About CWAG

Councils with ALMOs Group (CWAG) is the representative body of stock owning local authorities whose stock is managed by ALMOs.

CWAG Aims and Objectives are:

  • to act as a forum to provide mutual support to authorities with ALMOs
  • to have an active role in influencing the national policy agenda, particularly in respect of ALMOs but also through working with others in areas of broader concern.
  • to facilitate the exchange and introduction of best practice and to develop initiatives for local authorities whose stock is managed by ALMOs
  • as a Special Interest Group of the Local Government Association(LGA) – to inform and influence LGA policy and activity on housing so it reflects the needs and concerns of Councils with ALMOs
  • to promote the ALMO model and develop positive partnerships with ALMOs to ensure the best outcome for tenants/leaseholders

The group is managed via an elected Executive Group and there is a part-time policy officer in post. Manchester City Council acts as Treasurer and Lead Authority for the Group.

General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR)

We are committed to ensuring that personal information is held fairly, lawfully and securely in accordance with privacy laws.

For the purposes of GDPR CWAG is the data controller.

The legal basis for processing personal data is consent.

Your Rights

  • Right to be informed about how we use your personal data
  • Right to ask for access to the personal information we hold about you
  • Right to ask us to stop using or delete your information
  • Right to ask us to limit what we use your personal information for
  • Right to ask us to change the personal information you think is wrong

When we collect data from you

When a local authority joins CWAG we ask for contact details for staff members wishing to be included on the list of CWAG contacts. The information collected includes name, job title, work email address and work telephone number. We save this data on a stand-alone computer.

In the course of our day to day duties we will update email addresses of our existing contacts and respond to new requests to be added to the contact lists from CWAG members.

CWAG never shares your information with any third parties. We will always give any individual the opportunity to opt-out of any emails from us. Please email a.freeman@manchester.gov.uk to be removed from our email contacts list.

Why do we ask for this information?

We use this information to

  • circulate notifications of meetings and events, policy and news update and good practice briefings
  • Respond to requests, enquiries and complaints received from you
  • Contact you about services requested by you
  • To evaluate customer satisfaction with the services we deliver
  • To keep our records up to date
  • For audit purposes We may collect case study or survey information from members from time to time – we will always tell you:
  • Why we are collecting your information
  • What we will do with it
  • If we will share it (and who we share it with).

CWAG Website

People employed by CWAG member local authorities can request access to the members’ area of the CWAG website – https://www.councilswithalmos.co.uk/?page=memberarea

On registration we collect details of the persons employing local authority, job title, work address and email.

What is your personal information used for?

CWAG uses your personal data for the purpose of administering the CWAG website including a directory of registered members and sending out forum alerts where notifications of new alerts are automatically emailed to registered users ( there is an opt out clause for this feature).

Who we share your information with

Your email details are shared with other CWAG members who are registered with the CWAG website. The information is shared via the members’ directory within the members’ area of the website (members only).

How long will we keep your information?

Your information is displayed within the members’ area for as long as your council’s membership is active. You can opt out of emails at any time – please email a.freeman@manchester.gov.uk to be removed from our data base. The details are removed when the individual member notifies CWAG that they wish to opt out of this feature.

Other uses We do not do direct marketing or any data processing using apps or analytics etc.

Access to your information

You have the right to access a copy of the personal information that CWAG holds about you and to have any inaccuracies corrected or your information deleted. If you would like a copy of some or all of your personal information, (please email: a.freeman@manchester.gov.uk). We will ask for proof of your identity before we supply a copy.

Our Website and Cookies

Cookies are small bits of information that we place on your computer. The cookies used help us to gather information about the pages you visit on this website allowing us to make your browsing experience better.

IP Addresses

An IP address is a number automatically assigned to your computer whenever you access the Internet. All computer identification on the Internet is conducted with IP addresses, which allow computers and servers to recognize and communicate with each other. We do log IP addresses, or the location of your computer on the Internet, for systems administration and troubleshooting purposes. However, we do not use IP address logs to track your session or your behaviour on a website or application.

Use of cookies on the CWAG website

Overall, the use of cookies helps to give you a customised experience remembering your preferences on the website. Through the use of cookies, we will know what’s working and what’s not. They can also be used for high level analysis of the website, for example, which pages of the website are most visited.

May I decline to accept a cookie?

You may decline to accept cookies by selecting an option on your browser to reject cookies. If you decline a cookie, you may not be viewing the site as it was designed to be optimally presented. Changes to our privacy policy We will review our privacy policy from time to time and any changes will be posted on our website. This privacy policy was last updated in March 2019.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact a.freeman@manchester.gov.uk