Privacy notices

Purpose of the document

Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council (RCBC) is committed to protecting the privacy and security of your personal information.

This privacy notice is issued in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and describes how we collect and use personal information about you in the consideration, administration end enforcement of planning relating issues. The information is used so that we can ensure planning legislation is followed.

The notice applies to information we hold about you. We may update this notice at any time. It is important that you read this notice, together with any other privacy notice we may provide on specific occasions when we are collecting or processing personal information about you, so that you are aware of how and why we are using such information.

Further information

If you would like to know more about how we use your information, or if for any reason you do not wish to have your information used in any of the ways described in this leaflet, please tell us. Contact the Data Protection Officer: informationsecurity@redcar-cleveland.gov.uk You can also complain to the Information Commissioner: https://ico.org.uk/

Information we hold about you

We use information about planning applications, applicants, agents and other interested parties to enable us to carry out specific functions for which we are responsible and to provide you with a service.

These records may include:

• Basic details about you for example; name, postal address, telephone numbers, email address
• Payment details (we do not store this information)
• Personal & professional opinions
• Details of agents where applicable
• Contact we have had with you, for example, appointments & letters of correspondence
• Notes and reports about your relevant circumstances
• Details and records about the service you have received

We do not routinely collect information categorised as sensitive, however we may be supplied with information as part of an application or subsequent consultation. Where we are supplied with this information it will be processed only to carry out our legal obligations and in line with data protection policies.

How we collect your information

We collect personal information by letter, email, telephone, online and through face to face contact with yourself, or on occasion an agreed representative of you, appointed by yourself.

How we use your information

We need all the categories of information in the list above primarily to allow us to assess, fulfil the consultation requirements, determination and enforcement of planning applications, planning enforcement and planning related matters. The situations in which we will process your personal information are listed below.

Reason for processing:

• Determining a planning application
• Considering your comments in relation to an application
• Taking payment for the processing of an application
• Enforce planning conditions and obligations and to take enforcement action

Legal Basis e.g. public task/contract etc

• Town & Country Planning Act 2008
• Planning (Listed Building & Conservation Areas) Act 1990

Refusal to provide personal information

If you fail to provide certain information when requested, we may be unable to process your planning application, comments submitted in association with an application or investigate any alleged breaches of planning.

Viewing your records

The Data Protection Act 2018 allows you to find out what information is held about you, on paper and computer records. This is known as ‘Right of Subject Access’.

If you wish to see a copy of your records you should contact the Data Protection officer. You are entitled to receive a copy of your records free of charge, within one month.

In certain circumstances access to your records may be limited, for example, if the records you have asked for contain information relating to another person.

Your other rights

The Data Protection Act 2018 allows you other rights, for example if there is an error in your records you have the right to make sure it is rectified or erased. In some circumstances you can restrict or object to processing, request data portability and request not to be the subject of solely automated decision making.

You have the right to withdraw your consent that you have provided, at any time and we must cease processing. This may restrict the service that we are able to provide.

You have the right to be told if we have made a mistake whilst processing your data and we will self-report breaches to the Commissioner.

Data sharing

We may have to share your data with third parties, including third-party service providers and other entities in the group.

We require third parties to respect the security of your data and to treat it in accordance with the law.

Examples of the organisations we may need to share information with are:

• Interested party (eg members of the public) via the Council’s planning portal, which will allow them to view details supplied (subject to redaction) and comment on an application
• Other third party organisations (eg Utility companies) who may also be consulted where required

Who processes your personal information

”Third parties” includes third-party service providers (including contractors and designated agents).

The following third-parties process personal information about you for the following purposes:

• Mastergov (DEF) – The Council’s IT provider may have to access the system on occasions where there is a fault
• Other organisations – may be consulted on planning applications or enforcement matters
• Restore Records Management – Storage company for historic paper records
• Planning Inspectorate (PINs) – where appeals are received, any correspondence received as part of a planning application are copied to the Planning Inspectorate

How secure personal information is with third-parties providers

All our third-party service providers are required to take appropriate security measures to protect your personal information in line with our policies. We do not allow our third-party service providers to use your personal data for their own purposes. We only permit them to process your personal data for specified purposes and in accordance with our instructions.

How long information is stored

Your details will be kept indefinitely on the planning record. Processing is kept to a minimum and will only be processed in accordance with the law.

Your duty to inform us

It is important that the personal information we hold about you is accurate and current. Please keep us informed if your personal information changes during your working relationship with us.