Privacy

Your privacy is important to Canterbury Regional Council (referred to in this Privacy Statement as “we”, “our” or “us”).  

This Privacy Statement governs our collection, use and disclosure of your personal information (as defined in the Privacy Act 2020 (Privacy Act)) and has been prepared in accordance with our obligations and your rights set out in the Privacy Act. This privacy policy does not limit or exclude any rights that you have or may have under the Privacy Act. It may be necessary to depart from this Privacy Statement if any exceptions in the Privacy Act apply. We may change this Privacy Statement from time to time by uploading a new Privacy Statement on our website.

Why do we collect your personal information?  

We only collect your personal information when it is necessary for a specific purpose connected with the services we provide or in connection with our statutory rights and obligations. The purpose for collecting and using your information varies according to the services we are providing, or the relevant statutory rights and obligations.

What type of personal information do we collect?  

Your personal information is any information about you. Your name, contact details, finance, purchase records, anything that you can look at and say, ‘this is about me’.  

When we say ‘personal information’ we mean identifiable information about you, relating to your:   

We may also collect any other information provided by you in connection with, or specifically related to your communications with us or your use of our services or facilities.

We may also receive information about you from third parties, including public sources.  

If you apply for a job with us, we may collect things such as a CV, Visa status, data from psychometric testing. If you are hired, we may conduct a credit check, police screening or Ministry of Justice check.

We collect your bank account, tax code, emergency contact details, driver licence details.

When do we collect your personal information?  

We may collect your personal information when you, or someone acting on your behalf, provides information to us directly. For example, when you:  

We may also:  

We may also collect personal information when it relates to an alleged offence or incident that we may investigate.

What information do we collect when you visit our websites?  

When you visit one of our websites, we may use technology solutions such as cookies to provide you with better access to tailored information and services and to better serve you when you return to them. You can choose to disable or delete your cookies. Through GA4, we collect and store statistical information about your visits, which may include:  

The information provided is aggregated and identifiers are masked so the information cannot be used to identify individuals. Our internet service providers may also make a record of your visit and log information for statistical purposes. This information is only analysed on a bulk basis for broad demographic content. Individual use is not analysed. We do not attempt to identify users or their browsing activities unless they choose to give us personal information while using our website.  

We use a number of third-party data hosting services including, but not limited to Granicus (EngagementHQ), Momentive (SurveyMonkey/Wufoo), Intuit (Mailchimp), Hotjar, and Windcave for taking payments.

In addition to using cookies, we use GA4, a service that provides aggregated reports on website activity. GA4 relies on the use of first-party cookies. For details on what information is collected via these cookies, and how it is stored and used, see Google's privacy policy.  

It is important to note that once you follow a link and leave our social media or website you are subject to the privacy and security policies of the website you are visiting. We do not have control over the privacy policies of other websites or social media pages. It is also important to note that we do not use your information for commercial marketing. 

What information do we collect from CCTV?  

We use Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) in particular areas to monitor such things as:

Signage advising of CCTV equipment will in most instances give notice of areas covered by such equipment. CCTV footage will only be viewed by authorised people in accordance with the purpose noted above or to regularly check the system is operational. No attempt is made to identify individuals from CCTV footage except in relation to a reported or suspected incident requiring investigation.

What do we use your personal information for?  

We only collect your personal information for a specific purpose connected with the services we provide or in connection with our statutory rights and obligations.

The personal information that we collect from you, or someone acting on your behalf, may be used for purposes such as:  

Who do we share your personal information with?

We may share your personal information with:

What information do we make public?

We are required by law to make certain information that we hold available to the public. This information may include your personal information. For example:  

We also make available information such as oblique flood imagery and aerial imagery, and imagery to help manage the safe navigation of vessels and promote safe recreational boating.

How do we protect your personal information?

Looking after your information is our priority. We are committed to protecting your personal information and take reasonable steps to ensure it is:

We take unauthorised attempts to upload information or change information seriously. Doing this is strictly prohibited and may be punishable.

We may contract third parties to provide data hosting services, including storage of your personal information. Those third parties may be based in other countries such as Australia or the USA. Appropriate safeguards are put in place to ensure adequate protection of information.

How long will we keep your personal information?  

The length of time we keep your personal information depends on what it is and whether we have an ongoing need to retain it (for example, to provide you with a service you’ve requested).

We may retain all personal information that we collect (on both our active systems and our archive systems), for as long as administratively necessary, in accordance with the council’s information retention policies and disposal schedule.

To determine the appropriate retention period of your information, we consider the nature, sensitivity, appropriate legal obligations, the potential risk of harm from unauthorised disclosure, the purposes for which we process your information and whether these purposes can be achieved through alternative means.

We are required to keep records of our business under the Public Records Act 2005, which requires us to retain “protected records” indefinitely. In some circumstances, your personal information may be included within a protected record, including submissions you make in relation to bylaws, annual plans, and district or regional planning instruments.

What if you do not want to provide the personal information requested?  

If you do not provide us with all of the personal information about you that we request, we may not be able to adequately respond to your correspondence, process any applications you have submitted, provide the services or facilities you have requested, process payments or otherwise deal with any requests or enquiries you have submitted.

In some circumstances, failure to provide information when requested may be unlawful, and/or result in legal consequences. These circumstances and the potential consequences will be explained to you when your personal information is requested.

What are your rights?

You have the right to ask why the information is being collected and what is its use.

You also have the right to know what information we hold about you, to request a copy, and to request that we correct your information if inaccurate.

Your rights of access to and correction of any personal information we hold about you are subject to the procedures set out in the Privacy Act.

We will endeavour to respond to your request as quickly as possible and no later than 20 working days after you make your request. Email us or use the postal address provided below.

Who can you contact for further information?  

You can contact us at any time to ask about our Privacy Statement and privacy practices, to let us know that you're concerned about anything, or make a complaint about the way we've handled your personal information.  

If you have any queries about personal information Canterbury Regional Council has collected, please contact us via email: ecinfo@ecan.govt.nz or via postal address: PO Box 345 Christchurch.

If you're not satisfied with the way we've handled your complaint, you have the right to make a complaint to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner.  

Complaints can be made online at the Office of the Privacy Commissioner website or sent by post to:  

Office of the Privacy Commissioner  
PO Box 10094  
Wellington  
6143 

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