Planning privacy notice - Privacy notices

What personal information do we collect?

We receive and process a range of personal data. This may include:

  • your name, address, signature and contact details, including email address and telephone number;
  • information provided us in your submissions
  • financial information such as payment details
  • information about medical or health conditions, including whether or not you have a disability where relevant to your planning issue;
  • comments you make on planning applications

We collect this information in a variety of ways. For example, it is supplied to us directly (or via a planning agent on their behalf) or we receive it from a third party website that provides a transaction service e.g. The Planning Portal

Why do we process personal data?

Processing your information is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of our official authority. For example;

  • making decisions and providing advice on planning applications
  • making planning policies
  • working with neighbourhoods on their plans
  • working with neighbouring authorities on strategic policies
  • responding to allegations of unlawful development
  • monitoring development
  • entering legal agreements, serving notices and promoting the best use of land

Some information provided to us we are obliged under the regulations to make available on planning registers. This is a permanent record of our planning decisions that form part of the planning history of a site, along with other facts that form part of the "land search".

We also use your consent to send you email notifications when new planning applications are registered in and around your property.

Who has access to your personal data?

The register of planning applications and associated documentation is on council website for the public to view. We operate a policy where we routinely redact the following details before making forms, documents, letters, reports available online:

  • Personal contact details - e.g. telephone numbers, email addresses, postal address
  • Signatures
  • Special Category Data - e.g. supporting statements that include information about health conditions or ethnic origin
  • Information agreed to be confidential
  • Financial Information

Sometimes we might decide it is necessary, justified and lawful to disclose data that appears in the list above. In these circumstances we will discuss this with you.

If you are submitting supporting information which you would like to be treated confidentially or wish to be specifically withheld from the public register, please let us know as soon as you can - ideally in advance of submitting the application. The best way to contact us about this issue is planning@runnymede.gov.uk

Where necessary your information will be shared with the parties set out below for the purposes stated above.

  • Other council departments, including internal consultees
  • Consultees
  • Elected members
  • Planning inspectorate
  • Legal Advisors

We require all third parties to respect the security of your personal data and to treat it in accordance with the law. We do not allow our third-party service providers to use your personal data for their own purposes and only permit them to process your personal data for specified purposes and in accordance with our instructions and data protection laws. They are also obliged to implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure the security of data.

We will not transfer your data to countries outside the European Economic Area.

How do we protect personal data?

We take the security of your data seriously. The organisation has internal policies and controls in place to try to ensure that your data is not lost, accidentally destroyed, misused or disclosed, and is not accessed except by its authorised employees or individuals working on behalf of the Council in the performance of their duties.

How long do we keep your personal data?

The Council maintain an accurate record of all planning applications and associated documents which will permanently remain on the Council’s Planning database.

Applications received prior to 1996, are held on microfiche, stored in the Runnymede Civic Offices, Addlestone.

These records are retained permanently.

Your rights

As a data subject, you have a number of rights, including access to your data. A request for access can be made via our website or by sending an email to foi@runnymede.gov.uk

Data Protection Subject Access Request(SAR) | Introduction – Runnymede Borough Council

To find out more about your rights please see the ‘Your Rights’ section of our main privacy statement

If you believe that Runnymede Borough Council has not complied with your data protection rights, you should initially try to resolve it with the relevant department.

If you are unable to resolve the issue to your satisfaction contact our Data Protection Officer (DPO) who will investigate. If you remain dissatisfied with the outcome of the DPO’s review you can make a complaint to the Information Commissioner. You can find out further information on making a complaint to the Information Commissioner on their website Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)