In a message dated 18/09/2001 09:36:31 GMT Daylight Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:
<< The disclosure needs to be enough to provide care for the client. Social
Services, Housing depts and those providing housing, will need to make it
clear on application forms who information may be shared with and the reason
(ie client care, fraud prevention, assessment of benefit, Council tax
assessment) and get a signature. >>
--------
A dodgy one, this. It would be tempting to include disclosures of different
types - some will not need specific consent (eg fraud prevention) but some
will (care of an individual who is capable of giving consent). Nobody is
required to accept help even if the council is under a duty to provide it.
A disclosure of social services data (given in confidence and under a
legitimate expectation of confidence) could not be disclosed to a housing
department (or staff undertaking a housing function in a joint SS/housing
department) without consent. If the data is sensitive data, you should
obtain explicit consent for that particuar and specific disclosure. Just
because they agreed to the disclosure when they were in danger of being
evicted does not mean they would agree (for example) where the council
decided to sell its houses to a RSL or HA.
The following case from a DPR annual report may be useful: "A local authority
contacted an individual in another part of the country regarding a distant
relative and in doing so, disclosed their financial details. The individual
made it clear to the authority that he was not responsible for the relative,
either financially or otherwise. The individual complained on behalf of the
relative that a disclosure of personal data had occurred and that the
authority had no reason to hold this information because the relative did not
require any financial assistance from the authority for health care. During
the complaint it was established that the information was collected from the
relative inappropriately by the authority's social services department. In
accordance with the fourth data protection principle the authority deleted
the information from their systems."
I think you'll agree the social worker would have thought they were trying to
help.
Ian Buckland
MD
Keep IT Legal Ltd
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