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Sanctuary Scheme

The Council collect information about you and members of your household for the purpose of extending the housing options available to victims of violence via the Sanctuary Scheme.  This is an initiative which helps to fulfil the authority's duty to prevent homelessness, however the Scheme will only be introduced when it is your choice to do so.

The legal basis for this processing is ‘Public Task' and ‘Legal Obligation’, in accordance with The Local Government Act, 1972, which empowers local authorities to do anything necessary to facilitate the discharge of their statutory functions, in this case the prevention of homelessness, The Crime and Disorder Act, Section 115 allows anyone to disclose information to a police authority/local authority if that disclosure is necessary for the purposes of crime prevention and The Local Government Act 2000 which enables local authorities to promote the economic, social or environmental well-being of a community area or its people.

Information collected regarding race, ethnicity, gender, health, sexuality and criminal convictions is classed as ‘special category’ data, and is processed in accordance with Article 9(2)(h), health & social care purposes and Article 10, processing of personal data relating to criminal convictions and offences.

The data collected is:

  • Name
  • Contact details
  • Date of birth
  • Gender
  • Occupation
  • Housing circumstances
  • Racial / ethnic background
  • Medical information
  • Antisocial behaviour data
  • Perpetrators details
  • Criminal offences
  • Relationship status

The information will be accessible by members of Community Safety who administer the scheme on behalf of the Council.  Some or all of this information will also be accessible to your landlord if you have one, either a Registered Provider of Social Housing or a Private Landlord to facilitate security adaptions to your home.  If you live in a rented property and we believe that your home is unsafe then some or all of this information will also be accessible to the Private Sector Housing Team on behalf of the Council. The decision to share your information with your landlord will be made in consultation with you. A complete list of organisations who we share information with is below, however only information that is accurate, relevant and proportionate to the threat to you and your children/dependants will be shared:

  • Registered Providers of Social Housing
  • Private landlords
  • Registered private and social landlords within the area.
  • Early Intervention Family Support
  • Hereford and Worcester Fire + Rescue
  • HMP Hewell
  • National Probation Service: senior manager
  • Redditch Borough Council
  • Swanswell
  • Victim Support
  • Warwickshire and West Mercia Community Rehabilitation Company
  • West Mercia Police
  • West Mercia Women’s Aid
  • Worcestershire Acute Hospital Trust
  • Worcestershire Adult Safeguarding Team
  • Worcestershire Children’s Services Worcestershire County Council
  • Worcestershire Health & Care NHS Trust
  • Worcestershire Family Intervention Project
  • Worcestershire Youth Offending Team
  • WRASASC (West Mercia Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre)

In some circumstances, this data is not collected directly from the data subject, it is sometimes passed to the Council from another agency.  Conversely, if you chose not to be part of the scheme, you may be signposted to other agencies and your information may be shared. If a referral is made and you chose not to be part of the scheme, the Council will keep your information for 12 months.

Where a referral is made and processed, this information will be kept for 10 years following the date of our last contact.  Where there is a child, this information will be kept for up to 25 years, I.e., from the date of birth of the youngest child in the family.

Statistical data only, is shared with other agencies and government departments; otherwise this information will not be shared/sold to any other service/organisation unless we have a duty to do so under law.

This data will not be transferred outside of the EEA.>No decisions around this data are made by automated means.