Data Protection Act 1998
Personal Information - Your Right To Know
This page explains your rights, as a user of Council services,
to see your personal information and to be provided with details
about the uses to which it is put.
Why does the Council hold personal information?
Harlow District Council keeps personal information about you
in order that it can provide you with the services you require;
collect Council Tax or rent, assess the correct level of benefit
for your needs and provide you with up to date information about
Council services.
With whom is this information shared?
Information you provide may also be shared with other agencies
involved in the provision of services to you and between
departments of the authority, where you have agreed to this and
where we are legally required to do so. The information will only
be the minimum necessary to enable us to provide services to
you.
Your personal information may also be disclosed to Government
departments, where we are required to do so by law.
Information may also be provided to Government departments or
others for statistical research, but this will not include you name
and address, unless you have given us permission to provide that
information.
How is information kept and who is responsible?
The information is held confidentially either on computer or
in secure manual filing systems.
The department providing the service to you is responsible for
maintaining your records and keeping them secure. For example, the
Registration Officer is responsible for the Electoral
Register.
The authority’s employees have a duty of care when providing
services to you, which includes respecting your right to
confidentiality and ensuring that information is only used and
given to others for the purpose of the service being
provided.
Do I have the right to see all my personal information?
You have the right to ask if we hold personal information
about you, and, if so, what it is used for and to be provided with
a copy. You also have the right to know whether we disclose your
personal information to other persons or organisations and to ask
for incorrect data to be corrected.
You are entitled to see you personal information, with some
specific exceptions. For example, you will not be allowed to see
personal information that contains details about someone else -
even a member of your own family - until that person has given
permission.
In cases where any personal information relates to your
health, we may need to ask the relevant health professional for
permission to disclose this information to you.
Certain information is exempt from the requirements of this
legislation and will not be supplied. The main exemption would be
when information is held for:
- Prevention and detection of crime
- Apprehension and detection of offenders
- Collection of any tax or duty or imposition of a similar
nature, which would prejudice those purposes in a particular
case.
However, we will ensure that you are given a full explanation
at the time of why this information is exempt.
How can I apply for access to my personal information?
You will need to fill in a
Data Subject Access
Form and provide us with enough information to confirm your
identity. If you have difficulty with the form the Council’s
Contact Harlow advisors will help you complete it. You may wish for
assistance or support from outside the Council; the Citizen’s
Advice Bureau may be able to help you.
A fee of £10.00 is payable for each application. This should
be sent with, or tendered at the same time as, the completed
application form. Cheques and Postal Orders should be made payable
to “Harlow District Council”. Credit cards will be accepted for
payment.
The information given will be in the form of a printout from
the computer system or a photocopy of your manual file, except
where the supply of such a copy is not possible or would involve
disproportionate effort. In these instances a mutually convenient
time will be arranged for you to view the information.
The Council will respond within 40 days of receiving your
correctly completed application.
What should I do when I receive the information?
You should check it to ensure that you have received all the
information you are entitled to and to make sure it is
correct.
If you think there is information on the file, which is wrong,
you may inform us in writing and ask us to correct it. We will then
consider your request and if justified make the corrections or let
you know, in writing, why we will not be making the changes
requested.
Further information:
These notes are for guidance only. The law is set out in the
Data Protection Act 1998, a copy of which is obtainable from The
Office of Public Sector Information (
www.opsi.gov.uk). Further
information and advice may also be obtained from:
The Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliff House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire SK9 5AF