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Whitmore Vale Housing Association is the data controller for the information you provide during the application process unless otherwise stated. If you have any queries about the process or how we handle your information please contact us at secretary@whitmorevale.co.uk.
What will we do with the information you provide to us?
All of the information you provide during the process will only be used for the purpose of progressing your application, or to fulfil legal or regulatory requirements if necessary.
We will not share any of the information you provide during the recruitment process with any third parties for marketing purposes or store any of your information outside of the European Economic Area. The information you provide will be held securely by us and/or our data processors whether the information is in electronic or physical format.
We will use the contact details you provide to us to contact you to progress your application. We will use the other information you provide to assess your suitability for the role you have applied for.
What information do we ask for, and why?
We do not collect more information than we need to fulfil our stated purposes and will not retain it for longer than is necessary.
The information we ask for is used to assess your suitability for employment. You do not have to provide what we ask for but it might affect your application if you do not.
Application stage
We ask you for your personal details including name and contact details. We will also ask you about your previous experience, education, referees and for answers to questions relevant to the role you have applied for. Our secretaries and the management of the service you are applying to will have access to all of this information.
You will also be asked to provide equal opportunities information. This is not mandatory information – if you do not provide it, it will not affect your application. This information will not be made available to any staff outside of the secretaries, including hiring managers, in a way which can identify you. Any information you do provide will be used only to produce and monitor equal opportunities statistics.
Shortlisting
Our hiring managers shortlist applications for interview. They will not be provided with your name or contact details or with your equal opportunities information if you have provided it.
Conditional offer
If we make a conditional offer of employment we will ask you for information so that we can carry out pre-employment checks. You must successfully complete pre-employment checks to progress to a final offer. We are required to confirm the identity of our staff, their right to work in the United Kingdom and seek assurance as to their trustworthiness, integrity and reliability.
You will therefore be required to provide:
Proof of your identity – you will be asked to attend our office with original documents, we will take copies.
Proof of your qualifications – you will be asked to attend our office with original documents, we will take copies.
You will be asked to complete a criminal records declaration to declare any unspent convictions.
We will ask you to complete an application for a Standard Criminal Record check via the Disclosure and Barring Service, processed by our secretaries and counter signatories which will verify your declaration of unspent convictions.
We will contact your referees, using the details you provide in your application, directly to obtain references
We will also ask you to complete a questionnaire about your health. This is to establish your fitness to work. This is done through a data processor (please see below).
Final Offer
If we make a final offer, we will also ask you for the following:
Bank details – to process salary payments
Emergency contact details – so we know who to contact in case you have an emergency at work
Relevant data processors:
Health Assured
Health Assured provide our Occupational Health service. If we make you a conditional offer, we will ask that you complete a questionnaire which will help to determine if you are fit to undertake the work that you have been offered, or advise us if any adjustments are needed to the work environment or systems so that you may work effectively.
We will provide you with a questionnaire. The information you provide will be held by Health Assured who will provide us with a fit to work certificate or a report with recommendations. You are able to request to see the report before it is sent to us. If you decline for us to see it, then this could affect your job offer. If an occupational health assessment is required, this is likely to be carried out by Health Assured.
Here is a link to their Privacy Notice.
Disclosure and Barring Service
The Disclosure and Barring Service are responsible for:
- processing requests for criminal records checks (DBS checks)
- deciding whether it is appropriate for a person to be placed on or removed from a barred list
- placing or removing people from the DBS children’s barred list and adults’ barred list for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Here is the link to their privacy notice:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dbs-privacy-policies
How long is the information retained for?
If you are successful, the information you provide during the application process will be retained by us as part of your employee file for the duration of your employment plus 6 years following the end of your employment. This includes your criminal records declaration, fitness to work and references.
If you are unsuccessful at any stage of the process, the information you have provided until that point will be retained for 6 months from the closure of the job advert.
Information generated throughout the assessment process, for example interview notes, is retained by us for 6 months following the closure of the advert.
Equal opportunities information is retained for 6 months following the closure of the campaign whether you are successful or not.
How we make decisions about recruitment?
Final recruitment decisions are made by hiring managers. All of the information gathered during the application process is taken into account.
You are able to ask about decisions made about your application by speaking to the hiring manager or the secretaries by emailing secretary@whitmorevale.co.uk.
Your rights
Under the Data Protection Act 1998, you have rights as an individual which you can exercise in relation to the information we hold about you.
You can read more about these rights here – https://ico.org.uk/for-the-public/is-my-information-being-handled-correctly/
Complaints or queries
Whitmore vale Housing Association tries to meet the highest standards when collecting and using personal information. For this reason, we take any complaints we receive about this very seriously. We encourage people to bring it to our attention if they think that our collection or use of information is unfair, misleading or inappropriate. We would also welcome any suggestions for improving our procedures.
This privacy notice was drafted with brevity and clarity in mind. It does not provide exhaustive detail of all aspects of WVHA’s collection and use of personal information. However, we are happy to provide any additional information or explanation needed.
If you want to make a complaint about the way we have processed your personal information, please contact us in the first instance at the address below:
Business Services Manager
Whitmore vale Housing Association
Whitmore Vale House
Churt Road
Hindhead
Surrey
GU26 6NL
If you are still unhappy following our response to you please contact the Information Commissioner’s Office:
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Tel: 0303 123 1113
Fax: 01625 524 510
We keep our privacy notice under regular review. This privacy notice was last updated on 21st May 2018.