Hewlett Court Privacy Notice

Hewlett Court (Reference number ZA250134)provides sheltered housing accommodation for the elderly which supports people toward independent living in a safe and caring environment. In providing residents with our best services, Hewlett Court has a duty to collect, hold and process relevant personal information. To manage our responsibilities, we have a range of policies and procedures to ensure that any personal or sensitive personal information supplied that identifies a person is collected only with active consent and will always be held securely and treated confidentially in line with the applicable regulations.

What personal information we collect about: a) residents b) employees and c) third parties

1. Residents. To ensure wellbeing and to keep in line with health and safety, we must collect some personal information on our residents, including financial information, which is essential to our being able to provide effective help and support. The information is contained in individual files (manual and electronic) all of which are subject to strict security and authorised access only. Personal information that becomes inactive, e.g. from enquiries or prospective residents who do not enter the home is also kept securely for as long as it is needed, before being safely disposed of.

b.Employees and volunteers. We operate a safe employment policy to comply with the regulations in which all personal information obtained, including CVs and references, is, like residents information, securely kept retained and disposed of in line with data protection requirements. All employees have a right to access any information about them.

1. Third parties. All personal information obtained about others associated with the delivery of the wellbeing service, including contractors, visitors, etc will be protected in the same ways as information on residents and employees.

How we collect information

The bulk of residents, employees and thirds parties personal information is collected directly from them or through form filling, mainly manually, but also electronically for some purposes e.g. when contacting us through our website.

With residents, we continue to build on the information provided in enquiry and with general wellbeing assessments, which feed into residents’ wellbeing files.

With employees, personal information is obtained directly and with consent through such means as references, assessments, testimonials and criminal records (DBS) checks. When recruiting staff, we seek applicants explicit consent to obtain all the information needed for us to decide to employ them.

All personal information obtained to meet our regulatory requirements will always be treated in line with our explicit consent, data protection and confidentiality policies.

Our website and databases are regularly checked by experts to ensure they meet all privacy standards and comply with our general data protection security and protection policies.

What we do with personal information

All personal information obtained on residents, employees and third parties is used only to ensure that we provide a workplace and home, which meets all regulatory standards and requirements. It will not be disclosed or shared for any other purpose.

How we keep your information safe

As already stated, we have a range of policies that enable us to comply with all data protection requirements.

With whom we might share information

We only share the personal information of residents, employees and others with their consent on a reasonable need to access and know basis, observing strict protocols in doing so. Most information sharing of residents information is with professionals and agencies involved with their care and treatment. Likewise, we would not disclose information about our employees without their clear agreement, e.g. when providing a reference.

The only exceptions to this general rule would be where we are required by law to provide information e.g. to help with a criminal investigation. Even when seeking to notify the local authority of a safeguarding matter, we would only do so with consent or ensure that the information provided is treated in confidence.

Where we provide information for statistical purposes, the information is aggregated and provided anonymously so that there is no privacy risk involved in its use.

How personal information held at Hewlett Court can be accessed

There are procedures in place to enable any staff member, employee or third party whose personal information we possess and might process in some way, to have access to that information on request.

How long we keep information

There are strict procedures in place that determine how long we will keep the information, which are in line with the relevant legislation and regulations. Data held is then confidentially destroyed and/or deleted.

How we keep our privacy policies up to date

The staff appointed to control and process personal information in our home will be delegated to assess all privacy risks continuously and to carry out comprehensive reviews of our data protection policies, procedures and protocols at least annually.