Orkney Islands Council Privacy Notice

How we may use your information.

Data Processor

Your personal information will be processed by Orkney Islands Council, School Place, Kirkwall, KW15 1NY.  You can contact the Council on 01856873535 or SPBS@orkney.gov.uk.

Data Protection Officer

The Council’s Data Protection Officer is Gavin Mitchell, Head of Legal Services, who can be contacted using the contact details for the Council as set out above.

Your rights

• The right to be informed about how your information will be used.
• The right of access to your personal information.
• The right to rectification, which is the right to require the Council to correct any inaccuracies or omissions.
• The right to request the erasure of any personal information held by the Council where the Council no longer has legal reason to hold the information.
• The right to request that your information is only processed in certain ways.
• The right to data portability.
• The right to object to the Council processing your personal information.

These are not absolute rights and there may be circumstances where the Council is legally obliged to process your information in a particular way. The Council has published a guide which sets out in details your rights and how you can exercise them. The Guide is available from the Council’s reception area or on the Council’s website.

Sharing your information

The Council is legally obliged to share certain data with other public bodies such as HMRC and will do so where the law requires this; the Council will also generally comply with requests for specific information from other regulatory and law enforcement bodies where this is necessary and proportionate.  Information is also analysed internally in order to provide management information, investigate fraud, ensure our records are up-to-date, inform service delivery reform and similar purposes. 

Transferring our information outside the UK or European Economic Area

The Council will not transfer personal data outside either the UK or the European Economic Area (EEA) unless this cannot be avoided. The Council will only transfer data outside the UK and the EEA when it is satisfied that the party which will handle the data and the country it is processing it in will provide adequate safeguards for personal privacy.  On the occasions when it does transfer your information outside the UK or the European Economic Area, the Council will inform you.

Profiling and automatic decision making

The Council does not use profiling or automated decision-making processes.  Some processes are semi-automated (such as anti-fraud data matching) but a human decision maker will always be involved before any decision is reached in relation to you.

How long do we keep your information?

The Council will only keep your information for as long as necessary. Full details of how long the Council usually retains your information can be found in the Council’s Retention and Disposal Schedule which is published on the Council’s website. However, there may be circumstances where we may need to keep your information for longer. Once the Council no longer needs to keep your information, it will be securely destroyed.

Right to complain

If you are unhappy with the way the Council has processed your personal data you have the right to complain. Any complaints regarding your data should be addressed to the Data Protection Officer. If the matter is not resolved, you can contact the Information Commissioner’s Office. The address and contact details for the Information Commissioner’s Officer are:

45 Melville Street.
Edinburgh.
EH3 7HL.
Telephone: 01312449001.
Email: mailto:scotland@ico.org.uk