Councillor privacy notice

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Council Work

Any personal data Councillors process for work as part of Council Committees is covered by the London Borough of Barnet’s privacy notice. Councillors are required to handle all personal data in accordance with the Council’s Records and Information Management Policy Framework, which describes the ways to appropriately handle, share and secure personal information.

Political Work

Any personal data Councillors process for party political or campaigning purposes is covered by their party's privacy notice.

Ward Representative Work

As an elected Councillor, they are the data controller and accountable for the processing of personal information their role as ward representative for residents. Councillors must comply with data protection legislation, including the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

This privacy notice provides information about how Councillors process personal information as an elected member of the council for the purpose of responding to requests from constituents, including complaints, about matters concerning the council’s business or responsibilities. This notice provides information about the privacy rights of individuals.

This notice also acts as a Record of Processing Activity (ROPA), where Councillors are required by data protection law to keep a record of the personal data they process.

Personal data

Councillors process personal information about:

  • constituents
  • elected representatives and others in public office
  • council employees
  • complainants and enquirers
  • relatives, guardians and associates of the person whose personal information they are processing
  • landlords and social landlords
  • business or other contacts
  • the subject of complaints

Why your personal data is processed

Councillors process personal data to:

  • answer requests or complaints from residents and undertake casework
  • represent the interests of the community and take part in local community organisations
  • organising and taking part in community initiatives and events
  • crime prevention
  • dealing with Community Committee business
  • acting as a consultee on matters affecting my ward
  • inform residents about projects and matters that may affect them

Types of personal data processed

Councillors process the personal data needed to respond to your request or to carry out the work listed above. Depending on the case, this will involve the following personal data:

  • name
  • address
  • contact telephone number
  • email address
  • Date of birth
  • your national insurance number
  • reference number(s)
  • signature
  • information about the issue you are raising, which may include medical or social care information
  • details of family members
  • family, lifestyle and social circumstances
  • financial details
  • education and employment details
  • housing information
  • details of complaints

They also process special category data and/or personal data about criminal convictions or offences.

Councillors only process the personal data that is necessary to respond to your request.  

This data includes:

  • racial or ethnic origin
  • sexuality and sexual life
  • religious or philosophical beliefs
  • trade union membership
  • political opinions
  • genetic and biometric data
  • physical or mental health
  • criminal convictions and offences

Legal reasons for processing your personal data

Under data protection law, Councillors can only process your personal data if it is lawful to do so. The legislation lists lawful basis conditions they can use, and those that cover their work are below.

For processing personal data, they rely on the following lawful bases:

  • UK GDPR Article 6(1)(a) – where you have provided consent for me to process your information for a specific purpose.
  • UK GDPR Article 6(1)(e) – where processing is necessary for me to perform a task which is in the public interest, or for my official functions as an elected representative, where that task has a clear basis in law (public task).
  • UK GDPR Article 6(1)(f) – where processing is necessary to meet my legitimate interests which are not part of my public function.

When Councillors process special category data, they rely on the following additional lawful bases:

  • UK GDPR Article 9(2)(a) – where you have provided me with explicit consent to process your information for a specific purpose
  • UK GDPR Article 9(2)(g) – where processing is necessary for reasons of substantial public interest, specifically:
    • for statutory and government purposes (Schedule 1, Part 2, section 6, DPA 2018)
    • for the safeguarding of children and of individuals at risk (Schedule 1, Part 2, section 18, DPA 2018)
  • where processing is necessary for purposes relating to political activities, including casework (Schedule 1, Part 2, section 22, DPA 2018)
  • where processing is necessary for an elected representative to respond to a request (Schedule 1, Part 2, section 23, DPA 2018).

Councillors may also process criminal offence data if it is necessary for them to assist you with your query. This may include:

  • information about any criminal record or criminal history.
  • allegations of criminal behaviour, including unproven allegations.
  • absences of convictions, for example the results of DBS checks, or Police National Computer checks.
  • personal data of victims and/or witnesses.
  • personal data about criminal penalties that may have been awarded.

Councillors process criminal offence data under the following condition(s) of Schedule 1 of the DPA 2018:
 

  • where processing is necessary to carry out specific statutory and government purposes (Schedule 1, Part 2, section 6, DPA 2018)
  • where processing is necessary for the safeguarding of children and individuals at risk (Schedule 1, Part 1, section 18, DPA 2018)
  • where processing is necessary for purposes relating to political activities, including casework (Schedule 1, Part 2, section 22, DPA 2018)
  • where processing is necessary for an elected representative to respond to a request (Schedule 1, Part 2, section 23, DPA 2018).

Withdrawing Consent

When you give Councillors consent to process your personal data, they use that as the lawful basis condition. You can withdraw that consent and they will delete the information they hold about you. If this is not possible, because there are other legal grounds for processing your data, Councillors will let you know. If you withdraw your consent, they will not be able to keep a record of the help they have given you in the past.

Sharing your information

Councillors will often need to share your personal data with other people and organisations. For example, they will usually need to share your personal details and the circumstances of your query/complaint to council officers to allow the council to look into the issue.

Councillors may share your data with:

  • the council
  • government agencies like the DWP
  • other local authorities
  • schools and other educational bodies
  • charities
  • health trusts
  • regulators like the ICO
  • landlords and housing providers like Barnet Homes
  • the police
  • other councillors or elected officials, like MPs

Councillors are required to share your data in some circumstances. These include:

  • for court proceedings.
  • detection and/or prevention of crime or fraud.
  • to protect someone who may be at risk, like a child or vulnerable adult.

Please note that if you specifically ask them not to disclose information identifying you to other third parties, it may not be possible for them to progress your request anonymously.

How your information is secured

Councillors take reasonable security measures to ensure that personal data relating to ward casework is protected from accidental loss or alteration, inappropriate access, misuse or theft. These include physical and technological controls, secure storage of information, and appropriate records retention.

Councillors do not process your personal data outside of the European Economic Area (EEA).

Any work they undertake for the Council, is undertaken in adherence with the Council’s Records and Information Management Policy framework.

How long your data is kept

Councillors will only keep your personal data for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected. After 12 months they will review what is held and only retain data where there is an ongoing requirement to retain for a statutory or legal purpose. Personal data is securely destroyed once it is no longer needed.

When their term as a Councillor ends, all personal data they hold about you will be securely destroyed within one month.

Your rights as an individual under UK GDPR:

The UK GDPR lists the Rights of Data Subjects when personal data is being processed.

You have these rights under the legislation:

  • Right of access – you have the right to request a copy of your personal data that is held (by making a Subject Access Request).
     
  • Right of rectification – you have a right to correct data that is held about you if it is inaccurate or incomplete.
     
  • Right to be forgotten – in certain circumstances you can ask for the data held to be erased from records.
     
  • Right to restriction of processing – where certain conditions apply you have the right to ask to restrict [quarantine] processing of your data.
     
  • Right of data portability – in certain circumstances you have the right to have the data held about you transferred to another organisation.
     
  • Right to object – you have the right to object to certain types of processing, such as direct marketing.
     
  • Right to object to automated processing, including profiling – you have the right to ask for a decision made about you, solely by automated means without any human involvement to be reviewed by a human being.

 

Your right to complain

You have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office about how Councillors process your personal data. You can contact them using the details below:

  • Address: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF
  • Telephone: 0303 123 1113 (local rate) or 01625 545 745 (national rate)
  • Website: ico.org.uk.