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School Streets Permits privacy notice

We keep this privacy notice under regular review and it was last updated on 9 April 2024.

Kent County Council respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal data. This privacy notice will inform you as to how we look after your personal data and tell you about your privacy rights and how the law protects you.

Who we are

Kent County Council collects, uses and is responsible for certain personal information about you. When we do so we are regulated under the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. We are responsible as ‘controller’ of that personal information. Our Data Protection Officer is Benjamin Watts.

The School Streets scheme

‘School Streets’ schemes offer a proactive solution for school communities to tackle air pollution, poor health, and road danger reduction by promoting a healthier lifestyle and increased active travel to school for families and a better environment for everyone.

This scheme will restrict motorised vehicles during school opening and closing times to make the local area safer for school children and their families. Exemptions will apply for valid permit holders, bus and emergency access only.

A School Street is a road outside a school with a temporary restriction to motorised traffic at school drop-off and pick-up times. The restriction will apply to all traffic (school traffic and through traffic). The result is a safer, healthier, and more pleasant environment at the school entrance.

Personal information we collect and use

Information collected by us

When you apply for a School Streets Permit, we collect the following personal information when you provide it to us by email or by telephone:

  • your contact details - for example your name, email address, telephone number and postcode.
  • your vehicle details - for example your vehicle colour, make and model, vehicle type (car, van, motorbike etc.) and vehicle registration number plate details.
  • your name - if you are a parent or carer of someone at the school who requires specific access directly to the school’s site.

How we use your personal information

We use your personal data to:

  • process your application for a School Streets Permit
  • confirm your identity when applying for a permit
  • determine your eligibility for a permit
  • liaise with the school regarding any specific access requirements to the school site you may have as a parent or carer, to make a decision on whether a permit can be issued (this is on a case-by-case basis)
  • contact you regarding your permit application (i.e. to issue you with, amend, cancel or revoke a permit)
  • contact you regarding adherence to Kent County Councils terms and conditions
  • share your details with local parking enforcement agencies in the event of inconsiderate parking or if drivers do not abide by the advisory diversion signage
  • share your details with law enforcement agencies in the event of abusive behaviour towards staff or other road users.

In accordance with the above process we will use information collected from you to:

  • ensure that Kent County Councils terms and conditions are adhered to.

A report will be produced containing anonymised information in relation to permit use in that school area. This report includes summary information regarding adherence (or non-adherence) to the scheme by applicants, and eligibility (or non-eligibility) of applicants to the scheme. The report will be used to monitor and evaluate existing schemes as well as improve future School Streets schemes.

Collecting and sharing your personal information

We may share your personal data with:

  • Kent County Council staff within the Highways and Transportation department who are responsible for administrating, or the analysis of the School Streets Permit scheme.
  • third party suppliers who deliver the contact centre telephone services in relation to the School Streets Permit scheme on behalf of Kent County Council.
  • the school staff and school traffic management coordinators to allow you access to the site should you need to move your vehicle whilst the closure is in place and before your permit is delivered.
  • third party suppliers responsible for evaluating the School Streets Permit scheme on behalf of Kent County Council.
  • Kent County Council or the school staff may share your details with local parking enforcement agencies in the event of inconsiderate parking or if drivers do not abide by the advisory diversion signage.
  • Kent County Council or the school staff may share your details with law enforcement agencies in the event of abusive behaviour towards staff or other road users.

All personal information will be removed and an anonymised report in relation to the School Streets scheme permit use in that school area will be shared with teams within Kent County Council, schools, other local authorities, public bodies and developers. This is to promote the benefits of the School Streets scheme and to also modify and improve the scheme if necessary.

We will share personal information with law enforcement or other authorities if required by applicable law or in connection with legal proceedings.

We will share personal information with our legal and professional advisers in the event of a dispute, complaint or claim. We rely on Article 9(2)(f) where the processing of special category data is necessary for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims or whenever courts are acting in their judicial capacity.

How long your personal data will be kept

We will hold your personal information securely and retain this for the life of the School Streets scheme. This period is to ensure that the permit details being held by Kent County Council are kept accurate, to be kept as evidence regarding your eligibility or non-eligibility to hold a permit, as confirmation of your identity, as confirmation of whether you are a parent or carer who requires any specific access requirements to the school site, to be used to contact you regarding your permit, or to contact you regarding your adherence to Kent County Councils terms and conditions.

Anonymised report information will be kept for the life of the scheme, for use in promoting the benefit of the School Street Schemes and to improve other School Street schemes.

Reasons we can collect and use your personal information

The provision of personal information is required from you to enable us to:

  • administrate the School Streets permit scheme
  • contact you regarding your permit application
  • contact you regarding your eligibility (or non-eligibility) for the scheme
  • confirm your identity
  • ensure adherence to Kent County Council’s terms and conditions
  • confirm if you are a parent or carer who requires special access requirements to the school site and whether a permit can be issued (this is on a case-by-case basis).
  • ensure school staff and school traffic management coordinators allow you access to the site should you need to move your vehicle whilst the closure is in place and before your permit is delivered.
  • contact you in the event of abusive behaviour towards staff or other road users, inconsiderate parking, or non-adherence to the advisory diversion signage.

If you do not provide your personal information, we will be unable to process your application for a School Streets Permit or contact you regarding the scheme.

We rely on processing under UK GDPR Article 6(1)(e) “processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest

We rely upon UK GDPR Article 6(1)(b) processing necessary for the performance of a contract to which the data party is subject, because when you apply for a School Streets Permit you will be asked to agree to Kent County Council’s terms and conditions.

Your rights

Under UK GDPR you have rights which you can exercise free of charge which allow you to:

  • know what we are doing with your information and why we are doing it
  • ask to see what information we hold about you (subject access request)
  • make a complaint to the Information Commissioners Office.

Depending on our reason for using your information you may also be entitled to:

  • ask us to delete information we hold about you
  • have your information transferred electronically to you or to another organisation
  • object to decisions being made that significantly affect you
  • object to how we are using your information
  • stop us using your information in certain ways.

We will always seek to comply with your request however we may be required to hold or use your information to comply with legal duties. Your request may delay or prevent us delivering a service to you.

For further information about your rights, including the circumstances in which they apply, see the guidance from the UK Information Commissioners Office on individuals’ rights under GDPR.

If you would like to exercise a right, contact the Information Resilience and Transparency Team at data.protection@kent.gov.uk.

Keeping your personal information secure

We have appropriate security measures in place to prevent personal information from being accidentally lost, or used or accessed in an unauthorised way. We limit access to your personal information to those who have a genuine business need to know it. Those processing your information will do so only in an authorised manner and are subject to a duty of confidentiality.

We also have procedures in place to deal with any suspected data security breach. We will notify you and any applicable regulator of a suspected data security breach where we are legally required to do so.

Who to contact

Contact the Information Resilience and Transparency Team at data.protection@kent.gov.uk to exercise any of your rights, or if you have a complaint about why your information has been collected, how it has been used or how long we have kept it for.

You can contact our Data Protection Officer, Benjamin Watts, at dpo@kent.gov.uk, or write to: Data Protection Officer, Sessions House, Maidstone, Kent ME14 1XQ.

UK GDPR also gives you right to lodge a complaint with Information Commissioner, who may be contacted via the Information Commissioner's website or call 03031 231113.

Read our corporate privacy statement.