How we use your information
Voluntary throughcare or assistance services are available to those who are not subject to statutory supervision on release from prison. These services may be requested while in custody or up to 12 months after release. The Scottish Prison Service gives us the name, contact details and expected date of liberation for people who are going to be released in the next 12 weeks so we can make sure you understand what Voluntary Throughcare is available to you in our area, and give you the information you need to decide if you would like Voluntary Throughcare support, and if so, what type of support.
If you do decide that you would like Voluntary Throughcare Assistance you will normally be allocated a Lead Support Worker who will keep records about you and your support during this time. If we already have a case file for you then we will add these records to your existing case file.
During the process of supporting you, you and your Lead Support Worker may decide that it would be beneficial to refer or support you to access other Council services (for example, housing) or outside organisations for further help or support. To do this on your behalf will normally mean your Lead Support Worker sharing some information about you, on a need to know basis, with that service or organisation. If this is the case, this will always be discussed between you and your Support Worker, be done with your agreement, and in line with any consent you have already given us to share your information.
Your records will be treated confidentially but you should be aware that there are some limited circumstances when we may be required to share information about you, particularly to prevent risk of serious harm to you or to others.
We may also be required to provide information from case files to Scottish Ministers as part of the Protection of Vulnerable Groups Scheme. This is something we are required to do under Section 19 of the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007.
We receive information from partners which is added to our records. In some cases, information will be added to our records using automated processing, to speed up the time it takes to deal with simple processes. Decisions about you are not made using automated decision-making.
How long we keep your information for
At the end of your voluntary throughcare, we will close your case file, unless you have any other interactions with the Council’s Criminal Justice Social Work Service. We keep closed case files for the current year, plus five years, from the point at which your case is closed.
Your rights
You have rights to your data, including the right to ask for a copy of it. See more information about all of the rights you have. You also have the right to make a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office. They are the body responsible for making sure organisations like the Council handle your data lawfully.
Our legal basis
Aberdeen City Council is the Data Controller for your data. Wherever the Council processes personal data, we need to make sure we have a legal basis for doing so in data protection law. The Council understands our legal basis for processing personal data in relation to providing voluntary throughcare as Article 6(1)(e) of the General Data Protection Regulation. This is because the provision of voluntary throughcare to people who want it is a part of our public task, as set out in Section 27(1) of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968, as amended, and Section 71 of the Criminal Justice Scotland Act 2003. In carrying out this task, the Council is also likely to process special categories of personal data. The Council understands our legal basis for doing so as Article 9(2)(h) of the General Data Protection Regulation, because processing is necessary for the provision of health or social care or treatment or the management of health or social care systems and services. Where the Council processes personal data relating to criminal convictions and offences, the Council understands our legal basis for doing so as Article 10 of the General Data Protection Regulation.