IT & BYOD Policy
*New for 2026* - IT, Email and Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Policy
Hannington Parish Council is committed to using technology securely and responsibly in carrying out its work on behalf of the community.
This policy sets out the guidelines and responsibilities for the appropriate use of IT resources, email and personally owned devices by councillors, the Clerk and anyone else acting on behalf of the council. Because HPC does not own or issue devices to its members or staff, all council business is conducted on personally owned devices — a common arrangement for small rural parish councils known as 'Bring Your Own Device' or BYOD. This policy explains how we manage that arrangement safely and in compliance with our data protection obligations.
The policy covers:
- The council's approved IT platforms and services (including our secure gov.uk email domain, Microsoft 365, SharePoint and Dropbox)
- Acceptable use of council email and IT resources
- Security requirements for devices used for council business
- Data management, retention and secure destruction
- Reporting of security incidents and data breaches
- Councillor and Clerk training obligations
This policy was adopted at the Annual and Quarterly Meeting of Hannington Parish Council on 6th May 2026 and forms part of the council's compliance with Assertion 10 of the Annual Governance and Accountability Return (AGAR). It will be reviewed annually.
The full policy document is available to download below.