Data Protection Policy
We will treat any personal information by which you can be in accordance with the Data Protection Act of 1998. If you have an enquiry or concern regarding the processing of personal data by Pendle Borough Council, please contact:
The
Pendle Borough Council
Market Street
Nelson
You can ask us for information we may hold about you by writing to the above address. We will inform you within 40 days if we store any personal information about you.
You may also write to the above address to request a copy of your information and we will provide you with a legible copy of the personal data which we keep about you and to which you are entitled. This will be sent to you within 40 days of your request- although we may require proof of your identity and information to locate your personal data.
There may be a small charge for this information.
National Fraud Initiative
This authority is required by law to protect the public funds it administers. It may share information provided to it with other bodies responsible for auditing or administering public funds, in order to prevent and detect fraud.
The Audit Commission appoints the auditor to audit the accounts of this authority. It is also responsible for carrying out data matching exercises.
Data matching involves comparing computer records held by one body against other computer records held by the same or another body to see how far they match. This is usually personal information. Computerised data matching allows potentially fraudulent claims and payments to be identified. Where a match is found it indicates that there is an inconsistency which requires further investigation. No assumption can be made as to whether there is fraud, error or other explanation until an investigation is carried out.
The Audit Commission currently requires us to participate in a data matching exercise to assist in the prevention and detection of fraud. We are required to provide particular sets of data to the Audit Commission for matching for each exercise, and these are set out in the Audit Commission's guidance, which can be found at www.audit-commission.gov.uk/nfi.
The use of data by the Audit Commission in a data matching exercise is carried out with statutory authority under its powers in Part 2A of the Audit Commission Act 1998. It does not require the consent of the individuals concerned under the Data Protection Act 1998.
Data matching by the Audit Commission is subject to a Code of Practice. This may be found at www.audit-commission.gov.uk/nfi/codeofdmp.asp.
For further information on the Audit Commission's legal powers and the reasons why it matches particular information, see http://www.audit-commission.gov.uk/nfi/fptext.asp.
