Privacy statement
Personal information
In this privacy statement, "personal information" refers to any data that either directly identifies you or can reasonably identify you. This includes information collected from you to conduct our business and fulfil our regulatory obligations.
If you find any inaccuracies or need to update your personal information, please let us know.
Privacy laws and guidelines we follow
Local councils in New South Wales are guided by the following acts and guidelines in managing activities on our website:
We are committed to protecting your privacy under the all guidelines listed above.
Privacy and our website
We do not any collect personal information from website visitors who are browsing our website.
However, we gather information on how visitors use our website so we can continue to improve content and usability. We do this primarily through cookies, which are small pieces of code that recognise computers when visiting our site (cookies do not recognise individuals). This information includes pages visited, visit times and other diagnostic data. This data helps us improve the website and tailor content.
This is standard practice across major websites worldwide. We use first-party cookies and JavaScript code from analytics platforms like Google Analytics, and social media platforms such as LinkedIn and Facebook.
We do not attempt to identify individual users from web server logs. The only exception to this would be if it was required by a law enforcement agency in an investigation where inspection of the internet web server logs is required.
Privacy and social media
This section explains how we collect, use and manage personal information through our official social media channels, including (but not limited to) Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
Collection of personal information
When you engage with us on social media - such as liking or sharing posts, commenting, tagging, sending messages, or participating in polls or competitions - we may collect personal information you choose to share. This may include your name, username or handle, profile picture, opinions, and other content you post.
We do not collect personal information from social media in an automated way. However, information that is publicly available may be used to help us respond to your enquiry or improve our services.
Use and disclosure
We may use personal information collected via social media to:
- respond to your enquiries or complaints
- engage with our community
- promote council initiatives, events or services
- monitor public sentiment and feedback
- report on and improve service delivery
Information posted on social media platforms may be stored and processed by those platforms outside of Australia. We do not control how these third-party platforms collect, use or store your data. Please refer to each platform’s privacy policy for details on how they handle your information.
We do not disclose your personal information to third parties unless required or authorised by law.
Public nature of social media
Please be aware that social media platforms are public forums. Any personal information or comments you post may be visible to others. We strongly recommend that you do not share sensitive or confidential personal details in public comments or posts.
If you wish to provide private information to council, please do so via a direct message or contact us through more secure channels such as telephone or email.
Moderation and record keeping
We monitor our social media pages during business hours and reserve the right to hide or delete posts that are offensive, defamatory, misleading, spam or not aligned with our community guidelines.
In some cases, interactions on social media may be retained as official records under the State Records Act 1998 (NSW) and managed in line with our record keeping obligations.
Limiting the information we can gather from you
You have the ability to manage your personal preferences when using our digital channels in these ways:
- Google Analytics and internet browser settings - you have the option to manage cookie preferences through your browser settings to disable or receive warnings about cookie usage. Google Analytics provides opt-out tools on the web, and your browser's 'help' section offers guidance on adjusting cookie preferences. You can also view the site as an incognito user.
- Meta (Facebook and Instagram) settings - you can manage your Facebook and Instagram ad settings at any time by adjusting your preferences regarding how Meta uses your website activity data for advertising purposes.
Feedback on our digital practices
We welcome feedback about our digital management and activities. If you have comments, please write to the General Manager.