Access to your personal information

You have the right to access information held about you on the Police National Computer (PNC).

You can request information such as:

• arrests
• cautions
• convictions
• reprimands
• warnings

The Criminal Records Office (ACRO) processes these applications. To apply for information held about you on the PNC, make a Subject Access Request.

To help us find any data held about you, you will need to specify exactly what information you would like us to provide.

In certain circumstances we can withhold some of your personal data. We will let you know if this is the case.

Identification

To keep your data secure, we need to make sure you are who you say you are, so you will need to provide two official forms of identification.

Timescales

We aim to reply to your request within one month of receipt of your ID.

Requests for ‘all info’

If you ask for all your personal data, we will gather the information as best we can. Sometimes, we may need to provide you with a summary.

Let us know if you are looking for information about particular incidents.

Legal proceedings

You will only be given access to your own personal data. Disclosures under the subject access request will not provide a balanced viewpoint and may be unhelpful if presented during the course of legal proceedings. We therefore recommend you apply for a court order for legal proceedings.

Third-party request

You do not have to, but we would appreciate it if you would provide details where someone has asked you to apply through Subject Access, and under what circumstances.

We may pass these details to the Office of the Information Commissioner. You have not committed any offence in submitting your application.

Make a request

You can make a subject access request:

• online – apply for access to your personal data
• by post – write to:
  Avon and Somerset Police and Fire Headquarters
  Subject Access Team
  Legal and Compliance
  PO Box 37, Valley Road
  Portishead
  North Somerset
  BS20 8QJ

For guidance, email SubjectAccessRequest@avonandsomerset.police.uk.

If you require a disclosure for employment purposes, the Criminal Records Office (ACRO) offers a basic level check.

This check will not show convictions classed as spent under the terms of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act.

To request a basic level check, visit the ACRO website.

To request a full list of offences, including those spent, you will need to make a subject access request – apply for access to your personal data.

Subject access disclosures are not covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act. This means the disclosure may contain information about spent convictions, which a third party is not entitled to receive.

If you require a disclosure for a Personal Licence application, you can apply for a basic level check, which does not include spent convictions.

To request a basic level check, visit the ACRO website.

To request information for the purpose of employment or self-employment with children, the elderly or the vulnerable, visit the Disclosure and Barring Service website.

If you require a criminal record check to work with children overseas, you should apply for an International Child Protection Certificate (ICPC).

You have the right to apply for early deletion of records about you which are held on:

• the National DNA Database
• National Fingerprint Database
• PNC, depending on certain criteria

All applications for the removal of records from national police systems are managed by the Criminal Records Office (ACRO).

To find out if you are eligible and apply to have your records deleted from national police systems, visit the ACRO website.

The law now states that historical convictions for consensual gay sex with people over­ 16 years old, will not show up on criminal record checks.

If you are eligible, you can apply to the Home Secretary to have your conviction disregarded.

For the conviction to be disregarded, it must appear that:

• All parties involved in the conduct constituting the offence, consented to it and were aged 16 or over at the time the offence was committed
• Any such conduct would not now be an offence under the Sexual Offences Act 2003

For guidance and to apply to have your conviction disregarded, visit the GOV.UK website.

All our retention periods for your personal information are in line with the National Police Chief Council’s (NPCC) Record Retention and Disposal Schedule (PDF).

For further details on how we process personal data view our Privacy Notice.