Middlesbrough Council and Data Protection

Middlesbrough Council has to process personal data in order to deliver services to you. Personal data can be defined as both facts and opinions about you. Middlesbrough Council processes personal data in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998.

Personal data may be held in computer databases or in paper files. These may be processed by the Council or for the Council by one of its business partners. Wherever personal data are held and processed, Middlesbrough Council remains the “data controller” of your personal data and complies with the eight data protection principles of good information handling which state that data must be:

1. fairly and lawfully processed;
2. processed for limited purposes;
3. adequate, relevant and not excessive;
4. accurate;
5. not kept longer than necessary;
6. processed in accordance with the data subject's rights;
7. secure;
8. not transferred to countries without adequate protection.

Your Right of Access

The Data Protection Act 1998 gives you the right to apply for a copy of your personal data held by the Council (the “data controller”). You can appoint someone to apply on your behalf e.g. your legal guardian or a solicitor, however, the Council will ask for proof that they are acting on your behalf.

If you want to request a copy of the information the Council holds about you, you should provide:

• A request in writing.;
• Sufficient information for the Council to locate your personal data.
• The fee of £10.00

To help you do this the Council has a form for you to download and complete, and this form can be found in the Downloads section on the right. Cheques should be made payable to Middlesbrough Council.

Points to remember

Not all personal data held is required to be supplied under the Data Protection Act. Information that may be exempt from disclosure to you could include:

• Personal data where disclosure could prejudice the prevention or detection of crime;
• Management forecasts/management planning;
• Legal professional privilege (advice we receive from our solicitors, for example);
• Personal data identifying another person (a third party) whose details should not be disclosed without their permission;
• Some Social Work records.

You are entitled to be told whether the Council, or someone acting on its behalf, is processing (using) your personal data and if so be given a description of:

• The personal data
• The purpose (s) for which it is being processed
• To whom the data are or may be disclosed
• The source of the information (exemptions may apply)
• The logic behind processing (except in the case of trade secrets)

If no data is held, or the data falls into a category exempted from disclosure, you should be notified in writing of this.

In all cases the Council is then required to respond within a statutory maximum limit of 40 calendar days of receiving your full request, either with the information required, or with an explanation of any delays.

More Information

Should you have any queries about how or why Middlesbrough processes your personal data you can contact informationsecurity@middlesbrough.gov.uk

For more information on the Data Protection Act 1998 please visit the Information Commissioner’s Website. www.ico.gov.uk