Fire and Rescue - Privacy notices

Last updated: 31 July 2020

The following privacy notice applies to the services provided by Warwickshire Fire & Rescue. It should be read in addition to the council’s overall Customer Privacy Notice.

The Service processes personal information in order for us to carry out basic administration, firefighting, deliver other emergency services, fire protection and fire prevention which includes:

• Investigating complaints and concerns
• Providing services (e.g. Safe Scheme, Safe & Well checks and installation of letterboxes)
• Managing responses to fire incidents
• Managing responses road traffic collisions
• Managing responses to other non-fire incidents
• Maintaining our own accounts and records
• Carrying out fire prevention through raising awareness and providing advice and assistance
• Carrying out fire protection inspections and giving advice to businesses
• Regulatory, Licensing and Enforcement functions, which the Fire and Rescue Service is obliged to undertake fire investigations
• Supporting and managing our employees
• Where you have agreed for the purpose of consulting, informing and gauging your opinion about our products and services
• To ensure the Fire and Rescue meets its statutory obligations, including those related to diversity and equal opportunity
• Building and vehicle CCTV systems for monitoring and collecting visual images for the purpose of security, the prevention and detection of crime

The Service processes personal information which includes but is not limited to:

• Personal details – for example, name / age / address / school / and family details
• Contact information including email address
• Lifestyle and social circumstances
• Opinions and decisions
• Incident and accident details
• Licences, certificates held
• What services have been provided

The legal bases for processing this personal information are:

• Contract for the supply of services
• Compliance with a legal obligation
• Tasks carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority

We may also process some special category (sensitive) information for some fire checks which may include but is not limited to:

• Physical or mental health details
• Racial or ethnic origin
• Religious or other beliefs
• Offences and alleged offences

The legal bases for processing this sensitive (special category) are:

• Obligations under employment for staff,
• The establishment, exercise or defence of a legal claim,
• For assessing the working capacity of an employee
• For substantial public interest 
• For social protection law

Occasionally, we may need to share the personal information you have given to us or we’ve collected about you with partner organisations. These include but are not limited to:

• Other blue light emergency services, for example police/ambulance
• Hospitals, healthcare and welfare organisations
• Local and central government
• Public utilities
• Health & safety executive
• Courts and law enforcement / prosecuting authorities / solicitors
• Insurance companies and loss adjusters
• Landlords and housing associations. 

We do have specific data sharing agreements in place with local agencies and sometimes the law requires that we may have to pass your details on to a third party, for example, to prevent crime.

Information will only ever be shared when it is strictly necessary to help us provide effective services and you may have the right to refuse. We will not pass it onto any other parties unless required to do so by law or in all reasonable circumstances the disclosure is fair and warranted for the purposes of processing or subject to a legal data protection exemption.

3 -15 years depending on service need. Based on best practice and statutory guidelines. Correspondence, enquiries and requests are kept 3 years from year received. General complaints are kept 6 years from the date of resolution (Limitations Act 1980); unless they concern negligence then they are kept 15 years from the of resolution (Latent Damage Act 1986); and if concern the Ombudsman they will be kept 10 years from the date of resolution. Please note: All stated retention periods will be subject to any legal holds imposed under the Inquiries Act 2005 that may concern the information and override standard retention.

You are entitled to a copy of, or a description of, the personal data we hold that relates to you, subject to lawful restrictions. Find out how to request this using the online secure form.

You may be entitled to rectification, restriction, objection, and erasure of your personal information depending on the service and legal basis. Requests may be made by email to fireandrescue@warwickshire.gov.uk

or by writing to:

Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service
Service Headquarters
Warwick Street
Leamington Spa
CV32 5LH

See our overall privacy notice for contact details and if you have a complaint about your information rights.

Our customer privacy notice