Planning Service privacy notice

Planning Service Privacy Notice                                                       

When you are accessing or applying for services provided by Planning you will need to provide us with some personal data or information.

As the 'data controller' for the personal information - or data - we hold about you, South Ayrshire Council decides how your personal information is used/processed, and what it is used for.

This statement provides more details about how South Ayrshire Council Planning Service uses your personal data and provides information on how to get in touch with us if you need to know more.

Your personal data - what is it?

Personal data is information relating to a living person who can be identified from that data. Identification can be based on the information alone, or in conjunction with any other information. The processing of personal data is governed by the UK General Data Protection Regulation ('UK GDPR') and supplemented by the Data Protection Act 2018.

What Personal Data will we collect from you?

We will only collect the personal information we need to provide you with relevant information, services, and support. The personal data we will collect may include:  

• Name
• Address
• Land line telephone number
• Mobile telephone number
• Email
• Date of birth
• Heath Information
• Financial or Business Information
• Land Ownership Details

How will we use your information?

The information will be used to manage all Planning related matters. We will collect personal data in order to oversee the provision of Planning advice and services and to ensure compliance with relevant laws.  This includes:

• Processing of Pre-Application Planning Enquiries
• Processing and determination of Planning and related types of Planning application requests
• Preparation of Planning appeals lodged with the Department for Planning and Environmental Appeals (DPEA) / Local Review Body for determination
• Investigation and resolution of Planning Enforcement and Compliance cases
• Maintaining the Planning Register and the Planning Enforcement Register
• Preparation of the Development Plan and developing Planning Policy
• Preparation and service of statutory notices, agreements and orders pertaining to built environment conservation, outdoor public access, high hedges, or trees

What is the legal basis for using/sharing your information?

The legal basis is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the data controller as per Article 6 (1) (e) of the UK GDPR, and the task or function has a clear basis in law. The primary laws relating to Planning are:

• Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 (as amended)
• The Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2013
• The Town and Country Planning (Appeals) (Scotland) Regulations 2013
• The Town and Country Planning (Schemes of Delegation and Local Review Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2013
• Planning (Listed Building and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997

A full list of Planning legislation is available on request.

Special category data

For some activities, we also need to process more sensitive personal information about you known as 'special category data', for example health information. Processing is necessary for reasons of substantial public interest as set out in Article 9 (2) (g) of the GDPR and meets a condition in Part 2 of Schedule 1 of the Data Protection Act 2018.

Law Enforcement Purposes

When we are undertaking an investigation into non-compliance with planning legislation we are processing personal information under Part 3 of the Data Protection Act 2018 which sets out the requirements for the processing of personal data for law enforcement purposes ('LEP').

The 6 law enforcement principles are broadly the same as those in the UK GDPR and are compatible across the two regimes. Data subject's rights are similar to those found in the UK GDPR, however, the transparency requirements are not as strict, due to the potential to prejudice an ongoing investigation in certain circumstances.

When processing sensitive data (under the DPA) we must be able to demonstrate that the processing is strictly necessary and satisfy one of the conditions in Schedule 8 of the DPA or is based on consent.

Who will we share your information with?

Where necessary your information will be shared with:

• Scottish Ministers (DPEA)
• Scottish Government and its Agencies
• Non-departmental Government Bodies
• Scottish Environment Protection Agency
• Scottish Natural Heritage
• The Procurator Fiscal
• Ayrshire Roads Alliance
• South Ayrshire Council Services, e.g. Legal, Licensing, Building Standards, Grounds, Trading Standards and Environmental Health
• Other external agencies during the consultation process, as appropriate, where they are deemed to have a necessary and/or justifiable input to the proceedings of a Planning application/enquiry, e.g. Scottish Water, Historic Environment Scotland, Community Councils (a full list of consultees can be provided on request by contacting Planning.Development@south-ayrshire.gov.uk).

Information for Applicants/Agents:

Valid applications, (including the application form, plans and relevant documents) will be made publicly available for viewing on the Council's website within five days of receipt. This will only include publishing your name and address and, where an agent is acting for you, the name and address of that agent. 

Once an application has been determined and the period for a challenge to a decision has passed, the application will have been finally disposed of. At this time, the content of the application will no longer be published on the Council website, although a record of an application will exist.

Information for Interested Parties (such as Representees):

Where you have submitted comments relating to a Planning application, the Council will publish your comments on its website, and this will include your name and address.

Once an application has been determined and the period for a challenge to a decision has passed, the application will have been finally disposed of. At this time, the content of the application (including submitted comments) will no longer be published on the Council website, although a record of comments will exist and be retained as part of our statutory requirement to maintain the Planning register.

If a Local Review appeal is lodged in respect of an application that you have submitted comments on, your comments will be re-uploaded onto the Council's website for the duration of the review consideration and appeal period. After the challenge period has lapsed (6 weeks) submitted comments will no longer be published on the Council website, although a record of comments will exist and be retained, as noted above.

If an appeal against the application is submitted to the Scottish Government's Directorate of Planning and Environmental Appeals, they will also publish your comments online.  Further information on the Scottish Government's Appeals process can be found here: https://www.dpea.scotland.gov.uk/ and in their Privacy Notice here: https://www.gov.scot/publications/planning-and-environmental-appeals-division-privacy-notice/.

Online Planning Information System ('OPIS'):

You can create an account for the above system to submit comments in respect of Planning applications under assessment.  When you create this account, you are agreeing to the Terms and Conditions of the OPIS system. Any personal data submitted when you agree to register for an OPIS account is held separately from data held relating to Planning applications. If you delete your account on OPIS it will not delete any comments you have made in respect of any Planning applications we have considered. Comments made (including who made them) will be held as part of our statutory requirement to maintain the Planning register.

How long do we keep hold of your information?

We keep your personal data for no longer than reasonably necessary.  Your information will be retained in line with our Corporate Records Retention Schedule as follows:

Details of all planning retention periods can be found in our Corporate Records Retention Schedule.

What are your rights?

The lawful basis for processing/using your personal data directly impacts which rights are available to you. For example, some rights will not apply, if we are processing your data under public task (Article 6 (1) (e)) we are not required to:

• erase your personal information
• enable the right to data portability

However, you do have the following rights and can ask us to:

• correct your personal information if it is inaccurate;
• complete your personal information if it is incomplete;
• restrict the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances

You also have the right to object to the processing of your personal information and the right to access your personal information.

When we are processing personal data under LEP you have the following rights and can ask us to:

erase your personal information;

• correct your personal information if it is inaccurate; and
• restrict the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances

You also have the right to the right to access your personal information.

However, the above rights do not apply to the processing of relevant personal information in the course of criminal investigation or proceedings.

What are the consequences of failing to provide personal information?

Where the provision of your information to the Council is a statutory or contractual requirement, or a requirement necessary to enter into a contract, you are obliged to provide the information.

If you fail to provide the required information, we may not be able to process your enquiry.

What about Automated Decision-Making?

The Council does not use profiling or automated decision-making. Some processes are semi-automated (such as data matching for the prevention or detection of fraud), but an actual person will always be involved before any decision is reached affecting any individual.

Do you require this statement in a different format?

Please contact us if you require this information in an alternative format.

How can you get in touch with us?

If you wish to obtain any records held by the Council relating to you, or if you have any general data protection queries, please contact the Council's Data Protection Service at:

Are you dissatisfied with the way your Personal Information has been handled?

If you are unhappy with the way we have dealt with your personal information, you can complain to the Council's Data Protection Officer using the contact details noted above.

If you remain dissatisfied after contacting us, you have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner (https://ico.org.uk/for-the-public/):