Early Help privacy notice

Who is the data controller for the information I provide?

Liverpool City Council is the data controller for the information that you provide. Liverpool City Children and Families Service is committed to protecting your personal information.

Why we collect your data

Liverpool Early Help provides a wide range of preventative and advisory services and each will rely on a legal basis for us to collect, share and retain your information.

It is very important that we are able to plan, monitor and realign our delivery of services to meet the needs of Liverpool’s children and families. To do this, we carefully and responsibly use the information we collect. Where personal information is used for statistical purposes we will ensure it is anonymised.

In certain cases, such as safeguarding inquiries and criminal investigations we are legally obliged to provide information to the police. However we have procedures in place that allows this to be carried out in a secure and confidential manner.

What is the legal basis for collecting and processing this data?

All organisations must provide a legal basis for processing your information. In most cases this is found in the new data laws of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. For Children’s Early Help services we will obtain your explicit and informed consent.

Information we may collect

The categories of information that we collect, process, hold and share include:

• Personal information such as name, and address.
• Characteristics such as ethnicity and language.
• Information within the Early Help Assessment Tool (EHAT).
• Information required by our Hubs.
• Information required by our Children's Centres.

We may also collect information for authorised partner agencies in order to assist us in providing you with your services.

Who will your information be shared with?

Liverpool Children and Families Services work with a number of approved partner agencies including our Children's Centre/Hubs, and may be required to share your information with them in order to provide you with the services you require. In all cases we will ensure this is done in a secure manner, and the information only accessed by those staff authorised to do so.

These partners will also include organisations that we commission to provide children’s care and support. As they are delivering a service on our behalf these organisations must keep your details safe and secure, and as the data controller we will make sure that they comply with our required information sharing standards and protocols.

It is important that the local authority is able to plan and realign its delivery of services to meet the needs of Liverpool’s children and families. To do this we will carefully use the information we collect about how services are delivered and who is using these services.

How long will you keep this information for?

We will only keep your information for as long as it is required to deliver the services that we provide. Please see What we do with your data for the council's full retention schedule.

How will my information be stored?

Your information will be stored securely on our computer databases. Access to these databases will be restricted to those who are entitled to view and process your data. If the information is collected in a paper format we will also ensure it is kept secure and destroyed when no longer required.

Will my data be transferred abroad?

No.

What rights do I have when it comes to my data?

You have a number of rights that are set out on the How to access your data page of this section.

Where can I get advice?

View our Help and advice page for more information.