Development management (planning and building control) privacy notice

Last updated: January 2026 

What this notice is about 

This notice explains how Islington Council collects, uses, and protects your personal information when you use our Planning and Building Control services. These services include handling planning applications (and pre-application advice), building control applications, planning consultations, enforcement of planning rules, and related functions. You should also read our main privacy notice, which gives more details about your rights and how to contact us.  

What information we collect hold and use 

We may collect:   

• personal information, such as your name, address and contact details  
• full address of the development 
• the name and contact details of anyone acting for you, such an agent 
• sensitive information relating to health or disability if needed 
• financial information, such as bank details and payments received or outstanding 
• property information, such as ownership and tenancy details 
• photos of the site (if provided) 
• information required to process applications including but not limited to; plans, structural calculations, compliance certificates, any comments you submit. 

Where we get your information from 

We get information from: 

• you provide it to us directly 
• we receive it from a third-party website such as Planning Portal or iApply 
• complainants 
• other council departments or local authorities 
• The Land Registry.

How we use this information 

We use your information to: 

• process and make decisions on planning or building regulation applications (including dangerous structures and listed buildings) and any appeals 
• process building control applications or notices 
• investigate possible breaches of planning or building regulations 
• provide pre-application advice 
• develop planning policies 
• monitor development 
• maintain public registers for planning and building control 
• manage and monitor Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) and Section 106 (S106) 
• enter into legal agreements, serve notices and promote the best use of land 
• take enforcement action if needed 
• if you respond to a planning consultation. 

We do not use your information for automated decision-making. 

Our legal reasons for processing (using) your data 

Under UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) and the Data Use and Access Act 2025 (DUAA 2025) we use your data because: 

• it’s our legal obligation (the law says we must) 
• we are doing something in the public interest or as part of our official duties (public task). 

For special category data, we rely on substantial public interest (Article 9(2)(g)), as permitted by law, since planning decisions may involve considerations like health or disability. 

Other laws that apply to our services 

We collect and use your information to carry out our statutory duties under planning and building control regulations including, but not restricted to: 

• The Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended) 
• National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) 
• The Building Act 1984 and the Building Regulations 2010 
• The Self Build and Custom Housing Act 2015 
• The London Building Act (Amendment) Act 1939 
• Fire Safety and Places of Sports Act 1987 
• The London Building Act (Amendment) Act 1939 
• Fire Safety and Places of Sports Act 1987 
• The Building Safety Act 2022 
• The Building (Local Authority Charges) Regulations 2010 
• The Building (Approved Inspectors etc.) Regulations 2010 
• Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 
• Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004

Who we share your information with 

We share information with: 

• other council departments to assist them with carrying out their statutory duties; these include – land charges, environmental health, ICT applications support staff, highways, trees service
• elected members; for example, if you make a complaint to your elected councillor 
• other Local Authorities where building regulation applications are received for work which is outside of the borough, and information is required from host authority 
• external agencies such as the Planning Inspectorate, Building Safety Regulator or Local Government Ombudsman 
• residents (when consultation is needed) 
• Greater London Authority 
• government departments such as the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
• other statutory bodies (for example, the Environment Agency, London Fire Brigade, Historic England, or utilities) when they are consulted on applications 
• Courts and legal bodies if a case goes to court 
• certain third-party organizations, specialists or consultants for the purposes of assessing a building regulation or planning application ie structural engineer, fire safety consultant, viability consultant, highways consultant. 

We will not normally share your information with organisations without your consent. However, the Council will use the information for the purpose of performing any of its statutory enforcement duties. It will make any disclosures required by law and may also share this information with other bodies responsible for detecting/preventing fraud or auditing/administering public funds. 

Your information will not be disclosed to any other organisations, except where the council is required and allowed to by law, to safeguard public safety and in emergency situations or where there is risk of harm. 

We are also required to publish planning applications on our website. This includes the name and address of the applicant or their agent. Before we publish, we redact (remove): 

• personal contact details, such as phone numbers, email addresses and signatures 
• sensitive information, such as details about health conditions 
• private documents, for example bank statements or tenancy agreements.

In some cases, we may publish information from the list above if it is necessary, justified and lawful to do so. If this happens, we will let you know before we publish anything.  

If you want planning information to be treated confidentially or not published, please let us know as soon as you can - ideally before you submit your planning application. You can email us at planning@islington.gov.uk  

We will make copies of the Decision Notice and Completion Certificate for any Building Regulation application for your property and publish this on our website. 

Comments on planning applications 

We do not publish full comments related to live or recently decided planning applications (email, letter, online) online.  

Instead, we include a summary of issues raised (without your personal contact details) in the planning officer’s report.  

Full copies of comments are only shared with official parties, including applicants, agents, Greater London Authority (Mayor of London), the Planning Inspectorate, Appeal Rule 6 parties, statutory bodies, and other council departments. 

How we store your data 

We keep your information safe in our secure case management system. Only staff who need it can see it.  

Planning applications and decisions are kept permanently but some other documentation has a shorter retention period.  Building Control records are retained for at least 15 years from the work completion date To find out how long we keep your data check our main privacy notice and retention schedule. 

Your individual rights 

You have rights over your personal data. For more details see our main privacy notice and the page about your individual rights.  

Since we process your data under legal obligations/public tasks, some rights like data deletion and portability may not apply – but you do have the right to see what we hold, to have errors corrected, and to object in certain circumstances. 

Complaints

If you are unhappy with how we use your data please see the council’s main privacy notice to find out how to make a complaint.