No Recourse to Public Funds Network

The No Recourse to Public Funds Network (NRPF) Connect Database offers a secure mechanism for sharing data with the Home Office and local authorities when fulfilling statutory duties to families, vulnerable adults and children.

Data sharing over NRPF Connect is not dependent on you providing consent, a local authority must make enquiries to properly consider whether or not to provide financial services. The local authority assessing your claim for financial support still has a responsibility to inform you about how data will be shared with other organisations, and whether information is being shared in addition to what has been set-out through the use of the NRPF Connect database.

What information we share

The data that will be shared will include the following information about the principal applicant and their dependents:

• Name, date of birth and nationality
• Current address
• Details of any financial support provided by the local authority
• Information about immigration history in the UK

Why we need this information

Data is collected and shared for the following purposes:

• To notify the Home Office of local authority involvement – including when accommodation and subsistence support is being provided
• To engage the Home Office in the task of resolving cases as quickly as possible
• To comply with our legal duty to inform the Home Office (in some cases) about a person’s immigration status if a person is, or may not be, eligible for support.

Legal basis for collecting and sharing this information

Articles 6 (1)(e) and 9 (2) (g) GDPR. The statutory duties being fulfilled are:

Type of assistance	Law
Families with a child in need	Section 17 Children Act 1989
Young person formerly looked after by the local authority	Sections 23C, 24A, 24B Children Act 1989
Adults with needs for care and support	Part 1 of the Care Act 2014
Homelessness assistance	Allocation of Housing and Homelessness (Eligibility) (England) Regulations 2006
Looked after children – including Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASCs)	Section 20 Children Act 1989
Discretionary welfare payments administered by the local authority	Section 1 of the Localism Act 2011

Paragraph 14 of Schedule 3 of the Nationality Immigration Asylum Act 2002 to inform the Home Office when a person requesting support is, or may be, excluded from receiving care and support on the basis that they are:

• suspected or known to be unlawfully present in the UK,
• a refused asylum seeker who has not complied with removal directions, or
• a refused asylum seeker with dependent children who have been certified by the Secretary of State as having failed to take steps to leave the UK voluntarily.

Your rights when requesting support from a local authority

You have a right to be treated with dignity and respect and for the local authority to fairly consider entitlement to support through a formal assessment process. If a local authority believes that you are not eligible for financial support, this must be put in writing and clear advice given to you about what steps you can take to avoid destitution in the UK. Making enquiries about your case does not prevent the local authority acting to provide emergency support if you are in urgent need.

How your rights to the protection of personal data will be promoted

NRPF Connect will promote your rights in the following ways:

System Design	Benefit to you
Controlling data being shared	Keeping the amount of information shared between organisations limited to that which is necessary for the fulfillment of statutory duties. No information about your immigration status will be given to third parties without your consent unless as permitted or required by law or court order.
Data sharing to help make better decisions	The overriding objective of data sharing is to find a resolution to your destitution as quickly as is possible through improved communication between central and local government.
Protecting personal data	The database is hosted on a secure government network to keep your personal data safe.
Retaining a history of your case	Places the responsibility on government to get the information about you right; enables you to ensure information about you is accurate.
Deleting information when it is no longer required	Information will be retained for ten years after a case is closed to the local authority after which it will be deleted.

Your responsibilities

Always be honest about your circumstances and be prepared to evidence what you have said, including providing reasons as to why certain information requested may not be available to you.

Your right to find out more

You may also make a subject access request to the Home Office for a copy of the information that is held about you.