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Guidance

Playground Fund: privacy notice

Published 18 June 2026

Applies to England

© Crown copyright 2026

This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.

Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.

This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/18-million-playground-fund/playground-fund-privacy-notice

The following is applicable to local authorities eligible to receive grants under the Playground Fund. This privacy notice is to explain your rights and give you the information you are entitled to under UK data protection legislation.

1. The identity and contact details of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and our Data Protection Officer

MHCLG is the data controller. The Data Protection Officer can be contacted at dpo@communities.gov.uk.

2. What personal data we are collecting and why  

Your personal data is being collected so that MHCLG can contact you regarding your eligibility for the Playground Fund. Contact with you will include communications on important Fund documentation, invitations to informational sessions, and monitoring and evaluation activities.

The following personal data is being collected for this purpose:

  • name
  • work email address

Other governmental departments may also use it to contact you about future about further evaluation work to undertake research to learn how we can evaluate the health impact of new outdoor spaces, should you express interest in this in the project proposal form.

If MHCLG works with additional delivery, monitoring or evaluation partners, your professional contact details and relevant form responses may be shared with those organisations where this is necessary for the purposes described in this notice. Any such sharing will be limited to what is necessary and will be carried out in accordance with UK data protection legislation.

3. Lawful basis for processing the data

The data protection legislation sets out when we are lawfully allowed to process your data. The lawful basis that applies to this processing is article 6(1) of the UK General Data Protection Regulation in that collection and use of your contact information for the purposes explained in this privacy notice is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest.

4. With whom we will be sharing the data

We may share details of your playground renovation with the following organisations:

  • MHCLG
  • DHSC (Limited to what they need to conduct research, should you agree to participation. Personal data will only include your contact details)
  • Defra & Natural England (Limited to what they need to conduct research, should you agree to participation. Personal data will only include your contact details)
  • DCMS (Limited to what they need to conduct research, should you agree to participation. Personal data will only include your contact details)
  • specialist play sector organisations or academic institutions, limited to what is necessary to support programme learning, specialist advice, monitoring or evaluation activity where commissioned or agreed by MHCLG

5. For how long we will keep the personal data, or criteria used to determine the retention period.

Your personal data will be held for 5 years, or until the MHCLG team is satisfied that all necessary evaluation work has been undertaken, whichever is sooner.

6. Your rights – for example, access, rectification, erasure

The data we are collecting is your personal data, and you have rights that affect what happens to it. You have the right to:

  1. know that we are using your personal data
  2. see what data we have about you
  3. ask to have your data corrected, and to ask how we check the information we hold is accurate
  4. complain to the ICO (see below)

In some circumstances you may also have the right to withdraw your consent to us having or using your data, to have all data about you deleted, or to object to particularly types of use of your data. We will tell you when these rights apply.

7. Sending data overseas

Your personal data will not be sent overseas.

8. Automated decision making

We will not use your data for any automated decision making.

9. Storage, security and data management

Your personal data will be stored in a secure government IT system.

10. Complaints and more information

When we ask you for information, we will keep to the law, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation and Data Protection Act 2018.

If you are unhappy with the way the Department has acted, you can make a complaint.

If you want to make a request to access your data, or another request in relation to your rights, or if you are not happy with how we are using your personal data, you can contact dataprotection@communities.gov.uk.

If you still have a concern about the way in which MHCLG has handled your personal data you can contact the Information Commissioner’s Office to make a complaint using their website service or by telephoning 0203 123 1113.  Further information about your data protection rights can also be found on the Commissioner’s website.

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