son/daughter.

Felt so let down by school but at least they will do something about it (but have probably marked my card as 'awkward mum').

[Twiglett]

I would have thought there would be a lot of concern over data protection and that a school would simply not have the right to pass on personal details to a commercial company, nor should the company be allowed to hold such a database

I would also take it further and don't think that you're being silly at all

[Marina]

I am sure this is a Data Protection issue and you are most definitely not being stupid about this.

[mummytosteven]

No, not terrible at all. can see why you are not comfortable at release of this info, and it does seem like a dodgy scam, doesn't it?

[Twiglett]

who is the company running the scheme (or sponsoring it) what are they trying to sell you?

name and shame them

[sillymummyornot]

I said to head that we were used MPS and TPS as I hate getting 'bumf' mail/calls.

I was more concerned though about them actually giving the data in first place. Looked at the application form on company site and child's details plus dob/home address are asked for before schools details (eldest said pupils didn't fill in address part so school must have)and seem to be 'compulsory' - excuse seems to be that they need to write to parent if child 'wins' to get permission to print the poem. They seem to bring out various books of poetry all over the country but in localised runs (ie usually county or district)- they talk ov over twenty thousand pupils taking part!

[sillymummyornot]

Don't like saying directly but easily found if you google - bearing in mind young children as the writers. Maybe they believe their method is harmless or that the schools ask permission first (or maybe they would want us to believe that.

Overall their aim to get more children reading and interested in poetry is probably good. Lots of good stuff on the site. But the way they do it is perhaps not the best.

[tamum]

I would be heartily pissed off in your place, and I'm sure Marina's right about data protection. I sometimes get these ludicrous things at work saying they want to put me in some kind of Science Who's Who and I will get a discount volume at only $450. Yeah, right, I feel so sorry for all those members of the general public who will have to spend $650 on theirs It sounds like the same kind of scam, and I would feel really let down by the school.

[sillymummyornot]

Thought I would be less annoyed this evening, but not really.

[tatt]

It would annoy me becuase it seems like a scam and I hate people attempting to blackmail me into buying their product. There was also no need to give home addresses, they could use the school's. If it had been a geniuine competition with only a few winners but, say, every child had their poem on a website I wouldn't be angry.

I found this one on google www.youngwriters.co.uk/playground_poets/playground_poets.htm

so you'd better tell me if its wrong.

[yourtaximlady]

My daughter has just come home with a certificate to say her poem has been chosen to be published (along with the rest of her class).I thought £12.99 plus £2.35 for postage was a bit excessive for a paperback A5 book. The head at least has used the schools address for every child, so the company don't have my home address. Has any one ordered a book from youngwriters(forward press)as I'd be really interested to hear if it was worth the money!