Adult social care, quality assurance and safeguarding service team privacy notice

1 Council contact details

1.1 West Northamptonshire Council

Registered Office:
One Angel Square
Angel Street
Northampton
NN1 1ED

The Data Controller is West Northamptonshire Council.

ICO registration number: ZA896620

Information about the services Adult Social Care Services provides can be found on our adult social care and wellbeing pages.

1.2. This privacy notice sets out the information for the Council’s Adult Social Care Service which covers:

community teams
learning disability teams
customer service centre
hospital adult social care team
safeguarding team
RIBU (recovery, independence, bed unit)
shared lives
reablement west
specialist support team for younger adults
day services
care homes
approved mental health professionals
deprivation of liberty safeguards team
commissioning and quality team
brokerage
financial assessment team and personal budget support service
assistive technology team
discharge and review team
supported living review team
therapy services (occupational therapy, physiotherapy)
visual impairment team

These are the main contact points for anyone to request adult social care support or to request advice and information regarding social care.

2 Information that we hold

2.1 Information about the types of data we collect to deliver this service.

The personal and special category data we collect varies according to the purpose of the contact. Applications for our services are not restricted to people living or working in Northamptonshire. Anyone is entitled to contact the Council about our service.

The information we hold may include:

full name
date of birth
age
sex
full address
telephone number
email address
social care ID
NHS number
family details
lifestyle and social circumstances
financial details
housing needs
case file information
visual images, personal appearance and behaviour

Where applicable we will also collect and process Special Category Data relating to:

Physical or mental health details
Racial or ethnic origin
Religious or other beliefs of a similar nature
Social care support outcomes
Criminal proceedings, outcomes and sentences
Offences (including alleged offences)

3. How and why your information is collected and used

3.1 How we collect this personal information.

Most of the personal information we process is provided to us directly by you in the following ways:

Requesting advice regarding adult social care services;
Requesting an assessment for support from adult social care services; and
Requesting advice and support to assist because you are at risk of abuse or neglect
Completion of adult social care survey

We may also receive personal information indirectly, from the following sources:

Family members
Friends
NHS agencies
GPs
Hospitals
Ambulance
Health visitor
Commissioned support providers
Police
Other Local Authorities

In the following scenarios:

Information to complete your assessment
To request an assessment on your behalf
Due to safeguarding concerns

3.2 Why we collect your information

There are a number of reasons why we need to collect and use your personal information:

Health and social care treatment
Health and social care management
Provision of support and services
To safeguard you
For statutory returns requested by the government

Much of what we do in Adult Social Care Services is governed by legislation, set nationally, which requires us to provide various services across West Northamptonshire. We process personal data to deliver public tasks outlined in legislation such as the Care Act 2014, Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Mental Health Act 1983.

The information we collect, and store is also used to provide an auditable record of service delivery and enables us to contact people initiating reports/issues to request further information or provide updates.

Whenever we collect information, we always limit this to only the details that are needed. We ensure that data is used and stored safely and securely. We require anyone we share information with, or who uses it on our behalf, to do so too.

All Adult Social Care Services staff receive regular training on data protection and information security.

3.3 Lawful processing

We rely on the following lawful reasons to process your person data in the Property Response Service.

UK GDPR Article 6 1 (e) processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller.

In respect of UK GDPR Article 9 grounds for processing Special Categories of Personal Data:

Article 9, 2(g) processing is necessary for reasons of substantial public interest, on the basis of domestic law which shall be proportionate to the aim pursued.

Article 9, 2(h) processing is necessary for the purposes of preventive or occupational medicine, for the assessment of the working capacity of the employee, medical diagnosis, the provision of health or social care or treatment or the management of health or social care systems and services.

This reason is qualified under the Data Protection Act 2018 Schedule 1 Part 1, 2 Health or social care purposes and Schedule 1 Part 2, 19 processing is necessary for health or social care purposes and Safeguarding of economic well-being of certain individuals.

4 What we do with the information

4.1 How we use your personal information

The Care Act 2014 places a duty on us to work closely with health colleagues to ensure the best level of care is delivered to our citizens. It also requires us to consider whether any universal preventative services or other services available locally could help adults and older people stay well for longer.

We use the information we have about you to assess your care needs, to draw up a plan of support with you, manage and monitor the quality of our services and to make our statutory statistical returns to government.

We collect only the information that we need to carry out these functions and we ensure that it is used and stored safely and securely.

All staff who have access to information about you will have received training on data protection and information security and they work to a code of conduct which requires them to respect the confidentiality of the information about you that they have access to in order to do their jobs.

As part of our ongoing efforts to improve services and enhance communication within the social care environment, we may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology for transcription purposes.

AI may be used to transcribe conversations into written text such as from phone calls, meetings, or interviews related to social care services. This enables us to create accurate records of conversations, service assessments, and case discussions, which are essential for ensuring the quality and consistency of care.

The use of AI in transcription helps streamline administrative processes, ensures accuracy, and supports effective decision-making. Transcriptions created using AI are stored securely, and the information is used solely for purposes related to your care or the delivery of social care services.

4.2 Who we share your information with

In line with the best practice outlined in the Care Act we will always ask you who you are happy for us to share your information with. We record what you say about this in our case files, so that we can comply with your wishes wherever possible.

In order to provide you with the best service possible we will ask to share information about you with people and agencies who know you or who might be able to help you.

This may include:

North Northamptonshire Council, if we are providing a service on their behalf under a hosted arrangement
Health providers
NHS agencies (GPs, hospitals, ambulance, health visitor)
Domiciliary care providers
Residential care providers
Education providers
Advocacy services
Day care providers
Mental health services
Government agencies (Department of Health, Department of Work and Pensions)
Local government
Police
Substance misuse agencies
Advocacy services
Fire and rescue services
Prepaid card providers
Direct payment support services
Housing associations
Careline
Voluntary sector organisations

We may share your information internally with our Housing Communities teams; who work collaboratively to support and safeguard the health and wellbeing of our residents. For example, if a housing concern is raised, or becomes apparent during the course of providing an adult social care service to you, we may share this information with our Housing teams to see what further support is available to you.

All information sharing is done in accordance with council policy. We require anyone we share information with, or who uses it on our behalf, to adhere to the Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR. We may need to share personal information with law enforcement or other authorities, which we will only do if required by the applicable law.

The sharing of information in health and social care is guided by the Caldicott Principles.

Use of your NHS Number in Adult Social Services

If you are receiving support from adult social services, then the NHS may share your NHS number with us. This is so that the NHS and adult social services are using the same number to identify you while providing your care. By using the same number, we are able to work together to improve your care and support.

We will use this number in an integrated care record system across a number of support services including GPs, hospitals, community matrons, district nurses and social care practitioners.

When we publish information in public, we will follow procedures that we have in place to remove personal data associated with the record.

We will share personal information with law enforcement agencies or other authorities only if required by applicable law and in accordance with UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

4.3 Automated Decision making

We do not use automated decision making for this processing.

4.4 Data Profiling

There is no profiling undertaken in relation to this processing.

5 How long we keep your information for and how we securely dispose of it after use

5.1 We keep your personal information for all aspects of processing in line with the council’s retention schedules.

We will stop using your data after we no longer have a statutory reason to use your information, this may be when your services have ended, and we are no longer required to use your information for service planning or improvement purposes.

Your data will be deleted 8 years after we stop using it. If a record comes back into use during its retention period, then the retention period will reset and begin again from the end of the second period of use.

5.2 We will securely dispose of your information in line with the Council's Retention Schedules.

6 How we store your information

6.1. Physical (paper) records

Paper files are being phased out. All new Adult Social Care files are held electronically. Old case files will be retained until they are destroyed at the end of their statutory retention period.

6.2 Electronic information

Digital data is securely stored on the council’s computer network or on cloud servers in the UK, EEA and in countries with adequacy or that have a regulator approved Privacy Framework (such as the USA).

7 Your data protection rights

7.1 The law gives you a number of rights to control what personal information is used by us and how we can use it. Please see section 15 of the council’s Privacy Policy for further information.

7.2 Please be aware that your rights may differ depending on the lawful basis for processing your personal data.

8 Who to contact

8.1 If you would like further information about how we use your personal information, or you wish to exercise one of your data rights or you wish to complain about the use of your personal information please contact the Data Protection Officer.

8.2 If you are still dissatisfied once you have contacted the Data Protection Officer, you have the right to complain to the ICO.

The ICO’s address:
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Helpline number: 0303 123 1113

9 Changes to this Service Privacy Notice

9.1 Privacy notices are live documents and will be updated or revised periodically in line with service changes and / or new legislation requirements.

This privacy notice was last updated on 10 January 2025.

The update reference number is: PNS/25/037/C

Last updated 10 January 2025