Property and contracts privacy notice

First published

27 Aug 2024

Last updated

27 Aug 2024

Property and contracts privacy notice

Find out how Stirling Council uses personal data by checking the Council’s website at the following address:

https://www.stirling.gov.uk/privacy-statement/

Our website contains a Register of Data Processing which lists all the different ways
in which the Council uses personal data.

This Privacy Notice provides more information about just one of those processes.

Who do I contact about my personal information?

The Council has a Data Protection Officer to make sure it is complying with data protection laws.

They can be contacted at:

Data Protection Officer
Stirling Council
Old Viewforth
14-20 Pitt Terrace
Stirling
FK8 2ET

Email: dataprotection@stirling.gov.uk
Telephone: 01786 404040

Why does the Council process personal information?

Personal data is process in furtherance of the performance of contractual obligations or of potential contractual obligations

The type of personal information we collect

The personal data is about: Potential purchasers, tenants, landlords, borrowers, contracting parties generally

Personal Data

  • Name
  • Address
  • Financial details

Rarely, could involve (list not restrictive) 

  • Physical & mental health details
  • Family circumstances
  • Employment details 
  • School and pupil records  
  • Criminal convictions, allegations of a criminal nature involvement with Police or criminal justice
  • Parental rights and responsibilities
  • Family compositions
  • Social work reports

“Special Category Data (rarely processed and matter specific)

  • Biometric data
  • Genetic data
  • Health (physical or mental)
  • Political opinions
  • Racial or ethnic origin
  • Religious or philosophical beliefs
  • Sexual life
  • Trade union membership

 Data relating to criminal convictions and offences is rarely processed, and would be matter specific. However, it could also include: Experian or Money Laundering or other background checks through authorised agencies. 

What makes it lawful for the Council to process this personal information?

We are processing personal data in performance of contractual obligations or of potential contractual obligation

Where does the Council obtain personal information from?

Personal data can be:

  • Provided by the Service
  • Disclosed by data subjects or their legal agents as part of the process
  • Obtained by carrying out standard legal searches
  • Disclosed by external government agencies
  • Disclosed by partners – e.g. other local authorities/police

Personal data is typically collected by Service or elsewhere and sent to us internally

Property ownership details from rates/council tax data Council house purchases require disclosure of financial information in relation to subsisting tenancies Details of planning or building control applications 

In most cases any personal data would not have been collected for the sole or main reason of use in legal proceedings and/or the provision of legal advice but will have been collected in consideration of the wider statutory role.  To give appropriate legal advice it may however be necessary to fully process information available to SC

In most cases any personal data would not have been collected for the sole or main reason of use in legal proceedings and/or the provision of legal advice but will have been collected in consideration of the wider statutory role.  To give appropriate legal advice it may however be necessary to fully process information available to SC

Disclosed as a result of necessary searches 

Personal Data can also be disclosed to SC by legal agents acting on behalf of data subjects 

Where does the Council keep personal information?

In paper format, and in electronic format on the council network.

How long does the Council keep personal information?

Data Protection laws require personal data to be kept no longer than is necessary.

Depending on the type of legal advice, different retention rules apply.

Who does the Council share personal information with?

  • Legal representatives of the data subjects
  • Government agencies – eg Land Register of Scotland, HMRC
  • Approved searchers for purpose of property searches
  • Partner agencies
  • External legal firms acting for Stirling Council

Some property and contract work may be outsourced, meaning that an external legal firm is appointed to deal with the matter, instead of the Council’s own legal services. In such circumstances both legal services and the instructing client service may send personal data to that firm to enable them to advise and represent the Council.  A letter of engagement would typically be entered into at the point of the external instruction.  The Council has a ‘framework’ of external firms which it may call upon for that purpose.  Those firms if instructed would be fulfilling the same role as legal services in furthering a statutory function. 

Your rights

You have the following rights under data protection laws. If you have a request under any of these rights, you can make a subject access request.

Access to your information

You have the right to request a copy of the personal information that we hold about you. This is known as a subject access request and is free of charge.  We must respond within one month, although this can be extended to three months if the information is complex.

Correcting your information

We want to make sure that your personal information is accurate, complete and up to date. Therefore you may ask us to correct any personal information about you that you believe does not meet these standards.

Deleting your information

You have the right to ask us to delete personal information about you where:

  • you think that we no longer need to hold the information for the purposes for which it was originally obtained
  • we are using that information with your consent and you have withdrawn your consent - see the 'withdrawing consent to using your information' section below.  Please note that in general we do not rely on consent as the legal basis for processing your personal information
  • you have a genuine objection to our use of your personal information - see 'objecting to how we may use your information' below
  • our use of your personal information is contrary to law or our other legal obligations.

Objecting to how we may use your information

You have the right at any time to tell us to stop using your personal information for direct marketing purposes, profiling or research purposes. 

Restricting how we may use your information 

In some cases, you may ask us to restrict how we use your personal information.  This right might apply, for example, where we are checking the accuracy of personal information that we hold about you or we are assessing the objection you have made to our use of your information. 

This right might also apply if we no longer have a basis for using your personal information - but you don't want us to delete the data.  Where this right is realistically applied will mean that we may only use the relevant personal information with your consent, for legal claims or where there are other public interest grounds to do so.

Withdrawing consent to use your information

Where we use your personal information with your consent, you may withdraw that consent at any time and we will stop using your personal information for the purpose(s) for which consent was given.

Your request to transfer your data

If we are processing your personal information with your consent or as part of a contract with you, and it is held in an accessible and machine-readable format, you have a right to ask us to transmit it to another organisation. This is known as the right to data portability.

Our profiling or automated decision-making processes

We make some use of automated decision-making processes but very little use of profiling.  Where these techniques are used, this will be explained in the specific privacy statements relating to those functions, together with a description of the reason involved in any automated decision-making.

Complaints and comments

If you want to complain about or comment on how we have processed your personal information, you should email dataprotection@stirling.gov.uk

If you are still unhappy with how the council handled your complaint, you can contact the UK Information Commissioner's Office at:

The Information Commissioner,
Wycliffe House,
Water Lane,
Wilmslow,
Cheshire SK9 5AF

Phone: 0303 123 1113

You can find further information on the Information Commissioners Office website.

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