Emergency support for residents

The proper handling of personal information is very important to the delivery of our services.

To make sure that we treat personal information correctly, we aim to meet in full the requirements of data protection law.

This privacy notice has therefore been produced to explain, as clearly as possible, how we process and use your personal data.

Why we collect your personal information

Southwark Council Local Support Team work to help and support Southwark residents who are vulnerable, experiencing a disaster, crisis, emergency or who find themselves in financial difficulties.

This service is provided to residents upon request by the individual or referral by a concerned third party.

The collection of personal information from those that use the service is vital to enable us to effectively support residents.

How we use your information

Southwark Council Local Support Team collects personal data for the purpose of assisting and supporting residents who are vulnerable, experiencing a disaster, crisis, emergency or who find themselves in financial difficulties.

To improve the service we deliver, we may also use your information to communicate with you and provide services appropriate to your needs. This could include help with applications for these services:

• welfare benefits
• the Emergency Support or Hardship Fund
• a blue badge
• a discretionary housing payment
• help with Supporting People services
• residential care
• domiciliary care - such as day care, home helps and meals
• free school meals
• food support and other support programmes

We may also use information to identify and support people who are at risk of becoming homeless or help families who may benefit from the Troubled Families programme.

Who has access to your data?

To process referrals to our service and fulfill our duties, we may need to share information with other organisations we work with or those who provide services on our behalf. These include:

• The Department for Work and Pensions
• other councils
• HM Revenue and Customs
• auditors
• IT and software service providers

Occasionally, your information may be accessed by contracted IT providers. Access by IT providers will only be for reasons of technical support and any viewing of data will be incidental to this.

There are other specific situations where we may be required to disclose information about you, such as:

• where we are required to provide the information by law
• where disclosing the information is required to prevent or detect a crime, including fraud
• where disclosure is in the vital interests of the person concerned

Your data protection rights

You have these rights in relation to your personal data:

• the right to be informed about the collection and use of your data
• the right to obtain access to your data
• the right to have any inaccurate or incomplete data rectified
• the right to have personal data erased in specific circumstances
• the right to restrict processing of data in specific circumstances
• the right to object to processing of your data in certain circumstances

You also have a right to make a complaint about our handling of your personal data to the Information Commissioner's Office.

More information

If you would like to know more about the information we hold, or the way we use it, please email the data protection officer at Southwark Council on  dpo@southwark.gov.uk  or write to Data Protection Officer, PO Box 68763, London, SE1P 4DJ.

Further information about data protection law and how it applies to you can be found on the Information Commissioner's Office website.