This privacy notice is designed to help you understand how and why North Yorkshire Council processes your personal data. This notice should be read in conjunction with our corporate privacy notice.
Who are we?
North Yorkshire Council is a ‘data controller’ as defined by Article 4(7) of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR).
The council is responsible for the following functions:
- to prevent homelessness, to reduce the number of homeless presentations and identify alternative housing options for clients approaching the local authority as being made homeless
- to fulfil statutory responsibilities in relation to homelessness and to provide a comprehensive housing advice service
The council has appointed Veritau to be its data protection officer. Their contact details are:
Information Governance Office
Veritau
West Offices
Station Rise
York
North Yorkshire
YO1 6GA
Email: infogov@northyorks.gov.uk
Tel: 01904 552848
What personal information do we collect?
North Yorkshire Council will collect the following categories of personal data:
- name
- address
- date of birth (D.O.B)
- contact details (email address and telephone number)
- national insurance number and NHS Number
- family and household information
- financial information
- information collected to assess your eligibility for assistance such as visas and immigration status etc
We may also collect the following categories of special category information:
- medical information
- physical health and/or mental health information
- equality data including ethnicity, sex and sexual orientation, religious beliefs etc.
We may also, in certain circumstances, collect criminal conviction information to assess for eligibility for suitable housing solutions provided by the local authority.
Why do we collect your personal information?
We process your information for the following purposes:
- to help identify alternative housing options for customers approaching the local authority as homeless or at risk of homelessness in accordance with the homelessness reduction act 2018
- to provide comprehensive specialist housing advice, information, and advocacy on all matters relating to housing rights and responsibilities, including on cases of illegal eviction and harassment
- to offer advice and assistance, including mediation, on a range of issues including prevention of homelessness, relief of homelessness, relationship breakdown, domestic violence, housing options, mortgage problems, debt advice, housing and welfare benefits and all landlord and tenant issues
- to determine statutory responsibilities and homelessness assessments in accordance with homelessness legislation and do this initially in the form of an interview either face to face or by telephone in advice surgeries with customers
- where necessary, carry out home visits, including to mental health hospitals, prisons or other meeting points
- to make further enquiries to investigate all claims of homelessness and work with the customer to prevent or relieve their homelessness
- develop individual personalised housing plans for customers threatened with homelessness and manage those plans in accordance with legislation and guidance
- to manage interim and temporary accommodation license agreements within the council’s homeless hostel and homeless dispersed accommodation and to provide relevant support to licensees residing in such accommodation;
- to work closely with emergency temporary accommodation providers and negotiate with those providers when supporting clients with complex needs such as mental health issues
- identifying suitable refuge for victims in fear of domestic violence, carry out checks with social services and police and where appropriate making the necessary referrals
- to be fulfil our statutory responsibilities under the duty to refer scheme
- have regard to local initiatives and also national campaigns such as national referral mechanism, modern slavery, county lines and to work with partnership agencies to identify vulnerable customers
Who do we obtain your information from?
We may collect your information from other external organisations (who are subject to the duty to refer under the homelessness (review procedure etc.) regulations 2018. Further information can be found in the homelessness (review procedure etc.) regulations 2018. We may therefore receive information from the following parties:
- prisons
- young offender institutions
- secure training centres
- secure colleges
- youth offending teams
- probation services (including community rehabilitation companies)
- jobcentres in England
- social service authorities (both adult and children)
- NHS (hospitals, urgent treatment centres or GPs)
- secretary of state for defence in relation to members of the regular armed forces
- landlords
- employer
- Department of Work and Pensions (DWP)
- Citizen’s Advice Bureau (CAB)
- legal representatives such as solicitors
- fire service
- homelessness charities such as shelter
- The Home Office
The above is not an exhaustive list and we may receive information from additional (non-statutory) agencies.
Who do we share this information with?
Where necessary, data may be shared with relevant internal departments for example, adult/children’s social care.
In order to provide our service, we may need to share personal information with the following external organisations:
- other local authorities
- housing providers and landlords
- specialist support services
- North Yorkshire Police
- young people’s partnership
- probation service and community rehabilitation service, youth offending team or the prison service
- hospitals, mental health services and GP services
- drug and alcohol services
- refuge and domestic violence services
- homelessness charities such as sleep safe Selby
How long do we keep your information for?
|
Data held |
Retention period |
|---|---|
|
Housing Triage Data |
6 years |
|
Housing Assessment Data |
6 years |
|
Affordable Housing Applications and bond/rent in advance applications |
6 years |
|
MARAC and MAPPA minutes and Agendas |
6 years |
|
Lettings Scheme Data |
6 years |
|
Scanned ID documents |
6 years |
|
Data reports |
6 years |
What is our lawful basis for processing your information?
North Yorkshire Council relies on the following lawful basis to process your personal data:
UK GDPR Article 6 (1)(c) – processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the controller is subject
UK GDPR Article 6 (1) (e) processing is necessary for the performance of a task in the public interest
When processing criminal conviction information, to satisfy Article 10 of the UK GDPR, processing will meet schedule 1 of the data protection act 2018 as below:
- (6) statutory and government purposes
- (10) preventing or detecting unlawful acts
- (18) safeguarding of children and individuals at risk
When processing special category data, the council will rely on the following lawful basis:
UK GDPR Article 9 (2) (g) – processing is necessary for reasons of substantial public interest with processing meeting schedule 1, part 2 of the data protection act 2018 as below:
- (6) statutory and government purposes
- (16) support for individuals with a particular disability or medical condition
- (18) safeguarding of children and individuals at risk
The legislations, policies and guidance that underpin this processing include, but are not limited to:
- homelessness reduction act 2017
- housing act 1996
- eviction act 1977
- the homelessness (suitability of accommodation) (England) order 2012
- local government act
- housing act 1988 as amended by the homelessness act 2002
- protection from eviction act 1977
- the children’s act 1989
- tenant fees act 2019
- housing health and safety rating system
For more information about how we use your data, including your privacy rights and the complaints process, please see our corporate privacy notice.