Your rights

You are legally entitled to ask to see any records we hold about you. However, we will not let you see any parts of your record which contain:

• confidential information about other people; or
• information a care professional thinks will cause serious harm to your or someone else's physical or mental wellbeing; or
• if we think that a crime may be prevented or found out by disclosing information to you.

This applies to paper and electronic records. If you ask us, we will also let others see your care record (except if one of the points above applies). To request to see the information we hold about you, please email info@colchester.gov.uk.

Whilst we try to ensure that any personal data we hold about you is correct, there may be situations where the information we hold is no longer accurate. If this is the case, please contact the department holding the information so that any errors can be investigated and corrected. You should let us know if you disagree with something written on your file. You may not always be able to change or remove the information. However, we will correct factual inaccuracies and may include your comments in the records.

In some circumstances you can ask for your personal information to be deleted, for example, in instances where:

• your personal information is no longer needed for the reason why it was collected in the first place
• you have removed your consent for us to use your information (where there is no other legal reason for us to use it)
• deleting the information is a legal requirement
• if your personal information has been shared with others, we'll do what we can to make sure those using your personal information comply with your request for erasure.

Please note that there are situations where the right to be forgotten does not apply. Often this will be where we are required by law to hold certain information about you.

In some circumstances, you have the right to restrict what an organisation carries out or ask that they stop processing your personal data.

When processing is restricted, the organisation may continue to store your data but not process it further. However, this right cannot overrule any legal obligation placed on the organisation to continue processing your personal information.

You have the right to ask for your personal information to be given back to you or another service provider of your choice in a commonly used format. This is called data portability.

For example, data portability could be used to upload your information to a third-party price comparison website to compare and identify best value for something like utilities or mobile phone use. It is unlikely that data portability will apply to most of the services you receive from the Council.

You have the right to object to processing of your personal data at any time.

This means that you can stop or prevent an organisation from using your data.

However it only applies in certain circumstances.