The Trust is required by law to protect the public funds it administers. We may share information provided to us with other bodies responsible for auditing or administering public funds, or where undertaking a public function in order to prevent and detect fraud.

The Cabinet Office is responsible for carrying out data matching exercises.

Data matching involves comparing sets of data held by one body against other records held by the same or another body to see how far they match. The data is usually personal information. The data matching allows potentially fraudulent claims and payments to be identified. Where a match is found it may indicate that there is an inconsistency which requires further investigation. No assumption can be made as to whether there is fraud, error or another explanation until an investigation is carried out.

We are a mandatory participant in the Cabinet Office’s National Fraud Initiative; a data matching exercise to assist in the prevention and detection of fraud. We are required to provide particular sets of data to the Minister for the Cabinet Office for matching each exercise, as detailed here on the www.gov.uk website.

The processing of data by the Cabinet Office in a data matching exercise is carried out with a statutory authority under Part 6 of the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014. It does not require the consent of the individuals concerned under data protection legislation or the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Data matching by the Cabinet Office is subject to a code of data matching practice.

The Cabinet Office has published its privacy notice, which sets out how the Cabinet Office will use your personal data and your rights. The notice is made under Article 14 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The legal basis for processing your personal data is that processing is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the data controller.

For further information on data matching at this organisation, please contact Nikki Cooper, nikki.cooper1@nhs.net or 07872 988939. Full information and details regarding the initiative can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/national-fraud-initiative