Please read our general and Development Services privacy notice as well as this notice.
What we do
Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole council (BCP) are responsible for maintaining and protecting Public Rights of Way. A public right of way is a highway which the public have the right to pass and repass regardless of who owns the land either side of the highway. Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, it is our duty as the surveying authority to continuously review the Definitive Map and Statement (legal record of public rights of way).
The purposes we use your information for
We collect and process your personal information to provide these services to you. This will include:
- Reviewing applications for modifying the Definitive Map and Statement.
- Contacting individuals making representations to an order modifying the Definitive Map and Statement.
- Collating and replying to responses to public consultations.
- Responding to general enquiries received by the Rights of Way team.
- Assessing planning applications affecting rights of way.
- Investigating notifications of obstructions and other problems affecting rights of way.
- Recording landowner details for declarations made under Section 31(6) of the Highways Act 1980.
The personal information we collect and use
We only obtain and use the information we need to provide our services to you. We do not actively request special category information. Individuals may voluntarily provide special category information which will be handled and stored securely.
- Name
- Address
- Contact details
- Contact details provided by a member of the public for another individual.
The law we use to process your personal information
Statutory legislation:
The main legislation that provides us with the statutory basis to deliver our services is:
- Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
- Highways Act 1980
- Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984
- Town and Country Planning Act 1990
- Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000
- Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006.
The GDPR/DPA conditions we meet:
The conditions that we use to process your personal information are:
- GDPR Article 6(1)(e) - Public task:the processing is necessary for us to perform a task in the public interest or for our official functions, and the task or function has a clear basis in law. Also with reference to Part 2, Chapter 2, paragraph 8(c) of the Data Protection Act 2018
- GDPR Article 6(1)(c) - Legal obligation:the processing is necessary for us to comply with the law (not including contractual obligations)
Who we may share your information with
We will share your data in certain situations where we’re legally obliged:
- If a member of the public submits an objection or makes a representation to a legal order, their details may be required to be passed to the Planning Inspectorate as part of the inquiry process. The Planning Inspectorate is acting on behalf of the Secretary of State for the Department of Environmental, Food and Affairs.
- User evidence, witness evidence, landowner details, information relating to other affected individuals and other individuals who are associated with them, may be required to be passed to the Planning Inspectorate as part of the inquiry to establish the validity of a legal order.
- When a landowner submits a map and declaration, made under Section 31 (6) of the Highways Act 1980, to BCP Council they become public documents. Under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, we’re required to maintain a register which is available to public inspection in paper and electronic format.
- Sharing information with other service units of the council namely Highways Enforcement, Legal Services, Environmental Services, Planning and Anti-Social Behaviour team, to be used for the discharge of a statutory function relating to security, law enforcement and crime prevention. This list is not exhaustive of the service units we may share personal information with.
- Complying with law enforcement for example helping to prevent crime.
We may use your personal information to contact you to obtain further information or provide updates in relation to a matter you have contacted us about.
How long we keep information about you
To fulfil our statutory duties under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and the Highways Act 1980 and for the purposes of supporting future surveying work, we will retain information regarding the status of a right of way. Personal details provided to the Rights of Way team will be kept for six years then redacted.