The State's Secret Identity Scheme for Children - UK Warning

The State’s Secret Identity Scheme for Children - UK Warning

Originally reported by John Clare, Education Correspondent for The Daily Telegraph - a wake-up call for parents everywhere.

How They Did It in the Shadows

The British government pulled off one of the most audacious expansions of state surveillance in recent history - and they did it without a single parliamentary debate. Here’s how they transformed an anonymous education census into a comprehensive child-tracking system:

The Setup (1996-2001):

  • Annual school census introduced in 1996
  • Completely anonymous - no individual identification possible
  • Used for basic statistical collection by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES)
  • Parents and schools had no reason for concern

The Switch (2002):

  • Each child assigned a unique identity number
  • All information now traceable to individual students by name and address
  • No parliamentary debate
  • Announced quietly in a parliamentary answer on February 5, 2001, by Estelle Morris
  • Implementation began January 2002

Here’s where it gets sinister:

Mandatory Compliance:

  • Answering the expanded census questions is now required by law
  • Refusal to provide information is illegal
  • Parents have no legal right to opt out
  • Schools must comply or face legal consequences

Data Sharing Powers:

  • DfES claims the right to pass information to “third parties”
  • Under normal Data Protection Act rules, parental consent would be required
  • Government exempted itself from these protections
  • Your child’s data can be shared without your knowledge or permission

The Connexions Connection

The plot thickens with the “Connexions” scheme - a parallel database with frightening reach:

Information Sources Include:

  • Police records
  • Probation services
  • Health authorities
  • Social services
  • Benefits agencies
  • School census data (potentially linked)

The Real Agenda: This isn’t about education statistics - it’s about creating a comprehensive government file on every child from birth through adulthood.

Why This Should Terrify Every Parent

Today’s “Anonymous” Census Becomes Tomorrow’s Control System:

  • What starts as educational data collection ends as comprehensive citizen tracking
  • Children grow up assuming government surveillance is normal
  • Parents lose control over their children’s privacy
  • The state positions itself as the ultimate authority over children

The International Warning: What happened in the UK is a blueprint being rolled out worldwide. Technology now allows governments to:

  • Track every child’s movement through the system
  • Build comprehensive behavioral profiles
  • Identify “problem” families early
  • Intervene in family decisions using accumulated data

The Homeschool Connection

This is exactly why so many families choose home education:

Government Schools = Government Control:

  • Your child becomes a data point in a state database
  • Privacy rights are surrendered at enrollment
  • The state assumes increasing authority over your child
  • Parents become secondary to bureaucratic interests

Home Education = Family Privacy:

  • No mandatory government databases
  • Parents maintain control over their children’s information
  • Family autonomy is preserved
  • Children learn that privacy is a right, not a privilege

Fighting Back

ARCH (Action on Rights for Children in Education) is leading the resistance in the UK. Their work includes:

  • Exposing government overreach in education
  • Providing legal analysis and resources
  • Connecting concerned parents and advocates
  • Documenting the erosion of family rights

The Editor’s Warning

“These measures, and the stealth with which they have been introduced, should be alarming to British families and should be a concern for all citizens of free nations as technology increasingly allows governments to network and database their citizenry.”

Questions Every Parent Should Ask

  1. What data is your child’s school collecting?
  2. Who has access to that information?
  3. How long is it stored?
  4. What consent did you actually give?
  5. Can you opt out? (Spoiler: often you can’t)
  6. What will this data be used for in 10 years?

The Choice Is Clear

You can send your children into the government system where they become tracked, monitored, and filed from day one. Or you can choose home education, where your children remain yours, their privacy is protected, and their education serves your family’s values - not the state’s agenda.

The UK’s stealth surveillance scheme isn’t an accident - it’s a preview. The same pattern is being replicated across the Western world. The question isn’t whether this will come to your country - it’s whether you’ll be ready when it does.

Originally contributed by Robert Higginson - a warning that every freedom-loving parent needs to heed.

Resources:

  • ARCH (Action on Rights for Children in Education)
  • Data Protection Act information
  • Parliamentary records on education surveillance

For More Information: Contact ARCH or research your own country’s education data collection policies. Knowledge is your first line of defense against government overreach.