Online services - privacy statement

This privacy statement covers the following topics: Our privacy statement explains how we collect, use and disclose information that you provide through the Belfast City Council website.

When you use this site, you agree to the collection, use and disclosure of that information, in accordance with this privacy statement.

We are committed to fulfilling our responsibilities under the Data Protection Act 1998. We are a registered data controller and have taken appropriate steps to protect your privacy and information.

Information about us and our website

This site is owned, managed and run by Belfast City Council. Our address is:

Belfast City Hall
Belfast
BT1 5GS

Our privacy statement covers the Belfast City Council website - www.belfastcity.gov.uk only.

If you have any queries about the site, contact us at:

Corporate Communications
Belfast City Council
Belfast City Hall
Belfast
BT1 5GS
 Email: webmaster@belfastcity.gov.uk

Ways we collect information

Some areas of this site require you to actively submit information in order for you to benefit from specific features, such as our range of online services, for example, email, online forms or online payments.

You will be informed at each of these information collection points what information is required and what information is optional.

Some of this information may be personal data (information that can be uniquely identified with you, such as your name, address, email address, phone number).

We only collect such information when you choose to supply it to us and it is processed in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998.

Information is also gathered without you actively providing it, through the use of various technologies and methods such as Internet Protocol (IP) addresses and cookies. These methods do not collect or store personal information.

IP addresses

An IP address is a number assigned to your computer by your Internet Service Provider (ISP), so you can access the internet. We collect IP addresses for the purposes of system administration and to audit the use of our site.

Each time you log onto our site and each time you request one of our pages, our server logs your IP address.

Although we log your session with us, we will not normally link your IP address to anything that can enable us to identify you. However, we can and will use IP addresses to identify a user when we feel it is necessary to enforce compliance with our rules or terms of service or to protect our service, site, users or others.

Cookies

We use a number of cookies on our website. Find out more about our use of cookies

Monitoring of email

We may monitor your email and other online communications with us (this includes any member of staff). Any such monitoring will take place in accordance with the law.

Web statistics

We use log files generated by our web servers to analyse site usage and statistics but the files do not identify any personal information.

Log file analysis helps us to understand usage patterns on our website and to make improvements to our service.

Disclosure of information

We may use information you provide through this site to improve the content, to customise the site to your preferences, for research, to communicate information to you or for marketing purposes, if you have requested it, and for the purposes specified in this privacy statement.

We do not disclose any information you provide through the site to any other individuals or organisations (third parties), except where: More information about how Government Gateway processes your information is available from the Government Gateway website

Access to your personal information

We will take all reasonable steps in accordance with our legal obligations to update or correct your personal information in our possession that you submit through this site. You have a right to ask to see details of any personal information that we hold about you.

To do this, contact us at:

Corporate Communications
Belfast City Council
Belfast City Hall
Belfast
BT1 5GS
Email: webmaster@belfastcity.gov.uk.

Security

We have a legal duty to protect your privacy. We take all appropriate steps to protect any information you submit through our website, in accordance with legislation such as the Data Protection Act 1998.

We take care to protect your personal information as you transmit it from your computer to our site and to protect such information from loss, misuse, and unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration or destruction. We use leading technologies and encryption software to safeguard your data and operate strict security standards to prevent any unauthorised access to it.

Where you use passwords, ID numbers, or other special access features on this site, you also have a responsibility to take reasonable steps to safeguard them.

Links to other websites

This site contains links and references to other websites. This privacy statement does not apply to those websites and we encourage you to read the privacy statement of every website you visit.

Notification of changes to our privacy statement

We will post details of any changes to our privacy statement on this website to help make sure you are always aware of the information we collect, how we use it, and in what circumstances, if any, we share it with other parties.

This privacy statement was last updated in May 2012 to include information on cookies.

Privacy and data protection

Belfast City Council is committed to fulfilling its responsibilities under the Data Protection Act 1998. It is a registered data controller and takes appropriate steps to protect your privacy and information.

The personal information you choose to provide, such as your name, address and other contact details, will be processed in accordance with the Data Protection Act. It will only be used to communicate with you about a service or information you have requested.

Your personal information will only be made available to the appropriate council staff involved in the provision of this service and the representatives of the Government Gateway service who assist with the administration of your payment.

Your personal information will not be disclosed to any other individual or organisation without your consent, except where it is necessary for the council to do so to comply with the law or provide this service.