Councillor Enquiry privacy notice

We are committed to protecting your personal information.

Your councillor is the data controller for purposes of the Data Protection Act (2018), and The General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 ("GDPR").

As the data controller, we have a responsibility to make sure you know why and how your personal information is being collected. This is according to relevant data protection law.

The primary laws which govern how Brighton & Hove City Council collects and use personal information (known as data) about you are: · General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) · Data Protection Act (DPA) 2018

How your data will be used

We are collecting your data for the purpose of answering any enquiries you might wish to raise with your councillor.

Data you provide to your councillor may be shared with council departments when it is necessary in providing a response to your enquiry, or there is a legal obligation to do so.

Council departments may share your data, including data not provided within your enquiry, with your councillor when it is necessary in providing a response to your enquiry, or there is a legal obligation to do so.

If we use information from your enquiry for statistical or research purposes, we will only use anonymised data.

Our legal basis for collecting your data

The legal basis we rely on for processing personal data is the performance of a public task, Article 6(e) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

What data we collect from you

Personal data

• Name
• Address
• Email address
• Phone number (mobile, home, work)
• Date of birth
• Other relevant information needed to respond to your enquiry, such as a claim, reference, or account number for a council service

Special Category data

We may need to process special categories of personal data (for example, race, ethnic origin, politics, religion, trade union membership, genetics, biometrics, health, sex life, or sexual orientation), where it is necessary in providing a response to your enquiry. The basis which we rely on is that processing is necessary for one or more of the following reasons: to carry out certain obligations and rights, to establish, exercise or defend a legal claim, processing is in the substantial public interest or necessary to protect the vital interests of the data subject.

Who we share your data with

Your data may be shared with internal council departments and external organisations for the purpose of responding to your enquiry or if there is a legal obligation to do so. 

How long we will keep your data

We will hold your data for five years from the date the councillor closes the case in the councillor enquiries case management system.

How we store your data

We will store your information on electronic databases, document management systems and on paper records.

The electronic systems and databases used to collect and store your data are hosted by Brighton & Hove City Council.

How we protect your data and keep it secure

Examples of the security measures we use are:

• training for our staff and councillors, making them aware of how to handle information securely, and how and when to report when something goes wrong
• where possible, we will pseudonymise your data. This means we will remove your identity so the people working with your data will not know your identity
• controlling access to systems and networks allows us to stop people who are not allowed to view your personal information, from getting access to it.
• regular testing of our technology and ways of working, including keeping up to date on the latest security updates (called patches).

Transferring your data outside the European Economic Area

Your data is not processed outside of the European Economic Area.

Your rights

Under GDPR you have certain rights concerning your information.

Check your rights in relation to your personal information.

How to get advice or make a complaint 

Data Protection Officer 

If you have a concern about how we collect or use your personal data you can contact the Council’s Data Protection Officer.  

How to make a complaint 

We aim to resolve all complaints about how we handle personal information. You also have the right to make a complaint about data protection to the Information Commissioner's Office.  

Contact them by post: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF or phone 0303 1231 113. 

You can also make a complaint or find out more information on the Commissioner's Office website. 

If your complaint is not about data protection, find details on how to make a complaint about a council service. 

Changes to this privacy notice

This privacy notice will be subject to review when there is a change.