Privacy

Who we are

We are the planning department for Surrey Heath Borough Council. This privacy notice explains how we use information in the course of our work as a local planning authority. This work includes:

• Making decisions and providing advice on planning applications
• Working with neighbourhoods on their plans
• Responding to allegations of unlawful development
• Monitoring development
• Entering legal agreements, serving notices and promoting the best use of land

If you have questions about data or privacy, contact our data protection officer: Head of Legal, Monitoring Officer and Democratic Services at data.protection@surreyheath.gov.uk (link sends email).

How we get your information

We get applicant information in two ways – it is supplied to us directly (or via a planning agent on their behalf) or we receive it from a third party website that provides a transaction service. These include:

• the Planning Portal
• iApply

We also receive comments, representations, allegations and questions via email, letter, and through our platform(s).

What we do with your information

To allow us to make decisions on their applications individuals must provide us with some personal data (e.g. name, address, contact details). In a small number of circumstances individuals will provide us with “special category data” in support of their application (e.g. evidence of medical history) in which case we will ensure we implement additional safeguards.

We use the information provided to us to make decisions about the use of land in the public interest. This is known as a “public task” and is why we do not need you to “consent” to allow your information to be used.

Some information provided to us, we are obliged under the Town and Planning Act regulations, to make available in the public on planning registers. This is a permanent record of our planning decisions that form part of the planning history of a site, along with other facts that form part of the “land search”.

How we share your information 

We do not sell your information to other organisations. We do not move your information beyond the UK. We do not use your information for automated decision making.

Once a planning application has been placed on the planning register it may be possible for your name and address to appear in search results on Google, Yahoo and other internet browser/search engines (of which the Council has no control over)

We will make details of planning applications available online so that people can contribute their comments. We will sometimes need to share the information we have with other parts of the council-for example to establish how long a building has been used as a dwelling.

Redaction (‘blacking things out’)

We operate a policy in accordance with our obligations under the Town and Planning Act where we publish planning applications and comments on our public register, your name and address will be published however we routinely redact the following details before making forms and documents available online:

• Personal contact details for the applicant - e.g. telephone numbers, email addresses
• Signatures
• Special Category Data - e.g. supporting statements that include information about health conditions or ethnic origin
• Information agreed to be confidential. Sometimes we might decide it is necessary, justified and lawful to disclose data that appears in the list above. In these circumstances we will let you know of our intention before we publish anything.

If you are submitting supporting information which you would like to be treated confidentially or wish to be specifically withheld from the public register, please let us know as soon as you can - ideally in advance of submitting the application. The best way to contact us about this issue is by email at: development.control@surreyheath.gov.uk (link sends email).

Retention (‘how long we keep your information for’)

We process many different types of information according to our retention policy. A brief summary of how long we keep things before they are destroyed:

• Statutory registers (eg. planning decisions, approved plans, legal agreements) = forever
• Supporting documents, reports = 6 years
• Representations, letters, general correspondence = 4 years
• We reserve the right to remove material which is inappropriate and of no relevance to the planning process should it come to our attention.  Racist, defamatory, slanderous or other offensive or abusive comments may result in action being taken by the police or individual affected by such comments.

Future Contact

We will not re-contact you about subsequent applications received for an application to which you made representation, unless your property falls within the statutory guidelines for notification unless:

• We need to contact you when amendments on an application for which you have an interest are made (either because you are within the statutory guideline for notification or you have already sent in representation for), or 
• We need to contact you if an application that is refused by the Local Planning Authority is subsequently considered for an Appeal by the Planning Inspectorate; in these circumstances we are required to notify all ‘interested parties’ ie. those originally notified of the original planning application and anyone who made representations.

Complaints and problems

Making decisions on planning matters is a public task and you do not have the right to withdraw consent. However if you think we have got something wrong or there is a reason you would prefer for something to not be disclosed please ask us by emailing the case officer at: development.control@surreyheath.gov.uk (link sends email).

If you need to make a complaint specifically about the way we have processed your data you should in the first instance use our corporate complaints policy. Visit the send a compliment or submit a complaint webpage for more information.

If we fail to respond properly you can direct your concerns to the Information Commissioners Office.