Using public information and personal data

Using public information and requesting your own personal data can both be powerful tools in challenging discrimination. People often mix these two things up, so it’s useful to know which is which:

• You have the right to request personal data about yourself (or a child/person you are legally responsible for) from any organisation in the UK and sometimes control how your personal data is used, using Data Protection laws.
• If the organisation you are dealing with is a public authority (council, university, NHS healthcare provider, government department etc) you may find it useful to use Freedom of Information legislation to obtain certain kinds of information such as statistics, policies, procedures and to some extent correspondence.