Databreachon teenwasan‘error’

A document released by Perth and Kinross Council gave away medical details about a teenager who had attended the now closed, Butterstone School.

The council was redfaced, after earlier this month “human error” led to personal details of the youngster being revealed in documents made public following a freedom of information (FOI) request.

Parents with children excluded from mainstream education were left without an alternative place for them to go when the school near Dunkeld closed abruptly in November.

Butterstone Parents’ Group was looking for answers to why the school closed suddenly after the October break, and this led to a FOI query, put to PKC.

The young person’s parents considered legal action when it was discovered that two pages of documents relating to the now-defunct school had been released without the sensitive information being redacted.

On February 12 officials sent out an email, requesting that those who had received the documents, destroy them.

Perth and Kinross Council has apologised for publishing the information relating to a vulnerable person with additional support needs.

“This was due to human error and the council apologises wholeheartedly to all concerned for the mistake,” said a spokesperson for PKC. “Perth and Kinross Council deeply regrets the data breach.”

But Perth and North Perthshire SNP MP Pete Wishart called the breach “deeply worrying.”

“I hope that the local authority will do everything possible to ensure this does not happen again,” Mr Wishart said.