Your Personal Data
The council collects and processes personal data relating to its employees and external learners to manage the employee and learner relationship. The organisation is committed to being transparent about how it collects and uses that data and to meeting its data protection obligations.
What information do we collect?
The council collects and processes a range of information about you. This includes:
- Your name, address and contact details, including email address and telephone number, date of birth and gender;
- National Insurance Number
- Last address while studying with Scottish Qualification Authority
- Job title, line manager details, employee number, cost centre codes for internal recharge purposes, employer details
- Membership or registration with professional organisation’s
- Scottish Candidate Number
- Medical or health information and whether or not you have a disability for which the Centre needs to make reasonable adjustments
- Equal opportunities monitoring information including information about your ethnic origin, sexual orientation, health and religion or belief also known as sensitive personal data
- Details or your qualifications, skills, experience and training you have participated in
- Assessment evidence/materials
- Special arrangement requirements where necessary
The Training Centre collects this information in a variety of ways. For example, through the application process data is collected through application forms; from forms completed by you for registration purposes; from correspondence with you; or through interviews, meetings or through assessments.
The organisation also collects personal data about you from third parties, such as references supplied by former employers, information from employment background check providers and information from criminal records checks permitted by law.
Data is stored in a range of different places, including in your personnel file, in the organisation’s management system, Scottish Qualification Authority Connect, Learning Assistant, Skills Development Scotland or Funding Information and Processing Systems, Modern Apprenticeships Online and other Information Technology systems (including the organisation’s email system).
Why we need this information?
The Council needs to process these data to enter into a training contract as part of your employment contract with you and to meet its obligations under your employment contract. The Council will process your data in accordance with the employment law, including the Employment Rights Acts 1996, the Equal Opportunity 2010, the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and other relevant legislation and subsequent updates.
For external learners, the council will process your data in accordance with Education (Scotland) Act 1996, the Equality Act 2010, the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and other relevant legislation and subsequent updates.
The Council will not collect any personal data from you that isn’t needed.
As listed in the table below, processing data allows the organisation to:
| Council process | Legal/Contractual basis for the process |
|---|---|
| Register learners with the Training Centre and associated third party organisations involved in the qualification. |
Employment Rights Acts 1996 or necessary for the performance of a contract (Internal learners only) Perform our functions and duties under the Education (Scotland) Act 1996 (Internal and external learners) |
| Plan, supervise, deliver or facilitate training |
Employment Rights Acts 1996 or necessary for the performance of a contract (Internal learners only) Perform our functions and duties under the Education (Scotland) Act 1996 (Internal and external learners) |
| Claim your certificate and maintain a record or your attainment |
Employment Rights Acts 1996 or necessary for the performance of a contract (Internal learners only) Perform our functions and duties under the Education (Scotland) Act 1996 (Internal and external learners) |
| Respond to enquiries and investigations |
Employment Rights Acts 1996 or necessary for the performance of a contract (Internal learners only) The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and enabled regulations (Internal and external learners) |
Some special categories of personal data, such as information about health or medical conditions, is processed to carry out our obligations such as those in relation to candidates with disabilities and for health and safety purposes.
Where the organisation processes other special categories of personal data, such as information about ethnic origin, sexual orientation, health or religion or belief, this is done for the purposes of equal opportunities monitoring. Data that the organisation uses for these purposes is anonymised or is collected with the express consent of candidates, which can be withdrawn at any time. Candidates are entirely free to decide whether or not to provide such data and there are no consequences of failing to do so.
When we are using special category personal data, our legal basis to do so is:
- For reasons of substantial public interest for aims that are proportionate and which contain appropriate safeguarding measures
What we will do with your information?
All of the information we collect from you will be processed by staff in the United Kingdom who will have been made aware of the confidentiality around personal data and will be shared with the recipients or categories of recipients listed below;
- Internal assessors and verifiers, trainers, managers
- External assessors and verifiers, trainers.
- The following third party organisations: Scottish Qualification Authority Connect, Skills Development Scotland, Learning Assistant, Funding Information and Processing Systems, Modern Apprenticeships Online, Synergy (Totara, LEON).
Your personal data will not be shared with anyone else unless there is a legal obligation for us to do so.
You should also be aware that your data will be stored on servers located within the United Kingdom; the data will not be processed outside the European Union. We will take all reasonable steps to ensure that your data is kept securely and more information on how we do this can be provided on request to the Data Protection Officer.
How long will we keep your information?
We will usually keep your information for a minimum of the number of years outlined in the table below. After this period it will be destroyed under secure arrangements if it is no longer required for the lawful purpose for which it was obtained.
| Council process | How long do we keep the information for |
|---|---|
| Register learners with the Training Centre and associated third party organisations involved in the qualification. |
For PվɫÇéƬ employees and External learners:
|
| Plan, supervise, deliver or facilitate training |
For PվɫÇéƬ employees and External learners: SQA states that all centres must retain records of the following for 1 calendar year after completion of qualifications:
For Foundation apprentices:
For Modern apprentices:
|
| Claim your certificate and maintain a record or your attainment |
For PվɫÇéƬ employees: 1) Normally, all records of training will be deleted after termination of employment + 6 years 2) If it relates to training for work with children or vulnerable adults delete after 25 years For external learners 3) All records will be deleted after 1 calendar year |
| Respond to enquiries and investigations |
Where an investigation is carried out, the centre will retain related records and documentation for 3 years. In the case of an appeal to SQA against the outcome of an investigation, assessment records will be retained for 6 years |
More information on our retention schedule can be provided on request to the Data Protection Officer.
Your Rights
When you provide information to the Council, you will have the following rights:
- to withdraw consent at any time, where the lawful basis specified above is consent
- to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office – see below for details
- to request access to your personal data – please contact the Data Protection Officer if you wish to submit a request.
- to data portability, where the Legal basis specified above is i) consent or ii) performance of a contract
- to request rectification or erasure of your personal data, as far as the legislation permits – please contact the Data Protection Officer and provide details of what data you wish to be rectified or erased.
You can find out more about your rights in relation to data protection here: or from the Data Protection Officer by telephone or in writing, as detailed above.
Data Controller
PվɫÇéƬ will act as the ‘Data Controller’ for the personal data you provide to us. The Data Protection Officer, who is responsible for ensuring personal data is managed in accordance with data protection legislation, can be contacted as follows:
Address: Iain Jackson, Governance and Risk Manager, PվɫÇéƬ, Governance and Law, Kilmory, Lochgilphead PA31 8RT.
Email: Iain.Jackson@argyll-bute.gov.uk or data.protection@argyll-bute.gov.uk
Telephone: 01546 604188 or 01546 605522
Information Commissioner’s Office
The ICO is the UK’s independent body set up to uphold information rights.
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF
Telephone: 0303 123 1113
Email: casework@ico.org.uk
The Information Commissioner’s Office – Scotland
45 Melville Street, Edinburgh, EH3 7HL
Telephone: 0303 123 1115
Email: Scotland@ico.org.uk