Privacy notice for Supported Lodgings

This privacy notice explains how we use and share information. We will review and update this privacy notice to reflect changes in our services and feedback from service users, as well as to comply with changes in the law.

Who we are and what we do

The Supported Lodgings team are responsible for managing the applications of potential supported lodgings providers. We also provide support to supported lodgings providers once their applications have been approved.

For more information see Supported lodgings.

For the purposes of Data Protection, Durham County Council is the Data Controller.

The type of personal information we collect and how we collect it

The council may collect and hold the following information:

name, address and contact details
date of birth
family composition and relationships
family support network
personal referees
other agencies involved
education information
financial information including bank details
police involvement / convictions
housing information
employment information
NHS number

We also collect the following special category data:

gender
ethnicity
religion
health information such as medical assessments, medical history

We collect information about you in the following ways:

face to face
by secure email
by post
by telephone
from other professionals, family and referees

What our lawful basis is to obtain and use your personal information

To enable us to provide services to you it is necessary for us to use your personal information to help assess your needs and identify the most appropriate services available. To do so we will use the following legal basis for sharing your information:

Processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller.

For special category data, which is more sensitive information, we rely on the following:

Health and Social Care - we use it for the provision of health or social care or treatment or the management of health or social care systems and services.

How we use your personal information

Information will be used for the following purposes:

processing and assessing supported lodgings providers applications which includes carrying out background checks
making recommendations to the Panel
processing payments
provision of supervision and training
carrying out supported lodgings providers reviews
information will be used by Revenue and Benefits for Council Tax exemption

Your information may also be used to provide assurance to the council about the quality of services provided.

Reasons we may share your personal information

We will only share relevant information about you with other services where there is a legal basis for doing so. There are a range of professionals who may be involved in providing services to you and where appropriate will be provided with relevant information about you. Agencies we may need to share information with include the following:

Health Agencies
Police
Other Local Authorities
Education Providers
Inland Revenue
Ofsted

There are other times where we may need to share your information lawfully. These include:

where there is a serious risk of harm to you or to others
where there are concerns for the welfare of a child
for the prevention or detection of crime
where a court order requires us to share information

How your information is kept secure

The security of your personal information is important to us. The records we keep about you are secure and are confidential within the council. The council have a range of procedures, polices and systems to ensure that access to your records are controlled appropriately.

Anyone who receives information from us is also under a legal duty to only use the information for the purposes agreed and keep the information secure and confidential

How long we keep your information for

After we deliver a service to you, we have to keep your information as a business record of what was delivered. The type of service you receive will determine how long we have to keep your information.

Our corporate retention guidelines on our Privacy notices and data protection page show how long we keep information for different services. Your records will be retained in accordance with Durham County Council's records retention schedule as follows:

Records - Date approval terminated plus 10 years

Processing personal information outside of the UK/EU

Your personal data is stored on our IT infrastructure and shared with our data processors, Microsoft and Amazon Web Services. It may be transferred and stored securely in the UK and European Economic Area (EEA). If your data is stored outside the UK and EEA, it will have equivalent legal protection through Model Contract Clauses.

We can share information outside of this area when there is an adequacy determination in place. The EU uses the term 'adequacy' to describe other countries, territories, sectors or international organisations that it deems to provide an 'essentially equivalent' level of data protection for people's rights and freedoms.

Marketing

At no time will your information be used or passed to others for marketing or sales purposes, or for any commercial use without your express consent.

Your information rights

Your information rights are set out in the law. Subject to some legal exceptions, you have the right to:

access your personal data
have any inaccuracies corrected
have your personal data erased
place a restriction on our processing of your data
object to processing, and
to request your data to be ported (data portability)

To exercise your rights, you can apply online or download an application form from our Privacy notices and data protection page or you can contact the data protection team at inforights@durham.gov.uk.

To learn more about these rights please see Information Commissioner's Office: Individual rights - guidance and resources.

Further information

Our Data Protection Officer (DPO) provides help and guidance to make sure we apply the best standards to protecting your personal information. If something goes wrong with your personal information, or you have questions about how we process your data, please contact our Information Governance team at inforights@durham.gov.uk or write to:

DPO
Chief Executives Services
Council Offices
Green Lane
Spennymoor
County Durham
United Kingdom
DL16 6JQ

If we have not been able to deal with your complaint, you can also contact the .

Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Telephone: 0303 123 1113 (local rate) or 01625 545 745