Recruitment and selection: privacy notice

Personal details

The personal information we hold includes:

name, address, telephone number, email address
gender
date of birth
employment history, other relevant experience, achievements, skills and qualifications
equalities monitoring information (if provided)
notes and outcome of any interviews or tests which form part of the recruitment process
employment references and the results of any pre-employment screening
any other additional information provided by you in the context of the recruitment and selection process, e.g. a completed health questionnaire, proof of your right to work in the UK
any other correspondence relating to your recruitment

Legal requirements

Under privacy and data protection legislation, RBKC is only allowed to use personal information if we have a proper reason or 'legal basis' to do so. In the case of your recruitment application with RBKC, 'legal grounds' are:

for the performance of a contract, or to take steps at your request, prior to entering into an employment contract:
where you have given your consent to RBKC, for example:
where you agreed we can keep your information to identify any future employment opportunities which may be of interest to you
sometimes we also need to collect or store information that is defined as 'special category personal data'. In the case of your recruitment application this is likely to consist of the following, where you choose to provide it:
- gender
- race and ethnic origin
- health, physical or mental
- sexual orientation

There are a number of 'legal grounds' we rely on when handling this kind of information, depending on the circumstances:

where we have your explicit consent to do so for a particular purpose
where it's necessary for carrying out the obligations and exercising specific rights of RBKC or you in the field of employment law
for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims
where's it's necessary for equality of opportunity or treatment
where it's necessary for the prevention and detection of crime or fraud

The personal information we have collected from you will be shared with Cifas who will use it to prevent fraud, other unlawful or dishonest conduct, malpractice, and other seriously improper conduct. If any of these are detected you could be refused certain services or employment. Your personal information will also be used to verify your identity. Further details of how your information will be used by us and Cifas, and your data protection rights, can be found at on the CIFAS website.

In addition, UK privacy legislation has added information about criminal allegations, proceedings or convictions to the list of special categories compiled under UK law. RBKC may process this data in connection with the above special category legal grounds, or where necessary as part of our other statutory duties.

Obtaining and using your information

Personal information we hold about you comes from the following places:

your recruitment application and the supporting information you included with it
pre-employment checks, vetting and references from external third parties.
information created by RBKC during the course of your recruitment application, such as interview notes or assessment results

RBKC and the companies that process recruitment related information on our behalf will use your personal information to:

evaluate your application and assess your suitability for the role in question.
make a decision about whether you should be selected for interview and appointment.
conduct relevant pre-employment screening (eg verifying your employment history and criminal record checks; verify your address, academic qualifications and appropriate experience).
review and audit the recruitment process and its outcomes.
carry out equalities monitoring activities.
with your consent, identify any future employment opportunities which may be of interest to you.
your personal information will only be accessed and processed by authorised personnel who are involved in the management and administration of the recruitment process and have a legitimate need to access your personal information

Retaining information

If your application for employment is successful, RBKC will then use your personal information to manage and administer its employment relationship with you. If your application is unsuccessful, RBKC will retain your personal information for six months from the date on which the relevant recruitment campaign is closed:

to respond to correspondence, concerns or complaints.
to maintain records according to rules that apply to us (for example employment law).
to establish and defend any legal rights.
if you have given us permission to do so, we may also include your details in the RBKC 'talent pool' to contact you about future employment opportunities which may be of interest to you

Keeping personal information secure

RBKC takes the privacy of job applicants very seriously and has a range of robust policies, processes and technical measures in place to safeguard their personal information.

Access to systems that hold recruitment related information is restricted to authorised personnel through the use of unique identifiers and passwords. Your information is stored on systems that are protected by secure network architectures and are backed-up on a regular basis. Anyone with access to personal information held in RBKC's systems is required to complete data protection training.

Automated processing and profiling

Under data protection legislation we have to let you know when we use your personal information to do something 'automatically' using our computers or other systems, or use it to make an automated decision (without human intervention) that significantly affects you.

RBKC does not make any recruitment related decisions based solely on the use of automated systems, databases or computer applications.

RBKC has contracts with a number of third-party service providers, who provide the administration and 'back office' services that ensure the efficient day-to-day operation of our recruitment and selection processes. These third parties will process applicant information in accordance with RBKC's instructions and make decisions regarding the information as part of the delivery of their services; they are also required to put in place appropriate security measures that ensure an adequate level of protection for personal information.

In some circumstances, disclosures of applicant personal information to the police (and other law enforcement agencies) are permitted by the privacy and data protection legislation, if they are necessary for the prevention or detection of crime and/or the apprehension or prosecution of offenders. Each police request to RBKC is dealt with on a strictly case by case basis to ensure that any such disclosure is lawful and proportionate.

RBKC may also disclose your personal information to a third party in the following circumstances:

if it is necessary to do so in order to establish or defend RBKC's legal rights (i.e in the context of a court case involving RBKC)
in an emergency where the health or personal security of an applicant is at risk
where RBKC is otherwise required or permitted by law
overseas processing
processing of your personal information by RBKC and its service partners will normally be within the UK. Where this is not the case, the processing will be carried out in strict accordance with UK privacy legislation and the appropriate contractual and best practice safeguards which RBKC will put in place.
any such processing will be carried out in strict accordance with UK privacy legislation and the appropriate contractual safeguards which RBKC has put in place

Your information rights

Under data protection legislation you are entitled to ask to see any personal information that we hold about you. For more information about how to access your personal information please visit Subject Access Requests.

If you have any concerns

You have a right to complain to us if you think we have not complied with our obligation for handling your personal information, email [email protected]

If you are not satisfied with the council’s response you have a right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

Changes to our privacy notice

As the council creates new services, this may generate need to amend the notice. Any changes with regard to how the council processes personal data will be posted on this page.

Last updated: 6 February 2025

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