Personal details and access

The request was successful.

Dear Sheffield Homes Limited,

Please tell me why you are requesting personal details such as date of birth, and sexuality when people report problems such as faults or repairs?

What is your reason for asking such personal questions? Is it a Government requirement or a Sheffield Homes policy?

What are you actually doing with this information?
Is it accessible to your preferred contractors?
Do you sell this information or pass it to other bodies? If so what bodies are they?

How can you guarantee this information is stored safely.
Who actually accesses this information?
Are your staff who access this CRB, ehnhanced CRB checked?

If an address is given what has date of birth got to do with it?

Surely there should not be personal details accessible to all staff as this increases the risk of id fraud being done more easily.

Yours faithfully,

Greta Cliff

Sheffield Homes Limited

Good Afternoon Greta

Thank you for contacting Sheffield Homes.

Would you please provide us with your full address. This will enable us
to log your enquiry onto our systems and forward onto the appropriate
team. They will then respond to your enquiry.

Kindest Regards
Customer Care Team.

-----Original Message-----
From: Greta Cliff [mailto:[FOI #57577 email]]
Sent: 11 January 2011 20:13
To: [Sheffield Homes Limited request email]
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Personal details and access

Dear Sheffield Homes Limited,

Please tell me why you are requesting personal details such as date
of birth, and sexuality when people report problems such as faults
or repairs?

What is your reason for asking such personal questions? Is it a
Government requirement or a Sheffield Homes policy?

What are you actually doing with this information?
Is it accessible to your preferred contractors?
Do you sell this information or pass it to other bodies? If so what
bodies are they?

How can you guarantee this information is stored safely.
Who actually accesses this information?
Are your staff who access this CRB, ehnhanced CRB checked?

If an address is given what has date of birth got to do with it?

Surely there should not be personal details accessible to all staff
as this increases the risk of id fraud being done more easily.

Yours faithfully,

Greta Cliff

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[FOI #57577 email]

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The information in this email is confidential. The contents may not be disclosed or used by anyone other than the addressee. If you are not
the addressee, please tell us by using the reply facility in your
email software as soon as possible.

Sheffield Homes cannot accept any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of this message as it has been transmitted over a public
network. If you suspect that the
message may have been intercepted
or amended please tell us as soon as
possible.

Thank you for your co-operation.

hide quoted sections

HomesComms, Sheffield Homes Limited

Dear Greta

Please find below the answers to your questions relating to the
collection of personal details

Please tell me why you are requesting personal details such as date of
birth, and sexuality when people report problems such as faults
or repairs? What is your reason for asking such personal questions? Is
it a Government requirement or a Sheffield Homes policy?

It's really important to Sheffield Homes that we know who our customers
are and that we understand their individual needs and can plan for
future requirements. Sheffield Homes, as a responsible landlord, has a
legal duty to all its customers to ensure that our policies and
procedures are inclusive and that we are not discriminating against
particular groups. We can only demonstrate this if we hold all the
relevant information. We also have to be sure that any information we
do hold is up-to-date and accurate.


What are you actually doing with this information?

We use the data that we collect in two main ways. The first is to
deliver a tailored service to meet the specific needs of customers. For
example, if we know that a customer has mobility problems, we can wait
longer for them to answer the door when we undertake a repairs visit.
Not all the data we collect is available to staff in this way though.
We understand that there are particular sensitivities around the
collection of some data, for example, sexual orientation data. For that
reason, this information is not available to staff as part of tenancy
records.

We also use personal data for statistical purposes. This allows us to
ensure that we are not discriminating in our services and to plan for
the future needs of our customers. This information will not identify
particular individuals and will only be used to enable analysis at local
and neighbourhood levels.

Is it accessible to your preferred contractors? Do you sell this
information or pass it to other bodies? If so what bodies are they?

Only relevant information will be shared with contractors helping
deliver a service on behalf of Sheffield Homes; we will not give or sell
this information to anyone else.

How can you guarantee this information is stored safely. Who actually
accesses this information? Surely there should not be personal details
accessible to all staff
as this increases the risk of id fraud being done more easily.

The information gathered will only be seen by staff with authorised
access. All our systems are password protected and staff are only able
to access the data that they need to do their job. Paper copies of the
collection form are safely destroyed. All information is held securely
and in compliance with the principles of the Data Protection Act 1998.
We also comply with all British Standards and government requirements.
The security of all our data systems is managed by Capita, Sheffield
Homes and the Council's IT provider.

Are your staff who access this CRB, enhanced CRB checked?

No, staff are not CRB checked.

If an address is given what has date of birth got to do with it?

It can be used to show we are not discriminating against age when it
comes to providing a service such as repairs. It also helps staff
decide if a tenant may be particularly vulnerable because of their age,
for example if their heating has failed and they need help urgently.

If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to
your request and wish to make a complaint, you should write to:
Sheffield Homes, PO Box 1918, Sheffield, S1 2XX or email
[Sheffield Homes Limited request email]. You can also visit one of our public
offices or call us on 0114 293 0000 (North) or 0114 205 3333 (South).
Please refer to our Complaints, Praise and Suggestions leaflet available
to download from our website at
http://www.sheffieldhomes.org.uk/myCommu...
eAndSuggestions.aspx or by post by contacting us. If you are not content
with the outcome your complaint, you may apply directly to the
Information Commissioner for a decision. Generally, the Commissioner
cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted our complaints
procedure. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: The
Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow,
Cheshire SK9 5AF.

Regards

Sheffield Homes

-----Original Message-----
From: Greta Cliff [mailto:[FOI #57577 email]]
Sent: 11 January 2011 20:13
To: [Sheffield Homes Limited request email]
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Personal details and access

Dear Sheffield Homes Limited,

Please tell me why you are requesting personal details such as date
of birth, and sexuality when people report problems such as faults
or repairs?

What is your reason for asking such personal questions? Is it a
Government requirement or a Sheffield Homes policy?

What are you actually doing with this information?
Is it accessible to your preferred contractors?
Do you sell this information or pass it to other bodies? If so what
bodies are they?

How can you guarantee this information is stored safely.
Who actually accesses this information?
Are your staff who access this CRB, ehnhanced CRB checked?

If an address is given what has date of birth got to do with it?

Surely there should not be personal details accessible to all staff
as this increases the risk of id fraud being done more easily.

Yours faithfully,

Greta Cliff

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be
published on the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/help/offic...

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #57577 email]

Is [Sheffield Homes Limited request email] the wrong address for Freedom of
Information requests to Sheffield Homes Limited? If so please
contact us using this form:
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/help/contact

If you find WhatDoTheyKnow useful as an FOI officer, please ask
your web manager to suggest us on your organisation's FOI page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------

The information in this email is confidential. The contents may not be disclosed or used by anyone other than the addressee. If you are not
the addressee, please tell us by using the reply facility in your
email software as soon as possible.

Sheffield Homes cannot accept any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of this message as it has been transmitted over a public
network. If you suspect that the
message may have been intercepted
or amended please tell us as soon as
possible.

Thank you for your co-operation.

hide quoted sections