Data Protection

An essential activity within the council is the requirement to gather and process information about the staff and people who use our services. This will be done in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), the Data Protection Act 1998 (The Act) and other related government legislation.

GDPR

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is an EU regulation that establishes a new framework for handling and protecting the personal data of EU citizens. ( This will still apply after Brexit)

It introduces new obligations and liabilities for all organisations - including parish councils, that handle personal data and new rights for individuals in respect of their personal data. All organisations must comply with the new rules by 25 May 2018.

For Hawthorn Parish Council itself, as a corporate body, it is the formal Data Controller and as such must meet its obligations.

Information held by Hawthorn Parish Council

A data audit of all personal data has been carried out.

This includes:-

1. What is held
2. Where it came from
3. Who it is shared with
4. The legal basis for holding it
5. Whether consent is necessary
6. How it is protected

In addition, Hawthorn Parish Council is aware of the ICO's code of practice and the risk to information privacy.

In particular Hawthorn Parish Council looks to minimise this riisk by looking to ensure personal information is

• Accurate and up to date
• Relevant
• Not kept too long
• Not disclosed to those who the person it relates to does not wish to have
• Not used in ways that are unacceptable to or unexpectaedly by the person it is about
• Kept  securely

Individual Rights

Hawthorn Parish Council has reviewed and amended all of its policies and procedures in order that they cover all the rights which individuals have including:-

• Information and  Data Protection Policy 2018
• Social Media Policy
• Removable Media Policy
• Document Retention and Disposal Policy

Communicating Privacy Information

Hawthorn Parish Council has reviewed all of their  Privacy Notices and Privacy Impact Information including:-

• Privacy Impact Assessment Information
• Privacy Notice as below

Subject Access Requests / Consents / Data Breaches

Hawthorn Parish Council has updated its procedures in respect of handling requests and providing information.

• Subject Access Form
• Data Breach Form
• Consent Form

Children

Hawthorn Parish Council does not hold any information / data on any child.

Data Protection Officer

Hawthorn Parish Council is aware of the need to appoint a Data Protection Officer and is awaiting advice and information on this.

Hawthorn Parish Council Privacy Notice

The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by the Parish Council and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.

We take your privacy seriously. In accordance with the law, we only collect a limited amount of information about you that is necessary for correspondence, information and service provision. We do not use profiling, we do not sell or pass your data to third parties. We do not use your data for purposes other than those specified. We make sure your data is stored securely. We delete all information deemed to be no longer necessary. We constantly review our Privacy Policies to keep it up to date in protecting your data. Our privacy policy is here .

Our statement on Website accessibility statement is available here .