National Care Service Lived Experience Experts Panel and Stakeholder Register: privacy notice

This privacy notice explains your rights under the UK General Data Protection Regulations (UK GDPR). It tells you how we will look after and use your personal data.

Who we are

We are the Health and Social Care Directorate within the Scottish Government. We are the devolved government for Scotland and our head office is located at St Andrews House, Regent Road, Edinburgh, EH1 3DG.

The Scottish Government has committed to having a working National Care Service (NCS) by the end of 2026. The NCS will be designed with people’s experience and needs at its heart and to achieve this, we are inviting citizens to join our Lived Experience Experts Panel and organisations to sign up to our stakeholder Register.

The Lived Experience Experts Panel will be made up of people who have real experience of accessing or using social care services in Scotland. Their expertise will shape the future NCS and help to make sure we're working with the right people, in the right way.

Why we need your personal information and what we will do with it

We need your personal information to allow us to make sure the panel represents a wide range of people, with different experiences and expertise.

As part of your application to be a member of the Lived Experience Experts Panel we will ask you to provide for the following personal data:

• your name
• address
• date of birth
• postcode
• email address
• information about you and others within your household

We may also collect sensitive personal data about you that is given greater protection under Data Protection legislation such as information relating to your health, sexuality, religion and gender.

If you are signing up on behalf of an organisation to our stakeholder register, we will ask you for:

• your name
• job Title
• email address
• name of organisation
• telephone number

Our lawful basis for using your personal data

We collect and process personal data to carry out our legal and official functions. For panel and stakeholder register, we are processing your personal data as it is necessary for the performance of a task in the public interest under s1A of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978. This power enables the Scottish Ministers to do anything they consider likely to assist in discharging their duty to promote the improvement of the physical and mental health of the people of Scotland. This includes undertaking research and design with the public and organisations to understand their experiences of Health and Social Care services for informing the future design of the National Care Service.

Because it might impact on your experience of social care,  we will ask you to provide more sensitive types of personal information, including information relating to your health, as part of your application. Our lawful  basis for using this information is that is necessary for the improvement of health or social care systems and services.

Organisations we share personal data with

For our online application for sign up to the Lived Experience Experts Panel and Stakeholder Register, we are using the services of Microsoft who may process personal data on our behalf and under our direction.

Processing personal data in the UK

The data for most of our systems is processed within the EU. When this happens, we always ensure that the data is just as safe as it would be if it was processed in the UK.

How long we will keep your personal data

We only keep your personal information for the minimum amount of time necessary.

If you apply to join the panel and are added to the waiting list, we will keep the information provided during your application for 2 years. This means that if we invite you to join later, you won’t have to complete a new application.

If you are added to the panel, we will keep the information provided in your application, any additional information given to us on joining, and the outputs of any research or design activities for up to 10 years from the date of joining the panel.

If you have given information about other people

If you have provided anyone else's information within your application, please make sure that you have told them that you have provided their information to the Scottish Government and inform them of this privacy notice.

How we protect your data

We have a duty to protect your personal data.

We take care to ensure your personal information is only accessible to authorised people.

The following security measures are in place to protect personal information:

• all staff undertake mandatory training in Data Protection
• compliance with our Information Security Policy
• organisational policy and procedures on the safe handling of personal information
• access controls and audits of electronic systems

Your rights and how to access your personal data

You have a right of access to any personal data we hold about you by making a Subject Access Request (SAR).

In addition, if you believe that the data we hold is inaccurate or incomplete you can ask us to update our records by emailing NCSdesign@gov.scot

For more information on the rights you have over how your personal data is handled, please visit Your data matters | ICO

How to complain

If you are dissatisfied with the way we handle your personal data, you can raise your concerns with our Data Protection Officer in the first instance. You can do this by e-mail to DataProtectionOfficer@gov.scot or write to :

Data Protection Officer
Victoria Quay
Commercial Street
Edinburgh
EH6 6QQ

If you feel we have been unable, or unwilling to resolve your complaint, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Regulator for data protection in the UK, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO):

The Information Commissioner
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Telephone
08456 30 60 60

https://ico.org.uk/concerns/handling/