Data protection policy

Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead (RBWM) Council comply with data protection legislation, including the Data Protection Act 2018 and the General Data Protection Regulation 2018.

Personal information is processed for the purpose it was collected and in accordance with applicable data protection legislation. 

See our Data protection policy for more information.

Data Controller

RBWM is a data controller of the personal information it processes. This means we are responsible for the personal information we process about you, including the processing activities of third parties we engage who undertake processing on our behalf.

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) maintains a register of data controllers, which can be found at ico.gov.uk.

Data subject rights

Data protection legislation provides you (the data subject) with rights in relation to the personal information we hold (and process) about you, including your right to:

• Be informed about the collection and the use of their personal data
• Access personal data and supplementary information
• Have inaccurate personal data rectified
• Erasure (be forgotten) in certain circumstances
• Restrict processing in certain circumstances
• Data portability, which allows the data subject to obtain and reuse their personal data for their own purposes across different services
• Object to processing in certain circumstances
• Have rights in relation to automated decision making and profiling
• Withdraw consent at any time (where relevant)
• Complain to the Information Commissioner Office (ICO).

Subject access right

A subject access request gives individuals (data subjects) the right to access the personal information an organisation is processing about them.

You can make a subject access request by contacting the RBWM Information Governance Team or by emailing DPO@rbwm.gov.uk.

In order to process your request, please provide the following:

• Details of the information you require and who from. For example, where applicable, a specific time period, Council department or specific documents containing your personal information which you are seeking. 
• Verification of your ID (such as a copy of your driving licence or passport is acceptable). If an agent is acting your behalf, then we also require a letter of authorisation.  

Please note that RBWM work with partner organisations who may process your personal information.

You should contact them if you require access to your personal information in relation to the following:

• Children's services for RBWM are delivered by Achieving for Children (AfC). You will need to contact AfC directly in order to make a request for personal information in relation to children's information. 
• Adult services for RBWM are delivered by Optalis .You will need to contact Optalis directly in order to make a request for personal information in relation to Adult Social Care information. 

A guide to your rights

The aim of the information below is to explain what your rights further. 

Why is personal information held by the council?

In order to deliver council services, RBWM may process your personal information. We process your personal information in compliance with data protection legislation.

Each Council service area must publish and maintain privacy notices which provide information about personal data processing.

You can find out more about why we process your personal information by reading our privacy notices which can be found on our Privacy Notices webpage. 

How is personal information kept and who is responsible?

RBWM processes personal information both electronically and occasionally on paper . Each system is the responsibility of a designated service manager who must make sure that access is properly controlled and information is appropriately and lawfully used. 

Who is information shared with?

We may share personal information with third parties outside of RBWM in accordance with data protection legislation where we are legally permitted to do so, for example, to assist the police with a criminal investigation. 

Do I have a right to a copy of my information?

Data protection legislation gives individuals the right to access their personal information which may include providing you with a copy of the information we hold about you or informing you of what we have stored about you. 

Do I have a right to a copy of my child’s information?

This depends on the age of your children. In accordance with data protection legislation children above the age of 12 can make their own request for information and anyone acting on their behalf requires their explicit written consent. 

How can I apply to access my information?

You can request access to your personal information face to face, via our website, post, or email.

Please find further details below:

Data Protection Officer
RBWM Council
Town Hall
St Ives Road
Maidenhead
SL6 1RF
E-mail: dpo@rbwm.gov.uk 

We have one month to respond to your request once acknowledged and valid ID has been received.

I think the personal information RBWM holds about me is incorrect what should I do?

You should contact our Data Protection Officer with details of the personal information you wish to be rectified with a copy of your ID. 

I'm not happy with the way RBWM has handled my personal information:

If you're unhappy with the way we have handled your personal information and have not received a satisfactory response from us, you can make a complaint to the ICO whose details are below:

The Information Commissioner Office (ICO)
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Tel: 01625 545700