This is Empire Care Solutions Ltd here’s Privacy Notice. As part of the services we offer, we are required to process personal data about our staff, our service users and, in some instances, the friends or relatives of our service users and staff. “Processing” can mean collecting, recording, organising, storing, sharing or destroying data.

We are committed to being transparent about why we need your personal data and what we do with it. This information is set out in this privacy notice. It also explains your rights when it comes to your data.

What data do we have?

So that we can provide a safe and professional service, we need to keep certain records about you. We may process the following types of data:

• Your basic details and contact information e.g. your name, address, date of birth and next of kin;
• Your financial details e.g. details of how you pay us for your care or your funding arrangements.

We also record the following data which is classified as “special category”:

• Health and social care data about you, which might include both your physical and mental health data.
• We may also record data about your race, ethnic origin, sexual orientation or religion. Delete if you do not record this information.

Why do we have this data?

We need this data so that we can provide high-quality care and support. By law, we need to have a lawful basis for processing your personal data.

We process your data because:

• We have a legal obligation to do so – generally under the Health and Social Care Act 2012 or Mental Capacity Act 2005.

We process your special category data because

• It is necessary due to social security and social protection law (generally this would be in safeguarding instances);
• It is necessary for us to provide and manage social care services;
• We are required to provide data to our regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), as part of our public interest obligations.

We may also process your data with your consent. If we need to ask for your permission, we will offer you a clear choice and ask that you confirm to us that you consent. We will also explain clearly to you what we need the data for and how you can withdraw your consent at any time.

Common law duty of confidentiality

In our use of health and care information, we satisfy the common law duty of confidentiality because:

• You have provided us with your consent (either implicitly to provide you with care, or explicitly for other uses)
• We have a legal requirement to collect, share and use the data
• The public interest to collect, share and use the data overrides the public interest served by protecting the duty of confidentiality (for example sharing information with the police to support the detection or prevention of serious crime).

Where do we process your data?

So that we can provide you with high quality care and support we need specific data. This is collected from or shared with:

1. You or your legal representative(s);
2. Third parties.

We do this face to face, via phone, via email, via our website, via post, via application forms, via apps

Third parties are organisations we might lawfully share your data with. These include:

• Other parts of the health and care system such as local hospitals, the GP, the pharmacy, social workers, clinical commissioning groups, and other health and care professionals;
• The Local Authority;
• Your family or friends – with your permission;
• Organisations we have a legal obligation to share information with i.e. for safeguarding, the CQC;
• The police or other law enforcement agencies if we have to by law or court order.

We review our data processing on an annual basis to assess if the national data opt-out applies. This is recorded in our Record of Processing Activities. All new processing is assessed to see if the national data opt-out applies. If any data processing falls within scope of the National Data Opt-Out we use MESH to check if any of our service users have opted out of their data being used for this purpose.

At this time, we do not share any data for planning or research purposes for which the national data opt-out would apply. We review all of the confidential patient information we process on an annual basis to see if this is used for research and planning purposes. If it is, then individuals can decide to stop their information being shared for this purpose. You can find out more information at https://www.nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters/.

We are applying the national data opt-out because we are using confidential patient information for purposes beyond individual care.

The information collected about you when you use health and care 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

This may only take place when there is a clear legal basis to use this information. All these uses help to provide better health and care for you, your family and future generations. Confidential patient information about your health and care is only used like this when allowed by law.

Most of the time, the data used for research and planning is anonymised, so that you cannot be identified and your confidential patient information is not accessed.

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 www.nhs.uk/your-nhs-data-matters.

What staff do we have?

So that we can provide a safe and professional service, we need to keep certain records about you. We may record the following types of data:

• Your basic details and contact information e.g. your name, address, date of birth, National Insurance number and next of kin;
• Your financial details e.g. details so that we can pay you, insurance, pension and tax details;
• Your training records.

We also record the following data which is classified as “special category”:

• Health and social care data about you, which might include both your physical and mental health data – we will only collect this if it is necessary for us to know as your employer, e.g. fit notes or in order for you to claim statutory maternity/paternity pay;
• We may also, with your permission, record data about your race, ethnic origin, sexual orientation or religion.

As part of your application you may – depending on your job role – be required to undergo a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check (Criminal Record Check). We do not keep this data once we’ve seen it.

Why do we have this data?

We require this data so that we can contact you, pay you and make sure you receive the training and support you need to perform your job. By law, we need to have a lawful basis for processing your personal data.

We process your data because

       We have a legal obligation under UK employment law;

• We are required to do so in our performance of a public task;
• We have a legitimate interest in processing your data – for example, we provide data about your training to Skills for Care’s Adult Workforce Data Set, this allows Skills for Care to produce reports about workforce planning.
• We are required to provide data to our regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), as part of our public interest obligations.

We process your special category data because

• It is necessary for us to process requests for sick pay or maternity pay.

If we request your criminal records data it is because we have a legal obligation to do this due to the type of work you do. This is set out in the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975. We do not keep a record of your criminal records information (if any). We do record that we have checked this.

We may also process your data with your consent. If we need to ask for your permission, we will offer you a clear choice and ask that you confirm to us that you consent. We will also explain clearly to you what we need the data for and how you can withdraw your consent.

Where do we process your data?

As your employer we need specific data. This is collected from or shared with:

1. You or your legal representative(s);
2. Third parties.

We do this face to face, via phone, via email, via our website, via post, via application forms, via apps

Third parties are organisations we have a legal reason to share your data with. These include:

• Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC);
• Our pension and healthcare schemes
• Our external payroll provider;
• Organisations we have a legal obligation to share information with i.e. for safeguarding, the CQC;
• The police or other law enforcement agencies if we have to by law or court order.
• The DBS Service.

What data do we have?

As part of our work providing high-quality care and support, it might be necessary that we hold the following information on you:

• Your basic details and contact information e.g. your name and address.

Why do we have this data?

By law, we need to have a lawful basis for processing your personal data.

We process your data because we have a legitimate business interest in holding next of kin and lasting power of attorney information about the individuals who use our service and keeping emergency contact details for our staff.

We may also process your data with your consent. If we need to ask for your permission, we will offer you a clear choice and ask that you confirm to us that you consent. We will also explain clearly to you what we need the data for and how you can withdraw your consent.

Where do we process your data?

So that we can provide high quality care and support we need specific data. This is collected from or shared with:

1. You or your legal representative(s);
2. Third parties.

We do this face to face, via phone, via email, via our website, via post, via application forms, via apps.

Third parties are organisations we have a legal reason to share your data with. These may include:

• Other parts of the health and care system such as local hospitals, the GP, the pharmacy, social workers, and other health and care professionals;
• The Local Authority;
• The police or other law enforcement agencies if we have to by law or court order.

Storage and Management of Personal Information.

We take the security and confidentiality of your personal information seriously. Here’s how we store and manage it:

Storage

– We store your personal information securely on our internal servers, which are protected by robust security measures, including encryption, firewalls, and access controls.

– We also use third-party cloud storage services, such as [insert third-party provider], which have their own robust security measures in place.

– All data is stored within the United Kingdom, ensuring compliance with UK data protection laws.

Retention Periods

– We follow the NHS Records Management Code of Practice, which recommends retention periods for different types of records.

– We will retain your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, including any legal or regulatory requirements.

– Our retention periods are as follows:

    –  6 years after the last contact or interaction.

    –  financial records 7 years after the end of the financial year.

Disposal and Destruction

– Once the retention period has expired, we will securely destroy or dispose of your personal information.

– We use a secure shredding service to destroy paper records, and electronic records are deleted using secure deletion methods.

– Alternatively, we may anonymize your personal information, making it impossible to identify you, and use it for statistical or research purposes.

Access and Disclosure

– We will only disclose your personal information to authorized personnel within our organization, or to third-party service providers who have a legitimate need to access it.

– We will only disclose your personal information outside of our organization with your explicit consent, or as required by law.

Your Rights

– You have the right to access, rectify, erase, restrict processing, object to processing, and data portability.

– You can exercise these rights by contacting our Data Protection Officer (DPO) at [Vimbayi Mabayi
vimbayimabaya@empirecaresolutions.co.uk].

Website Usage and Cookies

We use cookies to improve your experience on our website. Cookies are small text files that are stored on your device when you visit our website.

What cookies do we use?

We use session cookies to:

– Track website usage and analytics

– Improve website performance and functionality

– Personalize your experience on our website

– Enable social media sharing and integration

Cookie Policy

Personal Information Collected Through Our Website.

We may collect personal information about you through our website, including:

– IP address

– Contact form submissions

– Online application submissions

– Review and feedback submissions

How Do We Use Your Personal Information?

We use your personal information to:

– Respond to your inquiries and requests

– Process your online applications

– Improve our website and services

– Comply with legal and regulatory requirements

Your Rights

You have the right to access, rectify, erase, restrict processing, object to processing, and data portability. You can exercise these rights by contacting our Data Protection Officer (DPO)  Vimbayi Mabayi  at  vimbayimabaya@empirecaresolutions.co.uk

The data that we keep about you is your data and we ensure that we keep it confidential and that it is used appropriately. You have the following rights when it comes to your data:

1. You have the right to request a copy of all of the data we keep about you. Generally, we will not charge for this service;
2. You have the right to ask us to correct any data we have which you believe to be inaccurate or incomplete. You can also request that we restrict all processing of your data while we consider your rectification request;
3. You have the right to ask that we erase any of your personal data which is no longer necessary for the purpose we originally collected it for. We retain our data in line with the Information Governance Alliance’s guidelines.
4. You may also request that we restrict processing if we no longer require your personal data for the purpose we originally collected it for, but you do not wish for it to be erased.
5. You can ask for your data to be erased if we have asked for your consent to process your data. You can withdraw consent at any time – please contact us to do so.
6. If we are processing your data as part of our legitimate interests as an organisation or in order to complete a task in the public interest, you have the right to object to that processing. We will restrict all processing of this data while we look into your objection.

You may need to provide adequate information for our staff to be able to identify you, for example, a passport or driver’s licence. This is to make sure that data is not shared with the wrong person inappropriately. We will always respond to your request as soon as possible and at the latest within one month.

If you would like to complain about how we have dealt with your request, please contact:

Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us/