This privacy notice provides details of how and why Leeds City Council collects and uses personal information about its external job applicants.
What data do we collect from you
We will process the information provided in your application form in addition to any supporting evidence we request from you for the purposes of deciding your suitability for a post.
The categories of personal data and special categories of personal data* we collect, process, hold and share include:
- personal information (such as name, address, contact details)
- special category data such as ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion/beliefs and disabilities/health related information*
- qualification and skills information (such as qualification dates)
- previous employment records (such as date of employment and reasons for leaving)
- sickness and medical information (such as periods of and reasons for absence and occupational health referrals and reports)*
- performance/appraisal information
*Some personal data is called 'special category data'; this data is more sensitive and we have to look after it more carefully.
Why are we collecting your data
- Recruitment purposes - making decisions about applicants suitability to undertake a specific role including shortlisting
- Produce anonymous statistical information (such as for equality monitoring purposes)
- Undertake safeguarding and pre-employment checks (such as Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS))
- Research purposes including undertaking surveys
- Promoting Access To Work/reasonable adjustments
- Supporting pre-employment health checks
Why we are allowed to collect your data
We have a lawful basis to collect, process, hold and share your personal information, as referenced in paragraphs 1 a) 1 b) and 1 c) of Article 6 of the UK GDPR, as detailed below:
a) the data subject has given consent to the processing of his or her personal data for one or more specific purposes;
b) processing is necessary for the performance of a contract to which the data subject is party or to take steps at the request of the data subject prior to entering into a contract;
c) processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the controller is subject;
Whilst the majority of employee / applicant information you provide to us is mandatory or because we are under a legal obligation to process this, some of it is provided to us on a voluntary basis. In order to comply with data protection legislation, we will inform you whether you are required to provide certain information to us or if you have a choice in this.
How long will we keep your data
We will keep your data only for as long as necessary for business purposes or if we are required to keep it by law in line with Leeds City Council’s records retention and disposal policy. Once it is no longer required, it will be disposed of securely and safely.
Who we can share your data with
- The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) where we need to make a pre-employment check for certain roles
- With healthcare providers for pre-employment health checks
- Government departments and agencies where we have a statutory obligation to provide information (e.g. Dept. of Work and Pensions (DWP), Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC), the Home Office (in connection with UK visas and immigration), and Office for National Statistics
For more general information about how Leeds City Council processes personal information and details of your rights, please refer to Leeds City Council’s
Privacy Notice page.
Changes to this privacy notice
We keep our privacy notice under regular review. This privacy notice was last updated on 4 October 2018.
