Skip to content

Privacy Notice

Your Data

Your right to privacy is very important to us and we recognise that, when we collect, use, or store your personal data, you should be able to trust us to act in a responsible manner. This Privacy Notice tells you what you can expect when we process your data, and what your rights are.

Why we collect data

Data is always collected directly from you when you sign up to receive updates on our website or send enquiries through email or verbally over the phone.

We hold your details from website sign ups in order to send you occasional updates and news on the Gigafast Staffordshire project.

We also hold details from enquiries in order to help resolve them and other similar enquiries we may receive from the same areas.

How we collect data

Your data may be collected in various ways, including:

  • Verbally

  • Telephone

  • Email

  • Online forms

Data we obtain will be captured and stored in our systems for the purpose(s) specified.

Managing personal data

We are responsible for managing the information we hold and we recognise that this information is important to you. We take our responsibilities seriously and use personal information fairly, correctly and safely in line with the legal requirements set out by the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR). Anyone who receives information from us is also under a legal duty to do the same and has a set of data protection clauses included in their contract.

Any organisations that process personal information on or behalf Staffordshire County Council, or with whom we share information also has the same legal obligation to comply with GDPR and will have a set of data protection clauses included in their contract or other form of agreement.

As we collect and process personal information we are registered as a ‘Data Controller’ with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

Our registered address as Data Controller is:

Staffordshire County Council
County Buildings
Martin Street
Stafford
ST16 2DH

How we use your personal data

We will use your personal information for a limited number of purposes and always in line with our responsibilities, where there is a legal basis to do so, and in line with your rights under the GDPR. When we collect personal data from you, we will only use it to provide services you have requested or require. We will not collect any personal data from you that we do not need.

We will use the information you provide in order to:

  • Deliver services and understand your needs

  • Maintain and update your customer records or contact details

  • Contact you where necessary

  • Obtain your opinion and feedback about the services we provide

  • Ensure that we fulfil our legal obligations

  • Inform and fulfil our audit requirements

If we wish to use or share your data for any purpose other than that for which it was originally collected, we will provide information on these purposes. We will strive to make sure that the third party has sufficiently robust systems and procedures in place to protect your personal information.

Sometimes we may not be able to provide a service if you do not provide data required to do so.

How we share your data

Where necessary, information may be shared with partners and other organisations that provide services on our behalf. In such cases, the information provided is only the minimum necessary to enable them to provide services to you. These organisations are required to retain your information in a secure manner and only use it to undertake the services they provide to you.

We are also required by law to protect the public funds we administer and may share information provided to us with other bodies responsible for auditing or administering public funds in order to prevent and detect fraud. More information is available from the National Fraud Initiative web site.

If the information we intend to share is of a sensitive, personal nature we will only share it with partner organisations if we have obtained your consent or unless we are legally required, or enabled, to share it. We have an information sharing protocol with local partners under which our partners agree to similar commitments toward privacy, security and transparency.

Personal information about you may also be provided to other local authorities. For example, if you have moved from one local authority to another and the new authority requires confirmation of the services you were receiving.

At no time will your information be passed to organisations external to us or our partners for marketing or sales purposes or for any commercial use without your prior explicit consent.

How we look after your data

Under the General Data Protection Regulations we have a legal duty to protect any information that we hold about you. We take measures to safeguard your data and implement security standards and controls to prevent any unauthorised access to it. Information which you have provided the council will be stored securely. It will only be used for the purpose(s) stated when the information was collected.

The amount of time data is kept before being disposed of will vary depending on why it was collected, how it is used, and in line with any applicable UK laws. Our retention and disposal schedule give details about how long we keep data.

Use of personal information for marketing

We will only send you information about our services and/or products if you have agreed for us to do so. You can opt out of this at any time by letting us know using the contact details below.

What are your rights?

Under the GDPR you, as the Data Subject, you have the right to:

  • Access the information we hold about you. This information is usually provided free of charge but we may charge depending on the administrative costs of providing the information. You have the right to request this in machine-readable form so that it can, if required, be transferred to a third party.

  • Request that we rectify any information about you that is incorrect. Simple inaccuracies, such as address changes will be made. Depending on the purpose for processing, records (including statements and opinions) may not be changed. However, there may be the option for you to provide a supplementary statement which can be added to our records.

  • Request that records we hold about you are erased.

  • Restrict processing of the information we hold about you if you have an objection to that processing, whilst your objection is investigated.

  • Request that any information that you have provided to us is given back to you in a format that you can give to another service provider if required.

  • Object to processing of your personal information including automated decision making and profiling.

  • Make a complaint to a supervisory authority if you are not satisfied with how the information held about you has been handled.

How to contact us

Our Information Governance Unit is responsible for co-ordinating requests made in relation to your rights.

Send your request to:

Email: accessinformation@staffordshire.gov.uk 

Postal address:

Access Team
Information Governance Unit
Staffordshire County Council
1 Staffordshire Place
Stafford
ST16 2DH

Please contact us if you need advice about making your request in relation to your rights or if you need help to put your request in writing.

You can contact us using the above addresses or by phone on 01785 276682.

Further information about your rights is available from the Information Commissioner’s Office.