A TOP public school in York has launched an investigation after a memory stick containing important data was lost, apparently on public transport.

St Peter's School says the device, which was not protected by a password, contained a number of documents 'relating to the governance of the school.'

It says it is contacting a small number of individuals whose data may have been included on the memory stick but adds there is no suggestion the information has been accessed by anyone, and nor is it thought there were any bank account details on the device.

York Press:

St Peter's School in Clifton

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) told The Press it had been made aware of a 'potential breach' at St Peter's School and was making inquiries.

The school's head, Leo Winkley, has written to all parents to inform them of the 'suspected loss of some data held by the school.'

He said: "A memory stick containing a number of documents relating to the governance of the school appears to have been mislaid on public transport.

"The device was not password-protected. On the basis of initial investigation, there is no indication that details of bank accounts or similar information are on the device.

"There is no suggestion that the device, or the data that it contains, has been found or accessed by anyone."

He said the school in Clifton was contacting a small number of individuals whose data might have been included on the device and said St Peter's was taking immediate steps to review and reinforce its data protection procedures.

"We have been working with the office of the Information Commissioner and are filing a self-declaration reporting the loss to them.

"Any concerns or enquiries should be directed to the Bursar, Michael Schofield, at m.schofield@stpetersyork.org.uk, or by telephone to 01904 527392."

A school spokeswoman said in a statement: "We have communicated the loss to our parents, and have contacted personally the individuals whose data may have been included. We are taking immediate steps to review and reinforce our data protection procedures.

"We have been working with the office of the Information Commissioner and have filed a self-declaration reporting the loss to them. It would not be appropriate for us to comment further at this stage.”

The Press originally contacted the Information Commissioner's Office after being alerted about the data loss by a source.

The source told the paper they had become aware that the ICO had been informed about the loss of an electronic device on public transport by a member of school staff.

The ICO initially claimed it knew nothing about the allegation, with a spokeswoman saying: "I’ve checked with our enforcement team and we weren’t aware of this incident but will now be making inquiries."

The Press then saw an email which had been sent to the ICO's casework department nine days earlier, outlining a detailed complaint about the loss of the device, which immediately received an automatic acknowledgement confirming the ICO had received the correspondence.

On being told about this, the spokeswoman then sent an 'updated statement,' in which she said: “We have been made aware of a potential breach and are making inquiries.”

The source claimed the device contained highly sensitive information about pupils and former pupils, and said the public transport operator had been unable to find the equipment in its lost property and it remained unaccounted for to this day.