Privacy and Complaints Policy

Pulborough Parish Council is registered as a ‘data controller’ with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO - Reg. No. Z6413427), the UK supervisory authority for data protection issues.

We comply with the Data Protection Act 2018, the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), and the Data (Use and Access) Act 2026. This ensures that your personal data is processed fairly and kept securely for no longer than is necessary.

Visitors to this website

When someone visits this website, we use a third-party service, Google Analytics, to collect standard internet log information and details of visitor behaviour patterns. We do this to find out things such as the number of visitors to the various parts of the site. This information is only processed in a way which does not identify anyone. If we do want to collect personally identifiable information through our website, we will be up front about this. We will make it clear when we collect personal information and will explain what we intend to do with it.

Security and Performance

We use a third-party service to help maintain the security and performance of our website. To deliver this service it processes the IP addresses of visitors to the site.

Links to other websites

This privacy notice does not cover the links within this site linking to other websites. We encourage you to read the privacy statements on the other websites you visit.

Use of Cookies

This site uses cookies to enable core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility. You may disable these by changing your browser settings, but this may affect how the website functions. We also use Google Analytics cookies to help us to improve our website by collecting and reporting information on how you use it. The cookies collect information in a way that does not directly identify anyone. For more information on how these cookies work, please see our 'Cookies page'.

Disclosure of personal information

We collect contact details via the website for the purpose of providing a service to existing and potential customers. We will never disclose personal details without the consent of the owner. Details are only held for as long as is necessary to fulfill the service request.

Access to personal information

Individuals can find out if we hold any personal information by making a ‘subject access request’ under the General Data Protection Regulations. If we do hold information about you we will:

• give you a description of it.
• tell you why we are holding it.
• tell you who it could be disclosed to, and
• let you have a copy of the information in an intelligible form.

Please make any such request in writing via our email address clerk@pulboroughparishcouncil.gov.uk or by post to our office.

If at any time you feel that we have failed to meet these standards, then please either contact us or make a complaint direct to the Information Commissioner using their website www.ico.org.uk/concerns

Data protection complaints procedure

Pulborough Parish Council aims to handle all personal data in accordance with the UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025. If you are concerned about the way we have collected, used or looked after your personal information, you have the right to make a data protection complaint to us.

How to make a data protection complaint

You can make a data protection complaint to us using any of the following methods:

• By email to: clerk@pulboroughparishcouncil.gov.uk
• By post to: our office

When you contact us, please tell us:

• your name and contact details;
• what personal information you are concerned about;
• what you think has gone wrong or how you believe we have not met data protection law.

How we will deal with your complaint

We will:

• acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 30 days of receiving it;
• make appropriate enquiries and investigate your concerns without undue delay;
• keep you informed about the progress of our investigation where appropriate.

Once we have finished our investigation, we will write to you to explain the outcome of your complaint and any steps we have taken or propose to take.

Who handles complaints

Data protection complaints are coordinated by the Parish Clerk on behalf of Pulborough Parish Council. Where necessary, the Clerk may consult with councillors or external advisers to ensure that your complaint is properly considered.

If you are not satisfied

If you remain unhappy with our response to your data protection complaint, you can raise your concerns with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection. You can do this via their website at https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/data-protection-complaints/ or by using the general concerns page at www.ico.org.uk/concerns.

We encourage you to contact us first so that we have the opportunity to address your concerns directly, but you are not required to do so before contacting the ICO.