Luton Borough Council

Adult social care (ASC)

We're committed to protecting your privacy when you use our services. We have a data protection officer who makes sure we respect your rights and follow the law.

If you have any concerns or questions about how we look after your personal information, please contact us at [email protected].

Personal data

We collect and process information about people who:

receive support from our ASC services
have been referred to our adult safeguarding service by others concerned for their welfare

Depending on the service(s) received, the information we hold will vary. It may include the following personal and special category data.

Personal data

Name, address, email address, telephone number, date of birth, gender, household make up including contact information for next of kin and others providing significant support, information recorded during the assessment process, information recorded as part of your referral, national insurance number, financial information including bank account details and benefit entitlement.

Special category data

NHS number*, health information including mental health, mental capacity assessment, disability status and medical conditions, history of substance misuse and addiction, ethnicity, religion and sexual orientation.

*Your NHS number is used to so that both Luton Council and the NHS are using the same identifier whilst providing your care. This enables us to work together more closely and improve any care and support you receive.

Luton Council will also use the NHS number in an integrated care record across a number of support services including GPs and hospitals. This is known as the Share for Care record.

See the full Share for Care privacy notice here.

Purpose for using it

ASC uses your personal data to:

provide information and advice about services provided by ASC
carry out assessments to determine eligibility for support
provide services following assessments including but not limited to respite care, occupational therapy, adaptations and equipment, residential care, supported living
determine appropriate contribution towards service provision
assist in the prevention and detection of crime
help vulnerable adults to manage their money
provide tailored services to individuals without mental capacity
safeguard adults who are experiencing or at risk of abuse or neglect and who are unable to take action to protect themselves
enable the council to fulfil it’s duties and powers under the Care Act 2014, Mental Capacity Act 2005, Mental Health Acts 1983 and 2007, The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities)
enable planning of future service provision and to check our performance and the quality of services we arrange
statutory requirements such as reporting to government

Lawful basis

ASC uses you personal data under the following categories:

personal data: processing is necessary for the compliance with a legal obligation to which the controller is subject or 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
special category: processing is necessary for the management of health or social care systems

Who we share it with

ASC may share your personal data with the following organisations:

domiciliary care agencies
residential and nursing care homes and supported living providers
voluntary sector organisations
The Care Quality Commission (CQC)
Health and Care Professions Council
primary health sector such as GPs
clinical commissioning groups (CCGs)
hospital trusts such as Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust (including the Luton & Dunstable University Hospital)
ambulance services
police
health service providers
disability equipment suppliers
Luton Safeguarding Adults Board (LSAB) and partners
East London Foundation Trust (ELFT)
other local authorities with ASC responsibilities
central government departments such as Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
the courts
housing and housing support providers

Why we share it with them

To enable the council to provide a holistic approach to solving your health and social care support needs enabling individual service users to access services from across health, private and voluntary sectors.

To refer adults who are experiencing or at risk of abuse or neglect and who are unable to take action to protect themselves, to safeguarding services or other external services.

In certain circumstances we may be required by a court to disclose information about an adult. Disclosure may also be required under public health grounds or in relation to a criminal investigation.

NHS National Data Opt-out

We are one of many organisations working in the health and social care system to improve care for patients and the public.

Whenever you use a health or care service, such as attending accident and emergency or using Community Care services, important information about you is collected in a patient record for that service. Collecting this information helps to ensure you get the best possible care and treatment.

The information collected about you when you use these services can also be used and provided to other organisations for purposes beyond your individual care, for instance to help with:

improving the quality and standards of care provided
research into the development of new treatments
preventing illness and diseases
monitoring safety
planning services

Using your information in this way may only take place when there is a clear legal basis to do so. All these uses help to provide better health and care for you, your family and future generations.

Data being used or shared for purposes beyond individual care does not include your data being shared with insurance companies or used for marketing purposes and data would only be used in this way with your specific agreement. Research and planning data is usually anonymised so that you cannot be identified in which case your confidential patient information isn’t needed.

You have a choice about whether you want your confidential patient information to be used in this way. If you are happy with this use of information you do not need to do anything. If you do choose to opt out your confidential patient information will still be used to support your individual care.

To find out more or to register your choice to opt out, please visit choose if data from your health records is shared for research and planning page where you will:

see what is meant by confidential patient information
find examples of when confidential patient information is used for individual care and examples of when it is used for purposes beyond individual care
find out more about the benefits of sharing data
understand more about who uses the data
find out how your data is protected
be able to access the system to view, set or change your opt-out setting
find the contact telephone number if you want to know any more or to set/change your opt-out by phone
see the situations where the opt-out will not apply

You can also find out more about:

patient information and health and care research
how and why patient information is used, the safeguards and how decisions are made

Any automated decision making or profiling

When undertaking an assessment of an adult’s care and support needs we will automatically generate an indicative budget which is used for planning care arrangements.

Transfer of data to another country

We will not disclose data to another country outside the UK except where an adult is returning to their country of origin or other non-UK location.

Retention period

The data will be kept in accordance with our retention schedule.

Exercising your rights

You have the right to ask us to amend or delete your data as well transfer or limit its use. You also have the right to request a review of an automated decision where you think this is wrong.

Each request will be considered individually. Where we are required to keep your data by law we may be unable to action your request. In all circumstances we will explain our decision making in writing to you.

Please see our main privacy statement using the green button below If you want more information on how:

we keep your data safe
to request a change to the records we hold
to make a complaint

Date of notice

This notice was last updated on 8 May 2024.

Read our main privacy policy