Housing and homelessness privacy notice

When you contact us about in relation to social housing or homelessness, we will ask you to provide us with personal data, such as your name, address and other information.

We will process this data to enable us to determine if you are eligible for housing or homelessness support.

We also review accounts after a decision has been made.

How we will process your data

The law allows us to process your ordinary personal data either because it is necessary to do so to perform a task carried out in the public interest, or in the exercise of official authority vested in us. Where we process any special data such as information about mental or physical health, we do so as it is necessary for us to perform our obligations under social security or social protection law. We may also process this type of data where we need to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

Will we share your data?

We may share your information with our customer services team, revenues team, benefits team, environmental health team and community safety team. We may also share your information with other authorised officers of the council, other councils or the national fraud initiative. Depending on your circumstances, we may also share your information with HM Courts & Tribunals Service, HM Revenue & Customs, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), the Police, the probation service, the NHS, Staffordshire County Council (including social care and education), emergency accommodation providers, and supporting charities and organisations.

How long will we store your data?

We will store your information for as long as we justifiably need it. Information will typically be held in case there is a future query regarding your housing eligibility.  

Your rights in brief

If we process your personal data, depending on your circumstances, you may have the following rights:

  • a right of access to your information
  • a right to correct inaccurate information
  • a right to restrict our processing of your data
  • a right to have your personal data erased
  • the right to object to any processing by us on public interest grounds.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please contact our customer services team on 01543 308000.

General

The provision of information by you to us is a legal requirement. If you do not provide the information to us we may not be able to register, progress and/or determine your application for a discount or exemption.  

Who is the data controller?

Lichfield District Council (District Council House, Frog Lane, Lichfield Staffs WS13 6YY, tel: 01543 308000) is the data controller.

Personal data breaches

The council does all it can to keep your personal data confidential, available for use and intact.  
 
A personal data breach is a breach of security leading to the accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure of, or access to, personal data that is transmitted, stored, or otherwise processed.  

​If there should be a breach of your personal data such as its destruction, loss, alteration, etc, you can report it to us at dpo@lichfielddc.gov.uk and the Compliance and Data Protection Officer will conduct an investigation. In some circumstances, such as there being a risk of harm to you, we will report matters to the Information Commissioner’s Office. 

We will tell them what has happened, how many people are affected, what the likely consequences are and what we are doing to make things better. In certain circumstances, we will also provide this information to you.  

Any questions or concerns?

If you any questions, please email our data protection officer in the first instance, or if you have concerns about the way we have processed your personal data, please contact the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) .