HEALTHCARE trust bosses have apologised after parents of Christchurch schoolchildren were sent the wrong BMI results in a data mix-up.

Youngsters at Christchurch Infant School were weighed and their body mass index calculated by medical experts from the Dorset HealthCare Trust.

Parents were then due to be sent letters with details of their child's BMI calculation.

However, although the letters were properly addressed, the information inside was wrong, with many parents receiving results of other children in the school.

The information was sent out by the Dorset HealthCare University Foundation Trust, the largest provider of healthcare in the county.

Jane Ashenden, head of the infant school in Addiscombe Road, said: "We have received a letter of apology from Dorset HealthCare Trust.

"There was clearly some sort of glitch, but they have certainly addressed it very quickly."

However, one parent who contacted the Daily Echo said: "More than 100 children had BMI testing at the school.

"The addresses were given so results could be sent to parents but obviously at some point there was a data breach.

"The letter sent to us has the correct address on it, but we've got the results of a child from a different class to our son.

"It looks like they've managed to jumble up names and addresses.

"It is quite serious because we're talking about a child's personal medical information.

"That's for the child's parents to know but no one else, so it is quite a big problem."

BMI is a calculation that uses height and weight to estimate a person's body fat.

Doctors use it to determine how appropriate a child's weight is for a certain height and age.

A spokesperson for Dorset HealthCare said: “Due to an administrative error, a number of letters about the results of the national child measurement programme at Christchurch Infant School were sent to the wrong addresses. As soon as we became aware of the mistake, we wrote to the parents/carers involved to apologise and ask them to return the letters sent in error.

“This error involved 114 children, out of more than 11,600 Reception and Year Six pupils around Dorset who have recently been measured and their parents or carers advised of the results. To date, 86 of the 114 letters have been returned to the school – 76 of which were unopened.

“The children’s records have not been affected by this. We take the confidentiality and the accuracy of such records very seriously, and sincerely apologise for this error. We are investigating what went wrong to ensure such a mistake can be avoided in the future.”