Privacy Policy

This Community Council is the ‘data controller’ for your data when you use our website.

What is ‘personal data’?

‘Personal data’ is any information about a living individual which allows them to be identified from that data – for example a name, an address, photographs, videos, email address. The processing of personal data is governed by specific legislation which applies in the United Kingdom, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 and other legislation relating to personal data and rights such as the Human Rights Act.

What is the legal basis for processing your personal data?

The council is a public authority and has certain powers and obligations. Most of your personal data is processed for compliance with a legal obligation which includes the discharge of the council’s statutory functions and powers. Sometimes when exercising these powers or duties it is necessary to process personal data of residents or people using the council’s services. We will always take into account your interests and rights. This Privacy Notice sets out your rights and the Council’s obligations to you.

We may process personal data if it is necessary for the performance of a contract with you, or to take steps to enter into a contract. An example of this would be processing your data in connection with the purchase of a cemetery plot. Sometimes the use of your personal data requires your consent; in such cases we will first obtain your consent to that use.

Making sure your data is safe

GDPR was designed to create common privacy requirements across the EU. It is a development of existing data protection legislation and is based on seven key principles that can be summarised as:

• Personal information held will be processed lawfully, fairly, and in a transparent manner.
• Personal data will only be used for specific and legitimate purposes.
• The information held shall be limited to what is necessary.
• Information shall be accurate.
• Information shall be held for no longer than is necessary.
• Information shall be kept safe and secure.
• Those holding personal information are accountable, and can demonstrate compliance with GDPR.

Other data controllers the Community Council may work with

We may need to share your personal data with other tiers of local government and partners so that they can carry out their responsibilities to the Council. The council may process some or all of the following personal data, where necessary, in order to perform its tasks:

• Names, titles and aliases, photographs.
• Contact details such as telephone numbers, addresses, and email addresses.
• Where they are relevant to the services provided by the Council, or where you provide them to us, we may process information such as gender, age, marital status, nationality, education/work history, academic/professional qualifications, hobbies, family composition, and dependants.
• Where you pay for activities – such as when organising a burial in our cemetery – financial identifiers such as bank account numbers, payment card numbers, payment/transaction identifiers.

How we use sensitive personal data:

In order to comply with legal requirements, and obligations to third parties, we may process personal data including, as appropriate:

• Your racial or ethnic origin, or religion, or similar information in order to monitor compliance with equal opportunities legislation.

These types of data are described in the GDPR as ‘Special categories of data’ and require higher levels of protection. We need to have further justification for collecting, storing and using this type of personal data. In limited circumstances, we may approach you for your written consent to allow us to process certain sensitive personal data. If we do this, we will provide you with full details of the personal data we need, and the reason we need it, so that you can carefully consider whether you wish to consent. We may process special categories of personal data in the following circumstances:

• where we need to carry out our legal obligations;
• where it is needed in the public interest;
• less commonly, we may process this type of personal data where it is needed in relation to legal claims, or where it is needed to protect your interests (or someone else’s interests) and you are not capable of giving your consent, or where you have already made the information public.

We may use your personal data for some or all of the following purposes:

• To deliver public services – including to understand your needs to provide the services that you request, and to understand what we can do for you, and to inform you of other relevant services.
• To enable us to meet all legal and statutory obligations and powers, including any delegated functions.
• To prevent and detect fraud and corruption in the use of public funds and, where necessary, for law enforcement functions.
• To maintain our own accounts and records.
• To process relevant financial transactions, including grants and payments for goods and services supplied to the council.
• To promote the interests of the council.
• To notify you of changes to our facilities, services, events and staff, councillors and other role holders.
• To allow the statistical analysis of data so we can plan the provision of services.
• To help us to build up a picture of how we are performing.
• To confirm your identity in order to provide some services.
• To contact you by post, email, telephone or using social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp).
• To seek your views, opinions or comments.
• To send you communications which you have requested and which may be of interest to you; these may include information about campaigns, appeals, other new projects or initiatives.
• To carry out comprehensive safeguarding procedures (including due diligence and complaints handling) in accordance with best safeguarding practice from time-to-time with the aim of ensuring that all children, and vulnerable adults, are provided with safe environments – and generally as necessary to protect individuals from harm or injury.
• Our processing may also include the use of CCTV systems for the prevention and prosecution of crime.

How long do we keep your personal data?

We will keep some records permanently if we are legally required to do so. We may keep some other records for an extended period of time – for example, it is currently best practice to keep financial records for a minimum period of eight years to support HMRC audits or provide tax information. We may have legal obligations to retain some data in connection with our statutory obligations as a public authority. The council is permitted to retain data in order to defend or pursue claims. In some cases the law imposes a time limit for such claims (for example three years for personal injury claims, or six years for contract claims). We will retain some personal data for this purpose as long as we believe it is necessary to be able to defend or pursue a claim.

In general, we will endeavour to keep data only for as long as we need it. This means that we will delete it when it is no longer needed.