Legal notice

McGill Photography Child Safety & Privacy Policy

Purpose

McGill Photography is committed to providing a safe, respectful and secure photography experience for children, families, educators and childcare centres. This policy outlines how consent is obtained, how images are captured and stored, and the steps taken to protect the privacy and safety of all children photographed.

1. Consent Requirements

McGill Photography will not photograph any child attending a childcare centre, preschool or daycare service without prior consent.

Consent may be provided in one of the following ways:

  • A family places a pre-order for photographs via the online store.

  • A family completes the free consent option via the online store, allowing photographs to be taken and viewed prior to purchase.

Children without consent will not be intentionally photographed.

If a non-consenting child is accidentally captured in the background of an image, the image will either:

  • be immediately deleted, or

  • be edited to remove or obscure the child where appropriate.

Childcare centres are requested to assist by identifying any children who do not have consent to be photographed.

2. Working With Children Compliance

McGill Photography and any assisting staff attending childcare centres hold valid Working With Children Checks (WWCC).

WWCC details may be provided to centres upon request.

All assistants working onsite are expected to:

  • behave professionally and respectfully,

  • follow childcare centre procedures,

  • maintain child-safe conduct at all times, and

  • comply with all privacy and confidentiality requirements.

3. Child Safety Commitment

McGill Photography is committed to creating a child-safe environment during all photography sessions.

This includes:

  • treating all children with kindness, patience and respect,

  • ensuring children are never forced or pressured to participate,

  • maintaining age-appropriate communication and interactions,

  • photographing children in open, supervised environments, and

  • respecting the instructions and guidance of educators and centre staff.

If a child becomes distressed or unwilling to participate, photography will cease.

4. Image Storage & Security

All images are stored using secure, password-protected systems and platforms.

McGill Photography uses:

  • password-protected devices,

  • encrypted storage systems where possible,

  • secure online gallery delivery platforms, and

  • restricted access to client galleries.

Client galleries are delivered via Pic-Time, a secure online gallery platform.

Security features include:

  • password-protected galleries,

  • private client access,

  • watermark protection on preview images, and

  • secure download functionality.

Gallery passwords are set and managed by the client.

McGill Photography does not have access to clients’ personal passwords or login information.

Images are never intentionally shared publicly without additional permission.

5. Privacy & Confidentiality

McGill Photography respects the privacy of all children, families and educators.

Images and personal information collected for photography purposes will:

  • only be used for fulfilling photography orders,

  • only be accessible to authorised parties,

  • not be sold or shared with third parties,

  • not be publicly displayed without separate permission.

Any personal information collected is handled in accordance with applicable Australian privacy obligations.

6. Use of Images for Marketing or Social Media

Images of children will not be used for:

  • advertising,

  • social media,

  • websites,

  • promotional material,

  • portfolio use,

without separate and explicit permission from a parent or guardian.

Standard photography consent does not automatically include permission for marketing use.

7. Gallery Access & Expiry

All client galleries are private and accessible only by the purchasing or consenting family.

Gallery access periods may vary:

  • Pre-purchased galleries may remain available without expiry.

  • Galleries not purchased in advance may expire after a specified period.

Any expiry periods or promotional deadlines will be clearly communicated to families.

8. Staff & Family Images

Occasionally, photographs may be taken of educators or staff members with their related children.

These images may be delivered separately to staff members and may not be included within standard family client galleries unless appropriate consent arrangements are confirmed.

This process is designed to maintain privacy and ensure all image sharing remains compliant and respectful.

9. Data Retention & Deletion

McGill Photography retains images for a reasonable period for:

  • gallery access,

  • re-download requests,

  • print ordering,

  • customer support.

Images may be archived or deleted after this period.

McGill Photography reserves the right to remove gallery access or permanently delete images after reasonable notice periods.

10. Contact

For any questions regarding child safety, consent, privacy or image handling, please contact:

McGill Photography
Lauren McGill
Email: lauren@mcgillphotography.com.au
Website: www.mcgillphotography.com.au

Policy Review

This policy may be updated periodically to reflect changes in legislation, technology, business practices or childcare compliance requirements.

Last Updated: May 2026