Additional documents:
Minutes:
The Board considered a report of
the Strategic Director, Communities which presented the revised Subject Access
Requests (Social Care Records) Policy, Procedure and Practice May 2012.
The Board was advised that The Data Protection Act gave individuals
rights to access their own personal information. Individuals could send a subject access
request (SAR) which required the Authority to tell them about the personal
information that was held on them, and the Authority would also have to provide
them with a copy of that information.
The Board was further advised that the review of the Subject Access Requests Policy commenced in July 2011
and it was agreed that a working group would be established to review the
process. The group’s aim was to look at
integrating the children’s Access to Records Policy into the process that
operated in adult services, and create a new, streamlined policy, procedure and
practice to reflect this.
It was reported a group of
representatives from across the Council had worked together to review the
policy and procedures. This had involved
various departments including Children and Families Service, Adult Social Care,
Customer Services, Policy and Strategy and ICT. Legal Services had also been
consulted and had made some minor changes in terms of legalities.
As a result of the review the following had
been established:-
· one streamlined
policy and procedure instead of two separate policies for Children and
Enterprise and the Communities Directorates.
The policy and procedure document had been written to reflect the
revised process;
· A new Council SAR
application form had been developed (Set out in Appendix 2 of the Policy). There was also detailed guidance on how to
complete and submit the form and how the application form would be dealt with
(Set out in Appendix 3 of the Policy); and
· Letter templates
and other additional forms that may be required as part of a SAR had been
updated in accordance with the revisions within the policy. These formed the remainder of the Appendices
to the policy.
In conclusion, it was reported
that by
having a more streamlined process in place, responses to SARs would be dealt
with more efficiently, and therefore give an improved service to both children
and adults who were requesting information.
It was also reported that the Policy would be scheduled for review in
2014.
RESOLVED: That the report and associated Policy be noted.