Data Protection

Fair and lawful processing

The Council will justify all processing of personal data under one of the following conditions: -

  • the data subject has given his consent to the processing;
  • the processing is necessary for the performance of a contract or the entering into a contract to which the data subject is party;
  • the processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the Council is subject;
  • the processing is necessary in order to protect the vital interests of the data subject;
  • the processing is necessary for the administration of justice; or
  • the processing is necessary for the purpose of the legitimate interests of the Council provided such processing does not harm the legitimate interests of the data subject.

Where the Council processes sensitive personal data, at least one of the following conditions will also be true:-

  • the data subject has given his explicit consent;
  • the processing is necessary for the Council to comply with employment law;
  • the processing is necessary to protect the vital interests of the data subject, where it cannot be reasonably expected to obtain explicit consent, or to protect another persons vital interests where consent by or on behalf of the data subject has been unreasonably withheld;
  • the information contained in the personal data has been made public as a result of steps deliberately taken by the data subject - eg council members' political opinions are public by their very nature;
  • the processing is necessary in connection with legal proceedings, obtaining legal advice, and for the purpose of establishing, exercising or defending legal rights;
  • the processing is necessary for the administration of justice, functions of enactment, and functions of the Crown, a Minister of the Crown or a government department;
  • the processing is necessary for medical purposes only when undertaken by a health professional or other person who owes a duty of confidentiality which is equivalent to that which governs a health professional;
  • the processing is necessary for the commitments to Equal Opportunity and is carried out with appropriate safeguards for the rights and freedoms of data subject; or
  • the processing is specified by the relevant Secretary of State.

Departments will address their minds to the requirement to have legitimate basis for processing and continually review current processing. Failure to meet the conditions for personal and sensitive personal data will mean that The Council is in breach of the Data Protection Act 1998 and therefore subject to possible enforcement action by the Information Commissioner's Office.

When the Council collects data, the data requested will be adequate for the specified purpose(s); it will be relevant and not excessive. Carlisle City Council will hold the minimum personal data necessary to enable it to perform its functions. The Council will always inform its' data subjects, when obtaining data, of all the purposes for which that data will be used. Those purposes will be notified to the Information Commissioner's Office, and the data will never be used illegally.

The Council will endeavour to ensure that all data is accurate and up-to-date, and will correct inaccuracies quickly. Carlisle City Council will only hold personal data for as long as is necessary for the notified purpose(s), after which time it will be deleted. Where details of individuals are stored for long term archive or historical reasons and it is necessary to retain personal details within the records, it will always be done within the requirements of the law.

Redundant personal data will be destroyed under the Council's procedure for the disposal of confidential waste. A copy of the procedures is in Appendix (a). In general, paper waste is shredded and magnetic media (tapes, discs and CD archives) are electronically "wiped" or physically destroyed beyond recovery.


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Contact us

 01228 817000

Carlisle City Council
Civic Centre, Carlisle, Cumbria,
CA3 8QG