Data Protection Act
What is the Data Protection Act 2018?
The Data Protection Act 2018 is a law that came into force on 25 May 2018.
It was introduced to enable the introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and strengthen the protection of personal data.
Personal data can be used to identify a living individual.
How does the Data Protection Act 2018 protect my personal data?
The law sets rules and conditions that all users of personal information must obey.
It also gives you certain rights that we must respect when obtaining and using information about you.
Your personal data and rights
You have the following rights in relation to your personal data:
The right to access personal data we hold on you
You can request this at any time including details as to why we have that personal data, who has access to the personal data and where we obtained the personal data from.
Phone 0300 1234000 or email our Customer Access team
Alternatively, write to us at:
Customer Services
Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils
Endeavour House
8 Russell Road
Ipswich IP1 2BX
For more information about visiting us (including opening hours), please visit our Contact us webpage.
The right to correct and update the personal data we hold on you
If any of the personal data we hold on you is out of date, incomplete or incorrect, you can inform us and we will update your personal data.
The right to have your personal data erased
If you feel that we should no longer be using your personal data or that we are unlawfully using your personal data, you can request that we erase the personal data we hold.
We may not be able to delete your personal data if it is required to comply with a legal obligation.
The right to object to processing of your personal data or to restrict it to certain purposes only
You have the right to request that we stop processing your personal data or to ask us to restrict the processing.
We will contact you to let you know if we are able to comply, or if we have a legal obligation to continue to process your personal data.
The right to data portability
You have the right to request that we transfer your data to another controller.
We will comply with your request where it is feasible to do so within one month of receiving your request.
The right to withdraw consent
You have the right to withdraw your consent to the processing of personal data to which consent was obtained by contacting us either by email or post.
We may not be able to stop processing of your personal data if it is required to comply with a legal obligation. If this is the case, we will explain it to you.
When exercising any of the rights listed above, we may need you to verify your identity for your security to process your request.
If you are not satisfied with our response or believe we are not processing your personal data in accordance with the law you can complain to The Information Commissioners Office using their website or by phoning them on 0303 123 1113
Why does the Council need to keep personal information?
Personal data is collected and held so we can provide you with the services you require and carry out our role and duties as a local authority (such as for collection of council tax and rent, delivering housing benefit, collecting domestic waste, planning and building control and maintaining a record of the services provided).
Links to other websites
Our website contains links to external websites.
This privacy notice does not cover these links, and we would encourage you to read the privacy statement on the external websites you may visit.
Do we need your consent to use personal information about you?
Usually, the information we hold about you has been collected for a specific purpose, and in some circumstances does not require your consent, for example, a legal obligation (payment of council tax) or a public task (collection and disposal of waste).
Your consent may be needed when we want to use data for a different purpose. For example, we collect your name and address so we can send Council Tax bills, but we would need your consent if we used this information to send you something else at another time.
If you give consent for this action or any other form of (opt in consent), you have the right to ask for this consent to be withdrawn, where relevant.
How do I ask to see information held about me or exercise my rights?
In regards to exercising your rights under GDPR you can ask us for confirmation your data is being processed, have access to information that we hold about you and other supplementary information. This request is called a Data Subject Access Request, you can request this information verbally or in writing. To help you in this process we have prepared a form that you can download and complete by clicking on the link below to the Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils Data Subject Access Request form. This will ensure that we have all the details needed to process your request.
There is normally no fee for each request but under some circumstances the GDPR does allow costs to be passed on. If this is the case the council will contact you to explain.
The completed form should be sent or taken to one of the above addresses with evidence confirming your identity. This could be by a photocopy of your Birth Certificate, Passport, Driving Licence AND a letter or statement from your Bank, Gas or Electricity supplier sent with the form. All of this information is also shown on the form.
Normally the Council must respond within 1 calendar month of receiving your correctly completed application. Under some circumstances this period can be extended, and if this is the case, the Council will contact you to explain. Please note the period of 1 month will NOT start until the Council has received suitable identification.
Make a Data Subject Access Request
What do I do if the data is incorrect?
If you think your personal data is inaccurate or out of date you can write to us explaining why and ask us to correct your data.
What should I do if I think I have not been given all the information about me?
If you think you have not been given all the information we hold about you contact us and ask for the records to be checked again.
Further information and leaflets are available from:
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
WILMSLOW SK9 5AF
Information Commissioner’s Office website
Telephone: 0303 123 1113