Any personal
information which Northumberland County Council keeps about you, or
you submit to the Council, is governed and protected by the Data
Protection Act 1998. This means that we won't keep more personal
information than is necessary, it will be kept accurately, safely
and securely, and won't be shared with other organisations unless
we are required by law to do so.
The Data Protection Act has eight underlying principles, which
can be seen by following the link below. Northumberland County
Council is registered on the Public Register of Data Controllers
with the registration number Z1727733 - this entry identifies what
kind of data is kept and why we keep it. Our register entry can be
viewed by following the link at the bottom of this page or by using
the Contact Details above.
Personal information includes any data which can be used to
identify a living person. Some information is identified as
sensitive data such as ethnic origin, religious belief and
sexuality - this kind of information is subject to additional rules
aand safeguards. It may also include photographs taken at public
events and venues or for the promotion of Council services. If you
can be identified from any of these photographs we will ask your
permission before publication. Information is also used for
statistical and research purposes but will not include personal
data.
You can ask to see the information which the Council keeps about
you at any time, by completing the Online Form from the link on
this page. You can also write, fax, phone or email using the
Contact Details above. There is a fee of £10 for this service, and
we will respond within 40 days of receiving this payment. Some data
may be withheld, for instance if it also refers to other people, or
may compromise crime prevention. If this is the case we will still
tell you the kind of data we keep and why.
As a general rule you are not able to see data about anyone
else. In some circumstances you may be able to do so, if you have
written permission from the subject of the data, or you are a
parent seeking information from your child's school records. In
such cases we may need to ask for additional information from you
before data can be released.
The Council is also required by law to protect the public funds
it administers, and may therefore share information provided to it
with other relevant bodies in order to prevent and detect fraud -
Click here for further information
It is important that any personal data is accurate and
up-to-date. If you think the information we keep about you may not
be accurate you can let us know by using the Contact
Details or the Online Form from the link on this page. We will
respond within 21 days.
More information about Data Protection can be found in the
website links below. You can also contact the Council's Data
Protection Officer direct by using the Contact Details link
above.
Schools
Schools keep information on pupils in order to support their
teaching and learning, to monitor and report on their progress and
to provide appropriate pastoral care. This information includes
contact details, national curriculum assessment results, attendance
information, and other data such as ethnic group, special
educational needs and relevant medical information. From time to
time schools are required to pass this data on to various
government agencies.
For use by schools, below is a Template Privacy Notice that can
be amended to include the school details and can be issued to
pupils and parents
The Privacy Notice - Additional Information document below gives
further details on what information is handled by the Local
Authority and shared with partners.
More information about Privacy Notices can be viewed by
following the link
http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/management/ims/datamanagement/privacynotices
If you want to access personal data held by schools, you should
contact the appropriate school/s direct. Click here for schools' contact details
Useful links:
Copy of
the Data Protection Act 1998
The 8 Data Protection Principles
The Information Commissioner’s
Website
Register of Data Controllers
