Careline Service privacy notice

Your information is collected for the purpose of processing and managing the Careline alarm service you receive and fulfilling statutory obligations, as required to fulfil the council’s duties under the following legislation, statutory or contractual requirement or obligation.

The council obtains information from the following sources:

Organisation 
Harrow Careline

Context
Harrow share data relating to performance of the service and when required will share details of current users, including personal data including address and telephone number.

• Client Name
• Client Address & Phone
• National Insurance Number
• Age
• Gender
• Ethnicity &Religion
• Medical history
• Next of Kin Name
• Next of Kin Address & Phone

This information is only used for the intended purpose but if we intend to use it for any other purpose; we will normally ask you first. In some cases, the Council may use your information for another purpose if it has a legal duty to do so, to provide a complete service to you, to prevent and detect fraud, or if there is a risk of serious harm or threat to life.

We collect information in a number of ways, for example, by letter, email, face-to-face, telephone, online forms etc. Personal information of clients who subscribe to the Careline service is received via email, post or online.

We will only process and share your information as set out here and at all times in accordance with the data protection principles set out in the Data Protection Legislation. These principles include keeping your information secure and up-to-date and using it in a fair and lawful way for specified purposes.

In most other circumstances we will ask you for your written consent to share your information in any other way and with any other individual/organisation, such as your solicitor. The types of situation when we may not ask for your consent are when it is in the interest of safeguarding either you or a member of your household.

We will use the information for the following purposes:

• To share with external and internal bodies responsible for administering public funds
• To share with other council services to assess your eligibility to other
  financial assistance from the council
• To identify and advise you about other council services you might be interested in
• To recover debts

We may match the information you provide with other information we hold about you whether provided to us by you, or anyone else. We may also obtain other information about you from third parties and give information to them to:

1. Make sure the information is accurate
2. Prevent, detect and prosecute fraud
3. Protect public funds
4. Recover debts owed to the council
   

These third parties include:

• Hospitals, emergency services such as London Ambulance Service, Fire
  Service and other government departments
• Other local authorities
• Private-sector organisations such as Housing Associations, and organisations that work closely with Careline
•  Any organisation that the council contracts with to administer public funds

Brent Council does not process your information with third countries outside of the UK or EU zone without the safeguards being in place that are equivalent to the Data Protection Act 2018 or the General Data Protection Regulations (UK GDPR).

Your information shall be processed for the duration of the Careline service and retained for as long as necessary in line with statutory retention periods. Harrow process the information in order to deliver the service on behalf of Brent. Harrow’s arrangements are as follows:

Personal information will be held for as long as the client is receiving the service. When the service is no longer required the record is archived. Every 6 months, system deletes archived records more than 18 months old (18 months to allow for debt recovery and return of equipment), as part of the maintenance agreement. This retention period complies with TSA standards and requirement to access recordings that are no more than 18 months old.

The analogue telephone network, also known as the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), is due to be retired, necessitating the migration of customers. We are working with your Communications Provider to migrate you to a full digital service. Your Communications Provider will contact you when they are ready to migrate your lines.

We have a data-sharing agreement between your Communications Provider and the Council. This will allow them to understand which clients are telecare device users that may be affected during the digital migration.

Brent Council is required by law to protect the public funds it administers. We may use any of the information you provide to us for the prevention and detection of crime. We may also share this information with other bodies responsible for auditing or administering public funds including the Public Sector Audit Appointments Ltd, National Audit Office, Financial Reporting Council, Cabinet Office, the Department for Work and Pensions, and other local authorities, HM Revenue and Customs, and the Police.

If you are dissatisfied with the processing of your information, you can raise your concern with the council’s Data Protection Officer via email on dpo@brent.gov.uk. You have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (www.ico.org.uk).