Guidance

Local government finance: privacy notice

Published 14 April 2026

Applies to England

© Crown copyright 2026

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-government-finance-privacy-notice/local-government-finance-privacy-notice

We are strongly committed to protecting the privacy of data providers and certifiers, and we do all that we can to protect personal information.

1. The identity and contact details of MHCLG and our data protection officer

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is the data controller. The Data Protection Officer can be contacted at dataprotection@communities.gov.uk.

2. Why we are collecting the data

Your personal data is required so that you can be contacted in relation to local government finance Excel-based forms collected by MHCLG that are not collected via the online DELTA system. This includes the following forms:

  • Capital Estimates Return (CER)
  • Capital Outturn Return (COR)
  • Capital payments & receipts Q4 provisional outturn (CPR4)
  • Revenue Outturn suite (RO)
  • Non Domestic Rates Forecast (NNDR1)
  • Non Domestic Rates Outturn (NNDR3)
  • Council Tax Base (CTB)

The required personal data is your work email address, name and contact telephone number.

Using this data, we will be able to:

  • send out our local government finance Excel-based forms by email
  • ensure that our contact lists are correct
  • send out notifications about forms
  • contact you about data submitted by your authority

This then enables us to fulfil our functions and policies.

We will also use your email and phone number to contact you about data returns that are due, information about the collection timetable or communications relating to the DELTA system.

Where the Chief Finance Officer or Section 151 Officer is required to certify the form (such as the CTB, NNDR1 and NNDR3), we will also ask for these details to be confirmed periodically. This enables the Chief Finance Officer or Section 151 Officer certify the forms via email or electronically sign the forms. 

This processing is necessary for performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller (GDPR Article 6(1)(e)). MHCLG requires this information to collect and, where relevant, certify local government finance data that local government must submit to central government. These are set out on the Single Data List.

4. With whom we will be sharing the data

We share personal data between the local government finance data collection team and the team that provides DELTA helpdesk support service to keep contact details up to date between Excel and DELTA data collections. Any personal data on DELTA is covered by the DELTA privacy statement.

We do not share personal data with any other third parties.

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

Your personal data will be held until you notify us that your role has changed and you are no longer required to provide data to us. At this stage we will delete your details from our contact list. MHCLG will also periodically review contact lists, usually every year before forms are dispatched, to ensure our contact lists remain accurate and up to date.

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

The data we are collecting is your personal data, and you have considerable say over what happens to it. You have the right to request access to the personal data we hold about you and to ask for it to be corrected if inaccurate. In certain circumstances you can request that we erase or restrict the use of your personal data, or object to our processing. Some rights (such as data portability and automated decision-making) are unlikely to apply to this type of data, but you remain entitled to raise them, and we will consider your request in line with UK GDPR.

7. This data will not be sent overseas

8. This data will not be used for any automated decision making

9. How to complain if you are not happy

If you are unhappy with how any aspect of this privacy notice, or how your personal information is being processed, please contact Department Data Protection Officer at dataprotection@communities.gov.uk.

If you are still not happy, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office.

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

Tel: 0303 123 1113

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