Legal services – children’s and adults

Who do you keep information about?

  1. Persons – typically children, potential adopters, adults, older adults, family members, persons with disability, persons with mental health or capacity issues, and others who we are requested to provide internal advise about (this may also include advice about possible legal proceedings to be brought by or brought against the Council).
  2. Persons involved in legal proceedings – including applicants, respondents, guardian ad litem, official solicitor, witnesses, experts and other persons involved in legal proceedings.
  3. Other external professionals or staff – including education and school/academy staff, Court and Tribunal staff, other legal professionals, persons working for statutory and third sector bodies.
  4. Persons working for external organisations and agencies we provide advice or legal services to – this includes staff working for neighbouring Councils, parish councils, schools and academies.

Why do you keep information about me?

  1. Processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the controller is subject (including, the need to maintain child protection records about children suffering or at the risk of harm, responding to child protection concerns [including commencing legal proceedings], general legal advice and case management about issues concerning adults and children, adoption proceedings, responding to private law proceedings, Court of Protection casework and legal proceedings).
  2. Processing is necessary to protect the vital interests of a data subject or another person (including, dealing with public interest immunity issues in criminal trials).
  3. Processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller (including the documents obtained in pre proceedings because of child protection concerns, dealing with questions about the ordinary residence of vulnerable adults, requests for warrants under mental health legislation, displacement of the nearest relative under mental health legislation, dealing with SEND Tribunal matters, making applications for criminal injuries compensation on behalf of children in care).

The conditions that are relied on for the processing of special category data are:

  2. Processing is necessary for the purposes of carrying out the obligations and exercising specific rights of the controller or the data subject in the field of employment and social security and social protection law.
  3. Processing is necessary for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims or whenever the courts are acting in their judicial capacity.

Who can see my information?

Depending on the nature of the matter being dealt with, the information may be shared with one or more of the following: 

  • Other parties to legal proceedings or investigations
  • External advisors (including barristers, solicitors and experts)
  • The Courts and Tribunal Service
  • External bodies to whom the Council may be required to provide information (such as the Ombudsman, professional bodies and regulators)
  • The police
  • Health professionals
  • Advocacy services
  • Official solicitor
  • Home Office
  • Registrar of births deaths and marriages
  • Other local authorities

How do you store the information you keep about me?

  1. Information is stored on drives with restricted access to persons who are required to be involved in using and processing of the information.
  2. Hard copy material (i.e. for advisory work, court hearings or investigation purposes) is securely stored.

Is my information transferred to a third country or international organisation?


How long do you keep information about me?

General advice and litigation – 6 years from closure of case/last action, but with longer retention periods for cases involving children (up to 75 years) and cases involving adults lacking capacity or subject to mental health proceedings (10/20 years).

Public interest immunity matters – 3 years from date of request.



How did the Council get my personal data?

The information may be provided by the data subject, adults and children’s services, health, the police, schools and academies, witnesses, complainants, the court, other parties to litigation, external third parties, and professional directories.

What sort of information do you keep?

The following may apply:

Personal data:

  1. Name
  2. Identification number
  3. Location data
  4. Online identifier
  5. One or more factors specific to the physical identity of a natural person
  6. One or more factors specific to the physiological identity of a natural person
  7. One or more factors specific to the genetic identity of the person
  8. One or more factors specific to the mental identity of a person
  9. One or more factors specific to the economic identity of a person
  10. One or more factors specific to the cultural identity of a person
  11. One or more factors specific to the social identity of a person

Special categories of personal data:

  1. Racial or ethnic origin
  2. Political Opinions
  3. Religious or philosophical beliefs
  4. Trade union membership
  5. Genetic data
  6. Biometric data for the purposes of uniquely identifying a natural person
  7. Data concerning health
  8. Data concerning a natural person’s sex life or sexual orientation