Personal information charter

This charter sets out what you can expect from the Department of Health and Social Care when we ask for or hold your personal information - and what we ask for from you.

The charter covers correspondence, involvement in public policy consultations or any other dealings that lead to us holding personal information about you.

What you can expect from us, and what we ask from you

We need to handle personal information about you so that we can provide better services.

High standards in handling personal information are very important to us, because they help us maintain the confidence of everyone who deals with us. So when we ask you for personal information, we will process your personal data in line with our privacy notice.

In return, we ask you to:

  • give us accurate information
  • tell us as soon as possible if there are any changes, such as a new address
  • let us know, at the time of writing, if you would like your correspondence or enclosed documents returned to you

This helps us to keep your information reliable and up to date, and ensures your correspondence is returned if requested.

Agencies and arm’s length bodies

Most of our agencies and arm’s length bodies hold personal data for specific purposes that are set out in their own information charters. For example, NHS Blood and Transplant holds information on patients requiring transplants so that a match can be arranged efficiently once an organ becomes available.

How we protect your personal data at DHSC

When we process your information we will keep to the law, including the General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. Through appropriate management and strict controls, we will follow the 7 principles of data protection described in the act.

We will also ensure that:

  • there is someone with specific responsibility for data protection in the organisation (the nominated person is called the Data Protection Officer)
  • everyone managing and handling personal information understands that they are contractually responsible for following good data protection practice, is appropriately trained to do so and is appropriately supervised
  • we deal with enquiries about how we handle personal information promptly and courteously
  • we describe how we handle personal information clearly, regularly review and audit how we manage personal information, and regularly assess and evaluate methods of handling personal information

How to contact DHSC’s Data Protection Officer

The contact details for our Data Protection Officer are:

Data Protection Officer
Department of Health and Social Care
39 Victoria Street
London
SW1H 0EU

Email: data_protection@dhsc.gov.uk

How to make a ‘right of access’ request to DHSC

The Data Protection Act allows you to find out what information we hold about you. This is known as the ‘right of access’. We do not charge a fee for this service.

To request access to personal data DHSC holds about you, please email us at data_protection@dhsc.gov.uk, or write to us at the address given above.

We are required to supply you with your personal data within 30 days of receiving a valid request. If we cannot meet this deadline, we’ll keep you informed of progress towards fulfilling your request.

Find out more about how we deal with personal information

To find out more about how we deal with personal information, see:

Contact us at data_protection@dhsc.gov.uk (or write to us at the address given above) if you’d like a hard copy of our personal information charter or want to find out about:

  • agreements we have with other organisations for sharing information
  • circumstances where we can pass on your personal information without telling you - for example, to prevent and detect crime or to produce anonymised statistics
  • our instructions to staff on how to collect, use and delete your personal information
  • how we check the information we hold is accurate and up to date

Independent advice on data protection and privacy

You can get independent advice about data protection, privacy and data-sharing issues from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

You can contact them at:

The Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Telephone: 0303 123 1113

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