City of York Council (CYC) complies with the UK General Data Protection Regulations (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018, and is registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), reference: Z5809563.
We created this privacy notice in August 2025 and we will keep it under regular review.
We regularly review this privacy notice, and it was last updated in August 2025.
CYC is committed to ensuring that information is handled in accordance with the principles set out in data protection legislation and guidance from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
This Privacy Notice explains how and why we process your information, under Part 3 of the Data Protection Act 2018 for law enforcement purposes and the steps we take to keep your information safe.
CYC is the controller for the personal data we process, unless otherwise stated. You can contact the council’s Data Protection Officer at:
West OfficesStation Rise
York
YO1 6GA
Telephone: 01904 555719.
Email: information.governance@york.gov.uk.
You can find more information about the role of the Data Protection Officer in our Data Protection Policy Statement.
This privacy notice should be read in conjunction with other relevant specific privacy notices that are available in our Privacy Notice.
When appropriate we will provide a ‘just in time’ notice to cover any additional processing activities not mentioned in this privacy notice.
- How we collect your information
- What personal data we process and why
- Automated decision-making
- Collecting information automatically
- Children's information
- Lawful basis for processing your personal data
- How long we keep your personal data
- Data sharing
- Data processors and/or third parties
- Transfers of personal data
- How we protect your information
- Your rights in relation to this processing
How we collect your information
We get information about you from the following sources:
- directly from you
- from third parties acting on your behalf such as family member(s), advocates, councillors, MPs, and so on
- from our commissioned partners or contractors who undertake work on our behalf
What personal data we process and why
We will only process the information that is necessary, such as:
- name
- address
- email address
- phone number
- proof of identity if required e g passport, driving licence
- health information
- racial or ethnic origin
If its relevant and appropriate to, we may also have to process data relating to criminal convictions and offences, including past criminal convictions or offences.
When you complete an online form on the council’s website and you have provided your email address, we will send you a copy of your completed online form.
We will ask for your consent:
- to take part in surveys, consultation or other events to get your feedback, about the service and support you and your family has received
- to take your photo, video and audio record. You can find more information about how the council uses photos, videos and audio recordings in the Communications Team including photos, filming and recording Privacy Notice
You can withdraw your consent to these at any time by contacting haveyoursay@york.gov.uk.
We may use your information to create reports and statistics that are anonymous and cannot be linked back to you or individuals such as:
- statistical analysis
- statutory returns
- audit framework
- see how the council and its partners are supporting individuals
- help design better services
- inform funding decisions
We will inform you if your call is being recorded and you can find more details about our call recording at Call Recording Privacy Notice.
Automated decision-making
We do not carry out any automated decision making in complaints, feedback and compliance team services.
Collecting information automatically
Please see our cookies page for further information about the information we collect automatically when you use our website.
Children’s information
Where we provide services directly to children or young people, the information in the relevant parts of this notice applies to children and young people, as well as adults.
Lawful basis for processing your personal data
Any personal data, special category data and criminal offence data that we process about individuals is done so in accordance with one or more of the following Articles 6, 9 and 10 of the UK GDPR and Schedule 1 of the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018).
Article 6(1)
(a) Consent: the individual has given clear consent for the council to process their personal data for a specific purpose.
(c) Legal obligation: the processing is necessary for the council to comply with the law (not including contractual obligations).
(e) Public task: the processing is necessary for the council to perform a task in the public interest or for our official functions, and the task or function has a clear basis in law.
(f) Legitimate interests: the processing is necessary for the council’s legitimate interests or the legitimate interests of a third party, unless there is a good reason to protect the individual’s personal data which overrides those legitimate interests. (This cannot apply if you are a public authority processing data to perform your official tasks.)
Article 9(2)
(a) Explicit consent
(b) Employment, social security and social protection (if authorised by law)
(g) Reasons of substantial public interest (with a basis in law)
(h) Health or social care (with a basis in law)
This is supported by Schedule1, Part 2 (6) of the Data Protection Act 2018 and the following legal framework:
The Care Act 2014
The Health and Social Care Act 2008
The Children's Act 2004
The Housing Act 2004
The Local Authority Social Services and National Health Service Complaints (England) Regulations 2009
Where we process information relating to criminal convictions and offences, this is under Article 10 UK GDPR that covers processing in relation to criminal convictions and offences or related security measures. In addition, section 11(2) of the DPA 2018 specifically confirms that this includes personal data relating to the alleged commission of offences, or proceedings for an offence committed or alleged to have been committed, including sentencing.
Some of the Schedule 1 conditions for processing special category and criminal offence data require an Appropriate Policy Document (APD) to be in place, which sets out and explains the procedures for securing compliance with the principles in Article 5 and policies regarding the retention and erasure of such personal data. This document explains this processing and satisfies the requirements of Schedule 1, Part 4 of the DPA 2018 and supplements this privacy notice.
Our Appropriate Policy Document provides further information about this processing.
How long we keep your personal data
We will only keep your information for as long as it is needed then it will be securely and confidentially deleted or disposed of.
You can find details on how long the council keeps records at Council retention schedule.
Data sharing
We will only share your information where it is appropriate to, with:
- other CYC services
- other councils, government departments and agencies
- other organisations such as NHS
- third parties including our data processors, partners or contractors, who undertake work on our behalf
- internal and external auditors
In some circumstances, such as under a court order or safeguarding, we are legally obliged to share your information.
We will always satisfy ourselves that we have a lawful basis on which to share the information and document our decision making.
Additionally, we are required under the Public Records Act 1958 (as amended) to transfer records to the City or National Archives (TNA) for permanent preservation. Full consideration will be given to Data Protection and Freedom of Information legislation when making decisions about whether such records should be open to the public.
Data processors and/or third parties
When we have third parties providing parts or all of our services, systems, software, platforms, applications (apps) for us, we have contracts or agreements in place with them. These include:
- Aptean case management system. You can find out how they use your information in the Aptean Privacy Statement
- Our independent people and investigators Choices and Voices Care Ltd. You can find out how they use your information under the Privacy Policy section on the Choices and Voices website.
- Microsoft Teams, to contact you, to gather information from you, or if we are recording or transcribing our discussion or meeting with you, we will let you know. You can find more details about this in the City of York Council Microsoft Office 365 (MS365) Teams Meeting recording and transcription privacy notice
- SurveyMonkey, for our surveys or consultations. You can find out how they use your information in the SurveyMonkey Privacy Notice
- Zimma Ltd, trading as Ticket Tailor, for arranging and organising events. You can find out how they use your information in the Ticket Tailor Privacy Policy
- Eventbrite, for arranging and organising events. You can find out how they use your information in the Eventbrite Privacy Policy
- Delib's CitizenSpace (digital citizen engagement platform). You can find out how they use information at the Delib Privacy Notice
- WhatsApp to contact you. You can find out how they use your information at the WhatsApp UK Privacy Policy
- Microsoft Forms, as part of MS365. You can find out how they use your information in the Microsoft Privacy Statement
- Veritau Public Sector Limited (VPS), who provides services to the council such as internal audits. You can find out how they use your information in the Veritau Privacy Policy
- other specialist or assistive systems, software, platforms, applications (apps), to help provide our services and support to you and our staff
- YouTube, where we provide information in British Sign Language via the City of York Council YouTube channel, please read YouTube Privacy Settings and Google Privacy Policies
Transfers of personal data
We do not routinely transfer personal data, special categories of personal data or criminal offence data, outside of the UK but when this is necessary, we ensure that we have appropriate safeguards in place and that it is done in accordance with the UK data protection and privacy legislation.
How we protect your information
We're committed to keeping your information safe and secure. There are several ways we do this, such as:
- IT security safeguards such as firewalls, encryption, and anti-virus software
- on-site security safeguards to protect physical files and electronic equipment
- training for all staff and elected councillors
- policies and procedures
Your rights in relation to this processing
To find out about your rights under data protection law, you can go to the Information Commissioner's Office website.
You can also find information about your rights in our Privacy Notice.
If you have any questions about this privacy notice, want to exercise your rights, or if you have a complaint about how your information has been used, please contact us on email: information.governance@york.gov.uk, or on telephone: 01904 555719, or write to:
Data Protection OfficerCity of York Council
West Offices
Station Rise
York YO1 6GA