Fostering York privacy notice

City of York Council (CYC) complies with the UK General Data Protection Regulations (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018, and is registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), reference: Z5809563.

We regularly review this privacy notice and it was last updated in June 2025.

CYC is committed to ensuring that personal data is handled in accordance with the principles set out in data protection legislation and guidance from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

This privacy notice tells you what to expect when we collect personal information about you. It applies to CYC Fostering Services.

CYC is the controller for the personal data we process, unless otherwise stated. You can contact the council’s Data Protection Officer at:

Data Protection Officer
City of York Council
West Offices
Station Rise
York YO1 6GA

Telephone: 01904 554145.

Email: information.governance@york.gov.uk.

You can find more information about the role of the Data Protection Officer in our Data Protection Policy Statement.

This privacy notice should be read in conjunction with other CYC privacy notices that are available in our Privacy Notice and/or CYC policies and procedures.

When appropriate we will provide a ‘just in time’ notice to cover any additional processing activities not mentioned in this privacy notice.

How we collect your information

We collect information about you from the following sources:

  • directly from you
  • from third parties acting on your behalf such as family members, advocates
  • from our commissioned partners or contractors who undertake work on our behalf
  • Disclosure Barring Services (DBS)
  • referees or references (such as personal and/or employment)

The amount and type of information the Fostering Service will collect from you will depend on why and how you are contacting or interacting with us, and the service or information you are requesting. We will only ask you for the information that is necessary to provide you with responses to what you are contacting us about.

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What personal data we process and why

We process your personal data such as:

  • name
  • date of birth
  • contact details
  • your opinions, comments and feedback

We may also process certain ‘special category’ data, such as:

  • ethnicity information
  • medical information
  • details of relationships and sexual orientation
  • religious and philosophical beliefs

Where we process data relating to criminal convictions and offences, this includes details of any past criminal convictions or offences.

We use your information:

  • to deliver the fostering service
  • for foster carer recruitment campaigns
  • to answer enquiries about becoming a foster carer
  • to confirm your identity
  • for foster placement matching
  • to ensure that children, young people and foster carers receive a high level of care and support
  • to help improve our service
  • to provide anonymised reports, such as evaluations of the fostering service
  • to send you regular updates if you have signed up to receive them

We may also use your information to contact you to take part in surveys, campaigns or consultations about our foster care services. We will either ask for your consent to do this or will rely on the legitimate interests of the council as the lawful basis, to contact you for this purpose. This is because it's reasonable for us to ask you for your feedback, comments and opinions about this service as it is essential to help us meet our internal and external obligations in delivering the fostering service.

If you want to withdraw your consent please contact us on email: foster4york@york.gov.uk.

When you complete an online form on our website and you've provided your email address, we'll send you a copy of your completed online form.

We will ask for your consent to take your photo, video and audio record. You can find more information about how the council uses photos, videos and audio recordings in the Communications Team including photos, filming and recording Privacy Notice.

We may use your information to create reports and statistics that are anonymous and cannot be linked back to you, your family, or individuals such as:

  • statistical analysis
  • statutory returns
  • audit framework
  • to see how the council and its partners are supporting individuals
  • to help design better services
  • to inform funding decisions

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Automated decision-making

We do not carry out any automated decision-making without any human intervention in Fostering Services.

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Collecting information automatically

Please see our Cookies Policy for further information about the information we collect automatically when you use our website.

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Children’s information

Where we provide services directly to children or young people, the information in the relevant parts of this notice applies to children and young people, as well as adults.

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Lawful basis for processing your personal data

Any personal data, special category data and criminal offence data that we process about individuals is done so in accordance with one or more of the following Articles - 6, 9 and 10 of the UK GDPR and Schedule 1 of the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018).

Article 6(1):

  • (a) Consent: the individual has given clear consent for the council to process their personal data for a specific purpose
  • (b) Contract: the processing is necessary for a contract the council has with the individual, or because they have asked the council to take specific steps before entering into a contract
  • (c) Legal obligation: the processing is necessary for the council to comply with the law (not including contractual obligations)
  • (e) Public task: the processing is necessary for the council to perform a task in the public interest or for our official functions, and the task or function has a clear basis in law
  • (f) Legitimate interests: the processing is necessary for the council’s legitimate interests or the legitimate interests of a third party, unless there is a good reason to protect the individual’s personal data which overrides those legitimate interests (This cannot apply to the council’s processing data to perform our official tasks)

Article 9(2):

  • (a) Explicit consent
  • (b) Employment, social security and social protection (if authorised by law)
  • (g) Reasons of substantial public interest (with a basis in law)

This is supported by Schedule1, Part 2 (6) of the Data Protection Act 2018 and our legal responsibilities are set out in various legislation and statutory requirements including but not limited to:

Where we process personal data relating to criminal convictions and offences, this is also under Article 10 UK GDPR that covers processing in relation to criminal convictions and offences or related security measures. In addition, section 11(2) of the DPA 2018 specifically confirms that this includes personal data relating to the alleged commission of offences, or proceedings for an offence committed or alleged to have been committed, including sentencing.

Some of the Schedule 1 conditions for processing special category and criminal offence data require an Appropriate Policy Document (APD) to be in place, that sets out and explains the procedures for securing compliance with the principles in Article 5 and policies regarding the retention and erasure of such personal data. This document explains this processing and satisfies the requirements of Schedule 1, Part 4 of the DPA 2018 and supplements this privacy notice.

Our Appropriate Policy Document provides further information about this processing.

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How long we keep your personal data

We will only keep your information for as long as it is needed then it will be securely and confidentially deleted or disposed of.

You can find details on how long the council keeps records in our Retention Schedule.

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Data sharing

We will only share your information where it is appropriate to, with:

  • other CYC services
  • other councils, government departments and agencies
  • other organisations such as the police, NHS; health agencies; education providers
  • third parties including our data processors, partners or contractors, who undertake work on our behalf
  • internal and external auditors
  • Ofsted

In some circumstances, such as under a court order or safeguarding, we are legally obliged to share information.

We will always satisfy ourselves that we have a lawful basis on which to share the information and document our decision-making and satisfy ourselves we have a legal basis on which to share the information.

Additionally we are required under the Public Records Act 1958 (as amended) to transfer records to the City or National Archives (TNA) for permanent preservation. Full consideration will be given to Data Protection and Freedom of Information legislation when making decisions about whether such records should be open to the public.

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Data processors and/or third parties

Where we have third parties providing parts or all of our services for us, we have contracts or agreements in place with them. These are:

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Transfers of personal data

We don’t routinely transfer personal data, special categories of personal data, or criminal offence data outside of the UK but when this is necessary we ensure that we have appropriate safeguards in place and that is done in accordance with the UK data protection and privacy legislation.

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How we protect your information

We're committed to keeping your information safe and secure. There are several ways we do this, such as:

  • IT security safeguards such as firewalls, encryption, and anti-virus software
  • on-site security safeguards to protect physical files and electronic equipment
  • training for all staff and elected councillors
  • policies and procedures

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Your rights in relation to this processing

To find out about your rights under data protection law, you can go to the Information Commissioner's Office website.

You can also find information about your rights in our Privacy Notice.

If you have any questions about this privacy notice, want to exercise your rights, or if you have a complaint about how your information has been used, please contact us on email: information.governance@york.gov.uk, or on telephone: 01904 554145, or write to:

Data Protection Officer
City of York Council
West Offices
Station Rise
York YO1 6GA

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