PN024 - Cohesion and Community Safety Privacy Notice

Torfaen County Borough Council is committed to protecting your privacy when you use our services. This Privacy Notice is designed to give you information about the data we hold about you, how we use it, your rights in relation to it and the safeguards in place to protect it.

TCBC Service Area: Adults & Communities
Work area: Cohesion and Community Safety, PSSU
Contact Details: Kate.Williams@torfaen.gov.uk
Privacy Notice Name: Cohesion and Community Safety

Data Controller: Torfaen County Borough Council, c/o Civic Centre, Pontypool, NP4 6YB

If you wish to raise a concern about the handling of your personal data, please contact the Data Protection Officer on 01495 762200 or email dpa@torfaen.gov.uk

We need your personal information to fulfil our obligations to deliver community safety services for the prevention and detection of crime, the provision of confidential counselling, advice or support (or of another similar service provided) confidentially and the administration of justice. We also use your information to verify your identity where required, contact you by post, email or telephone and to maintain our records.

Who provides your data to the Council?

On some occasions the personal information we process is provided to us directly by you.

AND

We also receive personal information indirectly from other public authorities, such as the police, fire services, health services and court services. However, it could also be from other local authorities, housing providers, youth support services, probation, members of the public and other organisations.

How does the Council collect this information?

  • On paper/online - paper documents are scanned and then shredded
  • Verbally – in person and via the phone or Virtual meetings
  • During meetings

What information does the Council collect about you?

The Cohesion and Community Safety team may collect the following information about you:

  • Name
  • Date of birth
  • Contact details
  • Information about your family / associates
  • Lifestyle information
  • Social Care and Health information
  • Criminal / Anti-social behaviour records
  • Overt CCTV images and recordings

Why does the Council process your personal data?

Under Article 6 of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the lawful basis we rely on for processing this information is:

(e) We need it to perform a public task.

  • The prevention and detection of crime under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998
  • The prevention and detection of crime under the Counter Terrorism Act 2015

All meetings are held under Section 115 Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and the only attendees are professionals with an interest in the particular case in hand who sign up to a strict confidentiality clause at the start of the meeting. The intention of the meetings is to allow agencies to discuss the issue and form an action plan to try and improve the situation.

Special categories of personal data

We may collect the following special category data depending on the nature of the case:

  • personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin
  • personal data revealing religious or philosophical beliefs
  • data concerning health
  • data concerning a person’s sex life
  • data concerning a person’s sexual orientation

We collect this under Article 9 of the UK GDPR.

AND/OR

Where we collect criminal data this is processed within the Council under Article 10 of the UK GDPR.

Who has access to your data?

Your data is shared internally only with the appropriate staff where it is necessary for the performance of their roles. The departments we share information with may include, but not be limited to:

  • Cohesion and Community Safety, PSSUs
  • Children’s and Adult Services – Safeguarding
  • Trading Standards
  • Planning and Public Protection
  • Education

Your data may also be shared externally with organisations, these may include, but not be limited to:

  • Police
  • Police and Crime Commissioner
  • Registered Social Landlords
  • Other Local Authorities
  • Health Authority / Support Services
  • Gwent Missing Person Team
  • Youth Offending Service
  • Probation Service
  • Community Safety Hubs – Gwent
  • Other Public Authorities
  • Other Organisations
  • Other Support Services

There are circumstances where we are legally obliged to share your information with:

  • Government Law Enforcement Agencies e.g. with the Police under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998.

Apart from where previously stated, we do not pass your details to third parties unless we are lawfully required do so.

Is the Data transferred out of the UK?

No

How does the Council keep your data secure?

The Council has internal policies in place to ensure the data it processes is not lost, accidentally destroyed, misused or disclosed. Access to this data is restricted in accordance with the Council’s internal policies and in compliance with the UK GDPR.

Data will be stored securely in:

  • A secure network drive

Where the Council engages third parties to process personal data on its behalf, they do so on the basis of written instructions. These third parties are also under a duty of confidentiality and are obliged to implement appropriate measures to ensure the security of data.

How long does the Council keep your data?

The Council will hold your personal data only for the period that is necessary and will follow organisational and Local Authority standards in this area. At the end of the retention period the Council will securely destroy or dispose of the data in line with retention schedules.

Torfaen County Borough Council will retain information relating to cases taken to court under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 for a period of time set out in the retention policy from when any imposed order ends. (e.g. Public Spaces Protection Orders).

Are we making automated decisions/profiling with your data?

No

Your rights

You have a number of Rights you can exercise:

  • Access - to obtain a copy of your data on request
  • Rectification – to require the Council to change incorrect or incomplete data
  • Object, Restrict or Delete - under certain circumstances you can require the Council to delete or stop processing your data, for example where the data is no longer necessary for the purposes of processing
  • Data portability – to receive and/or transmit data provided to the Council to other organisations (this applies in limited circumstances)
  • Withdraw your consent at any time (where consent has been given)
  • To know the consequences of failing to provide data to the Council
  • To know the existence of any Automated Decision-making, including profiling, and the consequences of this for you.
  • To lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority (Information Commissioners Office)

If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact: Kate Williams, Public Services Support Unit, Kate.Williams@torfaen.gov.uk

The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner’s Office (Wales), 2nd Floor, Churchill House, Churchill Way, Cardiff, CF10 2HH. Telephone 0330 414 6421 or e-mail Wales@ico.org.uk.

Last Modified: 17/07/2023 Back to top