Personal Information and your Rights

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) came into force in May 2018, when they replaced the UK Data Protection Act 1998.

GDPR has placed new accountability and transparency requirements on organisations like the council that process personal information and requires that the council can demonstrate its compliance with these laws. 

Under Article 30 of the GDPR, we are required to keep records of its processing activities set out the information we process and why we are allowed to process it. We keep this information in our Information Asset Register, which you can download at the bottom of the page.

GDPR also provides individuals with more rights concerning their personal data.

What is Personal Information?

Under the GDPR personal data is defined in two ways:

Firstly Personal Data is any information relating to an individual who could be directly or indirectly identified, including:

  • Name
  • Address
  • Email Address
  • Location Data

Secondly Special Categories of Personal Data (Sensitive Personal Data), including:

  • Racial or Ethnic Origin
  • Religious or Philosophical Beliefs
  • Trade Union Membership
  • Sexual Life and Orientation
  • Mental and Physical Health Information
  • Genetic and Biometric Data

 

Requesting Your Personal Information

Article 15 of the GDPR allows you, as an individual, to access the personal data we hold about you, free of charge. You can ask to see what data we hold about you and request us to send you a copy. We will provide you with confirmation whether we are using your personal data (or someone else is doing so on our behalf), a complete description of the data we hold, why it is being processed and whether it has been disclosed to any third parties.

We have one month from receipt of a completed request to provide you with a full response.

Please note in order to make a valid request you must provide us with the following information:

  • You must provide us with proof of your identification, such as a copy of your passport or driving licence. This is to ensure you are who you say you are and you are entitled to the information you are requesting
  • Please specify in as much detail as possible the type of information you require

If we do not hold any information about you, or the data falls into a category which is exempt from disclosure, you will be notified in writing as soon as possible.

You can make a request to find out what information the Council holds about you either in writing or verbally.

 

Requesting Another Persons Personal Information

In certain circumstances it may be possible for you to request the personal information of another person such as a child or relative.

If you are seeking information on behalf of someone else then you must provide us with proof of your authority to do so. This can include:

  • A jointly signed request form;
  • A signed letter from the person whose information is being requested giving authority
  • Evidence of parental responsibility
  • A letter signed by a doctor or other legal professional confirming that the data subject is incapacitated and therefore cannot make the request themselves

This should be accompanied by proof of ID for both yourself and the person the information is about.

 

Further Rights Under GDPR

The GDPR provides you with greater control over how we, as a data controller, handle your personal information.

In addition to requesting access to your information, you can also request the following:

  • Ask us to correct or complete personal data we hold about you if you believe it to be incorrect or inaccurate
  • Ask us to delete your personal data, where appropriate to do so
  • Ask us to stop using your data, or restrict how we use it
  • Object to how we process your personal data

The GDPR also gives you the right to request your personal data in a structured, commonly used electronic format where the data is being processed by automated means. Blaby District Council does not process any data by automated means so, therefore, we are unable to comply with this right.

You can request any of the above by emailing us or writing to the Data Protection Officer.

Please be aware that these are not absolute rights and are subject to conditions and exemptions. If we are unable to grant your request you will be notified in writing.

Further information about your rights can be found in our Data Protection Act - Information for the public document at the bottom of this page.

 

How Long Do We Keep Your Personal Data

Information about our retention schedule and how long we keep your data for is available on our information asset register. This can be found on the Data Protection Privacy Notice Page.

 

Making a Complaint

If you are unhappy with the way you have handled your personal data please contact the data protection officer or write to the Data Protection Officer.

If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from us regarding your personal information you have the option of contacting the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) to take the complaint further. You can do this by emailing casework@ico.org.uk or visiting their website. The ICO is the UK's independent authority which regulates Data Protection and Information laws.

Data Protection Officer

If you have any questions or concerns you may contact our Data Protection Officer:

Name: Louisa Horton

Telephone: Phone number found on the contact webpage

Email: gdpr@blaby.gov.uk

Address: Information Governance, Blaby District Council, Council Offices, Desford Road, Narborough, LE19 2EP

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Last updated 1 October 2024
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