Adult Social Care Quality Team privacy notice

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The Care Quality Team finds information about service providers, and other resources. It includes ‘brokerage officers’ who arrange care services, for example, agencies that provide help with personal care and activities of daily living.

For example, if you are paying for some or all of your care and have a personal budget and support plan, we might be able to pay you the money direct to you, instead of paying for the service. That means you get more control over your care.

Why we collect your data

  • find service providers who can meet your needs and choices
  • give information about service providers, for example, costs of the service, registration details, star ratings or whether the provider can meet your specific preferences
  • arrange a service for you if you have a personal budget and you have had your support plan agreed by your social worker
  • provide information about different types of support available from the statutory, independent and voluntary sector
  • give information about a range of different services: day services care, home care, residential and nursing care homes

Additionally, but not limited to:

  • Commissioning and delivery of services to promote health and prevent ill health e.g., sexual health services, diet and weight management, sports services, stop smoking services, oral health advice and NHS health checks
  • Equality monitoring
  • Financial transactions
  • Health Equity Analysis (looking at differences in the quality of health and healthcare across different groups of people)
  • Health Needs Assessments. For example, Joint Strategic Needs Assessment and Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment
  • Identifying inequalities in the way people access services
  • Measuring the health, mortality or care needs of the population. For example: health and wellbeing surveys
  • Prevention and detection of crime
  • Protecting or improving public health
  • Public Health planning, monitoring and evaluation
  • Regulatory, licensing and enforcement functions
  • Research, including consultations
  • Safeguarding Adults
  • Service delivery
  • Service improvement and planning
  • Statutory requirements e.g., reporting to Government

Who we share your personal data with

We often work with health care professionals, third parties and the emergency services to ensure you the best outcome possible

  • Council services
  • Social Workers - social workers from adult social services help you decide, plan, agree and put in place the support and care you need (care packages). They will regularly look at your 'care package' with you to make sure it is right. If there are safeguarding concerns your social worker can help
  • Children’s Services for individuals transitioning between child to adult social care. They have a statutory responsibility to safeguard those at risk
  • We have integrated Mental Health and Learning Disabilities Services where the council and the local NHS Trusts work together
  • Finance, for example, the debt recovery team)Others we may share your data with:
  • Health care agencies including GPs and hospitals
  • Acute health services (Where a patient receives active, short-term treatment for a condition)
  • Counselling, specialist assessment, intervention, and support
  • Other local authorities i.e., referrals from us to them and from them to us
  • The police and fire service (for safeguarding purposes)
  • Probation
  • Disclosing and Barring Service (DBS)
  • Legal representatives
  • Professional regulatory bodies, like the Care Quality Commission
  • Voluntary Agencies /Third Sector, e.g., Inclusion Barnet, Mind (helping to support you with mental health problems in a non-clinical way without medication or a diagnosis)
  • Housing and housing support providers like Barnet Homes including help to understand your Health or Social Care needs, if you are being affected by an eviction or a decant from one of their buildings
  • Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government
  • Judicial agencies e.g. courts
  • Care homes, day care providers or residential facilities
  • Direct payment services
  • Education providers
  • Government agencies e.g., DWP
  • GP surgeries, health agencies, NHS

We will work with you to choose what, if any, information about you is shared with your family, friends, and support network.

The National Data Opt-Out

There are occasions where service providers will have a legal duty to share information, for example for safeguarding or criminal issues. The process for opting out will depend on the specific data and what programme it.

The National Data Opt-Out was introduced on 25 May 2018, to allow you to ‘opt out’ from the use of your data for anything other than your individual care and treatment, preventing it being used for research or planning purposes as listed above. The Opt-Out is in line with the recommendations of the National Data Guardian in her review of data security, consent, and opt-outs.

The National Data Opt-Out applies to the NHS and some of the activities of the council. If you are happy with use of your data for research and service planning, 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.

Health agencies and councils must check the NHS National Data Opt-Out system before using your data for research or planning.

You can change your national data opt-out choice at any time by using the online service at www.nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters or by clicking on "Your Health" in the NHS App, and selecting "Choose if data from your health records is shared for research and planning". See Adults Privacy Notice.

Legislation that applies

  • Care Act 2014 (Encourages caregivers to adopt a person-centred approach with vulnerable Safeguarding adults).
  • The Health and Social Care (Safety and Quality) Act 2015 - (a duty on health and adult social care providers to share information about a person's care with other health and care professionals). Consent e.g., surveys, consultations diets, stop smoking and sexual health
  • Local Safeguarding Children & Adults Boards Regulations 2006
  • Mental Health Act 1983, 2007
  • Regulation 3 of the Health Service (Control of Patient Information) Regulations 2002
  • The Children and Social Work Act 2017
  • The Crime and Disorder Act 1998
  • The Equality Act 2010
  • The Health & Social Care Act 2012 (plus consent under common law duty of confidence)
  • The Health & Social Care Act 2012
  • The Localism Act 2011
  • The Mental Capacity Act 2005
  • The Statistics and Registration Service Act (2007) as amended by Section 287 of the Health and Social Care Act (2012)
  • The Welfare Reform Act 2012

How long will we keep your personal data

In most circumstances, we retain your information for 10 years.

  • if your support or service is assessed as Adult Protection (Safeguarding), we retain your information for 10 years from last contact or 10 years from date of death
  • for clients receiving support from the Mental Health Service, we retain your information for 20 years from last contact or 10 years from date of death
  • if you have made a complaint, sent us a compliment, or made representation, we retain your information for 10 years from last contact or 10 years from date of death
  • for services involving financial assessments and invoicing, we retain your documentation for 10 years from last contact or 10 years from date of death
  • for Deputyship, Property and Protection, we retain your data for 10 years from last contact, a zero balance, or date of death