to think this is breaching confidentiality and what should I do?

[SecretMinceRinser]

I visited the office of ds's school today to do a crb check so I can help out at the school. I was sat down at the desk of someone else who worked there but wasn't in that day. Laying in full view on the desk was a piece of paper that said 'Safeguarding Alert'. I glanced down at it and saw the title and though I'd better not look at it but as completing the crb application was dragging on I became more and more uneasy that it was left there for visitors to the office to see so I decided to read what was on the paper in more detail.
It had the full personal details of a mum of a child at the school, her child and the childs father - full names, dob even a physical description of each of them. It also detailed the fathers criminal convictions. It went on to say where the family had moved from and how they hadn't been co-operating with ss and that there was a history of domestic violence along with a ton of other personal stuff about the family/finances etc.
I don't know the family in question and won't repeat what I've read but that's not the point is it? There were drawers in the desk that the paper could easily have been put into out of sight.
I want to mention it to someone to ensure that personal stuff like that is stored more carefully in future but not sure who to speak to/what to say.
It did occur to me after the event that I could have mentioned it to the man in the office who was dong my application but he is a bit of an arse to be honest and not the sort of person that would take kindly to being told how to do his job. Anyway I didn't say anything at the time so too late to do that now. WWYD?

Totally agree with aunt petunia.

I wouldn't want you within a mile of my kids, school, and I think you know deep down that youve proved yourself unreliable - though you won't admit you did wrong in reading the document and posting on here about it.

The school may well have not acted as rigorously as it could have done- it's difficult to tell, after all you were in a school office where there WILL be confidential documents. Just as confidential info may well be displayed in the staffroom or contained in children's books in the classroom , or given verbally to you by children when they read to you.

If I was the teacher and you were 'helping' out in my classroom I would be seriously concerned that you would be the sort of parent to 'accidently' read forms or stuff on my desk. Or you'd 'accidentally' happen to see children's attainment grades if I left my mark book open for a few minutes.

I think you need to seriously ask yourself whether you are genuinely wanting to help pupils and the school. Or are you one of those dreadful mothers who would rather nose around the classroom and then criticise the school in the playground? I am convinced many primary schools have their share of both. If you don't genuinely want to help, go and try to get yourself a job instead- oh and remember to keep your nose out of any documents if you get invited for interview.

You go in. Sit down. See the heading on the paper. Say to person who showed you in "Ooops, I don't think this should be here" Person goes pink and embarassed, takes paper, says "Thank you, yes, you're right, it shouldn't be there" and takes it to put away.

The school should most definitltely not have left it there. Mistakes happen- i once left the draft notes of a bit of Prime Minister's Question Time in a coffee shop. But the op should not have read more than the heading. Or, at least, not past the first name.

Nobody applying to work at any place of work should be privy to such sensitive information.

What if the OP had been applying to work at a GP surgery? Should private medical records be left in view of job applicants? Of course not.

I do agree that the OP should not have read the entire document though (and should not have posted so much detail here). It just goes to show that many people can't be trusted not to read and repeat sensitive information.

Of course there shouldn't be anything confidential on display. Somebody made a mistake. Which the op should have pointed out as soon as she saw it. If the was an open cash box accidentally left on the table would it have been all right for to help herself?

Which all goes to show that the op has already proved herself untrustworthy. Whatever the mistakes the school may have made, the op acted appallingly by reading pretty much an entire side of paper rather than alerting the man the other side of the screen.

She is exactly the sort of busybody who would be looking for something in the classroom to complain about. If she happens to see something on the teachers desk, or overheads a staff room conversation, she'll be popping up with it in AIBU - or even worse in the school playground. Schools are busy places and teachers have enough to cope with without this sort of 'help'. I hope they steer clear

TBH the best thing for the school will be for you to mention it,then they can cancel your crb and not let you loose in the school,as you are clearly not able to judge what to do with confidential information.

Glad to see the last few posters also recognise the OP is at fault too in all this.

OP- you weren't just anyone going into the office- you were going in as someone who would be working within the school on a voluntary basis, you from time to time may come across extremely personal and sensitive information. Just because you are a voluntary worker in school for two three however many hours a week doesnt mean you are not in a position of trust with such info

And even if she hadn't read it, not mentioning it at the time strikes me as seriously bizarre!

No, it isn't adequate for them to have it on the desk, but you READ it which also says something about you.

It says that you are the type of person when faced with something you should not read or is confidential, instead of alerting someone to the fact that it is there and it shouldn't be, will instead read it and then come and put the details onto a website.

That makes YOU someone I would not want anywhere near my stuff, or my children as it means YOU are nosy and YOU are a gossip.

You could have alerted them - you didn't.
You could have said something at the sime - you didn't.
You didn't have to read it - you did.

Nosy. Gossip.

Dougal it's not the same as applying for job,those people are what the kids call randomers, the op is a parent she will be known to staff and will have been assessed even If she's unaware of it as being someone who could help in school, believe me schools do not take every parent who volunteers! There are some MNers I wouldn't let within 50miles of my office or inside the school in any shape or form. The op has proved herself untrustworthy.

As this information is in a school, I would imagine (although I don't know...) that it would come under the Government's Security policy. I only know about this because I work on a Government account (but have no direct link myself to any Government information) and we have to do a training course every year (boring...) on protecting Government documents etc.

This includes a clear-desk policy and locking sensitive documents away. And this is what should have been done in this case. A pupil could have entered the office at any time, or a visitor and had a snoop.

So absolutely it needs reporting. I would mention it to the Head...

you should not have fucking read it! you nosy mare!!!!!! love the way you read it, then come on all flouncy

maybe they trusted you not to snoop???

You read far more than was necessary to find out if it was something that should brave been left there or not.

It was left in private office. Yes, it should have been put away before you sat down but you should have mentioned it, not read all the personal information.

YANBU because it is breaching confidentiality. I remember when I did my NVQ in Children's Care, Learning and Development how much it was drummed in to leave children's profiles lying about. They had to be in a locked cupboard. It would not have been acceptable to get the file out to read/add notes/whatever in the staffroom and then wander off for a cup of tea leaving it for any professional to see. However, YABVU for reading it! I don't believe you read it for any other reason except to be nosy. The words Safeguarding Alert and pretty self explanatory. You clearly read in detail and I'm not sure why you felt the need to say on here all you'd read. It just seems gossipy to me.

The school should not be leaving it out. At our school there are frequently children in the school office, handing in registers for teachers etc., the older ones would easily be able to read this and I doubt a 10 year old would know they shouldn't be, or know not to repeat it as they probably wouldn't be aware what it meant, just 'hey whoever, I saw your name on a letter in the school office today!'

I think the OP is getting a hard time, it's human nature to read stuff right in front of you. I have a sign on my bathroom wall, I read the damn thing every time I'm in there even though I know exactly what it says, drives me mad.

I help out at our school too, I've had to sign a confidentiality clause because you do learn about things in school that are not for public knowledge. Be a little more professional.

Mybe the head thought you could be trusted to behave responsibly

I don't think you should judge everyone by what you might do wimba. The op clearly chose to read a LOT of the document, she chose NOT to alert the guy sat the other side of the screen, and she chose to post in mumsnet about it

Speaks volumes about her.

I wouldn't want you working at my son's school.

If you want the job I would keep it to myself and keep your stick beak out of things that have nothing to do with you.

And as for not knowing what safe guarding is - Oh please, you knew exactly what it was!

what valium and others have said, you shouldnt have read it!

its not rocket science, you should have just looked the other way, and have pointed out that maybe it shoudl be moved.

my dp brings paperwork home from work sometimes, he works in ss and as such the paperwork is confidential i dont read it even if its left on the table, i just put it somewhere out the way, like back in his work bag etc and tell him that is what i have done with it. its non of my business, i know its private and so i dont read it! quite simple really.

just because somebody leaves something on a desk doesnt mean you need to read it your a nosey cow and i Guess if you are going to be volunteering at the school you will be lurking and waiting for the next enstallment of gossip . I think you breached confidentiallity shocking bnosey behaviour , I go to my co ordinators office sometimes she has papers and stuff on her desk with information of clients , But it isnt a public libary ,

I am really laughing at the OP who is complaining about confidential subject matter being left around, while she just HAD to have a good read through to make sure it was dodgy!!

Imagine someone had walked in and caught you pouring over it checking it, you nosey mare!!

Ok, the op shouldn't have read it, but she did, as could anyone else wondering into the office, including other pupils, so the point is it shouldn't have been left out. I feel the way the op has been talked to will now stop her from approaching the school and so sensitive material will keep being left out enabling such a situation to happen again.

pictish what got me as it wasnt even a glance not that thats right either , It was the full document im wondering if she had her feet up getting invovled in her novel again nosey cow