Disabled Facilities Grant privacy notice

Last reviewed: October 2024

Our contact details

Name: Data Protection Officer

Address: Time Square, Market Street, Bracknell, RG12 1JD

Phone Number: 01344 352000

Email: dpo@bracknell-forest.gov.uk

Bracknell Forest Council is registered as a controller with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

You can find us on the ICO website - our registration number is Z4971654.

The type of personal information we collect

We currently collect and process the following information:

  • title
  • name
  • address
  • contact information (phone number and email address)
  • age and date of birth
  • marital status
  • unique identification numbers (National Insurance number and NHS number)

We also collect the following special category information: 

  • gender
  • nationality 
  • racial or ethnic origin
  • immigration status
  • employment status
  • student details
  • family make up and dependents 
  • financial information (income, benefits received, savings, investments, valuable assets, bank account numbers including those of partners or persons living with you)
  • other relevant information required to assess your situation that may reveal special category information (such as landlord’s details)
  • information relating to your physical and mental health, including whether you have a disability, medication, treatment you are receiving

How we get the personal information and why we have it

Most of the personal information we process is provided to us for one or more of the following reasons:

  • to provide assistance to carry out adaptations to a property for a disabled eligible occupant
  • to process your application 
  • to communicate with you on an ongoing basis

We receive information directly, or indirectly, from the following sources:

  • from you as an individual (through online forms, hard copy documents, emails, telephone conversations, or face-to-face discussions)
  • Bracknell Forest Council Adult Social Care, Children’s Social Care and Council Tax and Housing teams
  • Bracknell Forest Council Fraud teams
  • registered housing providers
  • your landlord
  • Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust – Bracknell Community Team for People with Learning Disabilities

How the law allows us to use your personal information

Lawful basis for processing

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

  • (a) your consent
  • (b) we have a contractual obligation
  • (c) we have a legal obligation
  • (e) we need it to perform a public task

Special category data 

Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the lawful basis we rely on for processing the information is Article 9 UK GDPR:

  • (a) your consent
  • (g) reasons of substantial public interest 

You can read the guide to lawful basis for processing special category data on the Information Commissioner's Office website.

Where we use consent to process your personal data, we will explain to you what we are asking you to agree to and why.

If we have consent to use your personal data, you have the right to remove it at any time.

If you want to remove your consent please email the Disabled Facilities Grants team at dfg@bracknell-forest.gov.uk.

If you remove your consent we are unlikely to be able to provide continued services to you.

Our ‘legal obligation' and the public task we must carry out is found in:

Who we share your information with

Information held by the council may be shared with the following organisations:

  • Bracknell Forest Council Adult Social Care 
  • Bracknell Forest Council Children’s Social Care
  • Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust - Bracknell Community Team for People with Learning Disabilities
  • registered housing providers
  • other council departments (such as the Fraud team) as necessary to provide the service and protect public funds
  • your landlord
  • third party service providers; such as builders and architects
  • internal auditors, or auditors commissioned by the council 
  • agency staff  
  • elected members - to resolve queries when acting on your behalf
  • Local Government Ombudsman - in the process of resolving disputes
  • The Cabinet Office - for the purposes of a data matching exercise called the National Fraud Initiative - the purpose of this exercise is to detect fraud and error and the council is legally required to participate

We share your information with these organisations in order to:

  • assess eligibility for the service
  • to process your application for the service
  • to assist in the completion of required adaptations

How we store your personal information

Your information is securely stored on our Electronic Document Retention and Management System (Microsoft SharePoint EDRMS). 

The retention of information will be dependent on the type of application and any agreements with the council. 

We will then dispose of your information by securely destroying it. 

Retention periods are laid out in the council’s retention and disposal schedule.

Your data protection rights

Under data protection law, you have rights we need to make you aware of. The rights available to you depend on our reason for processing your information.

Your right of access

You have the right to ask us for copies of your personal information. This right always applies. There are some exemptions, which means you may not always receive all the information we process.

Find out more about your right of access from the ICO.

Your right to get your data corrected

You have the right to ask us to correct information you think is inaccurate. You also have the right to ask us to complete information you think is incomplete. This right always applies.

Find out more about your right to get your data corrected from the ICO.

Your right to get your data deleted

You have the right to ask us to delete your personal information in certain circumstances.

Find out more about your right to get your data deleted from the ICO.

Your right to limit how organisations use your data

You have the right to ask us to limit the processing of your information in certain circumstances.

Find out more about your right to limit how organisations use your data from the ICO.

Your right to object to the use of your data

You have the right to object to processing if we are able to process your information because the process forms part of our public tasks.

Find out more about your right to object to the use of your data from the ICO.

Your right to data portability

This only applies to information you have given us. You have the right to ask that we transfer the information you gave us from one organisation to another, or give it to you.

The right only applies if we are processing information based on your consent or for the performance of a contract, and the processing is automated.

Find out more about your right to data portability from the ICO.

Making a request

You are not required to pay any charge for exercising your rights. If you make a request, we have 28 days to respond to you.

To make a request, email us at dfg@bracknell-forest.gov.uk.

Service adjustments

As a public authority and a provider of services to the public, we have a legal duty to comply with the Equality Act 2010.

This means we need to make service adjustments for anyone with a disability who contacts us in any capacity, to eliminate any barriers to accessing our services.

Our lawful basis for processing this information is article 6(1)(c) of the UK GDPR as we have a legal obligation to provide this. Our processing of special category data, such as health information you give us, will be based on article 9(2)(a), which means we need your consent.

We will create a record of your adjustment requirements. These will give your name, contact details and type of adjustment required, along with a brief description of why it is required. Relevant staff can access this to make sure they are communicating with you in the required way.

Please contact The Disabled Facilities Grants team at dfg@bracknell-forest.gov.uk if you need service adjustments.

How to complain

If you have any concerns about our use of your personal information, you can make a complaint to us at dpo@bracknell-forest.gov.uk

You can also complain to the ICO if you are unhappy with how we have used your data by:

  • visiting the ICO website
  • phoning the ICO helpline on 0303 123 1113
  • writing to:
    • Information Commissioner’s Office
      Wycliffe House
      Water Lane
      Wilmslow
      Cheshire
      SK9 5AF