1) Policy statement

The Charity Service is fully committed to protecting the privacy of personal data in accordance with Data Protection legislation. This Privacy Policy sets out how we will do that.

2) The type of personal information we collect

The Charity Service only collects personal data volunteered by you. Personal information is anything which enables you to be identified in some way, such as your name and email address. The types of personal information collected typically include name, e-mail address, postal address and telephone number. We occasionally request additional personal information such as date of birth or bank details, depending on the nature of our relationship with you. Further details of the personal data we collect, how we collect it & why we have it are set out below.

3) How we obtain personal information, why we collect it and how we use it

3.1  If you make an enquiry

If you contact us with an enquiry about our services, we will collect your essential contact details (e.g. your name, e-mail address, phone number and, where applicable, the organisation or other person you represent and your job title), which we need to identify you and deal with your enquiry.

Depending on the nature of your enquiry, we may request further personal data from you, although we will make clear at the time why we require this information.

When you make an enquiry, we will process the personal data you give us. We collect personal data so that we can supply you with the information you have requested about our services.

3.2 If you are a donor

If you are a donor (or the organisation or other person you represent is a donor), we may request further personal data from you, especially if we need to carry out background checks about you to satisfy our obligations under applicable legislation concerning fraud and money laundering. If you do not provide us with the information we need, we will not be able to provide our services to you (or the organisation or other person you represent).

We will process the personal data that you give us in order to provide services to you (or the organisation or other person you represent).

If you make a donation by way of a stock transfer, we may share your contact details with our investment manager, as this will allow them to coordinate the stock transfer from your personal investment account.  

We will also process your personal data for internal record keeping and accounting, and to respond to any queries, complaints or requests for further information. The basis on which we do so is that it is necessary for our performance of the services we provide you (or the organisation or other person you represent), or is necessary for our legitimate interests in managing our business and improving our services, and to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations.

3.3 If you are a grant applicant and/or grant recipient

If you apply to us for a grant and/or are a grant recipient, we will collect your essential contact details (e.g. your name, e-mail address, phone number and, where applicable, the organisation or other person you represent and your job title), which we need to identify you and deal with your grant application and/or grant.

We will process the personal data that you give us in order to process your application and/or grant.

We will also process your personal data for internal record keeping, ongoing grant management, and to respond to any queries, complaints or requests for further information. The basis on which we do so is that it is necessary for our performance of the services we provide you (or the organisation or other person you represent), or is necessary for our legitimate interests in managing our business and improving our services, and to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations.

3.4 If you are a business or professional contact

If you provide us with your business or professional contact details or other relevant personal data (e.g. your name, e-mail address, phone number, job title and the organisation you work for), we will use this to keep in touch with you and exchange information that we believe is, or may become, relevant to our and your business or profession.

If you supply us with goods or services, we will also keep your personal data for the purposes of internal record keeping and accounting, and to raise queries, complaints or requests for further information with you.

We will process the personal data that you give us in order to manage our relationship with you and the organisation you represent.

3.5 If you enquire about a job or a volunteer role

If you submit an application or enquire about a role with us, we will ask you to provide relevant personal information about you. Further details of the personal data that we collect, and the basis on which we will process your personal data, will be provided at the time.

3.6 Keeping in touch

We occasionally provide information and services to donors, grant applicants, grant recipients and business contacts, such as news updates and events. We would like to use your contact details to inform you about relevant information and services that we provide, on the basis that it is necessary for our legitimate interests in promoting our services. If you wish us to use your personal data in this way, please tick the relevant box or click the relevant link on the form or in the email that we send you. All future marketing communications will also contain a simple way to opt out of receiving any further marketing communications from us.

4) Lawful basis for processing personal data

Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the lawful bases we rely on for processing personal data are:

(a) Your consent. You are able to remove your consent at any time. You can do this by contacting: [email protected]

(b) We have a contractual obligation.

(c) We have a legal obligation.

(d) We have a vital interest.

(e) We need it to perform a public task.

(f) We have a legitimate interest.

5) How we store your personal information

We use various database and information management systems to store your data securely.  

If you contact us with an enquiry about our services but you do not subsequently become a donor (or the organisation or other person you represent does not do so), it is our policy to delete your personal data after two years.

If you are a donor (or the organisation or other person you represent is a donor) or are a grant recipient, we normally retain information, including personal data, for a minimum of seven years after the end of the relevant service arrangement or grant agreement.

If you are a business or professional contact we will normally retain information, including personal data, for a minimum of seven years after the end of our contracted relationship.

We may agree with you to retain documents and personal data for a longer period, and in some cases it may be necessary for us to do so, depending on the circumstances of the case, including where it is necessary for us to retain the data for a longer period for regulatory reasons or for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims.

6) Your data protection rights

Under data protection law, you have rights including:

• Your right of access – You have the right to ask us for copies of your personal information.
• Your right to rectification – You have the right to ask us to rectify personal information you think is inaccurate. You also have the right to ask us to complete information you think is incomplete.
• Your right to erasure – You have the right to ask us to erase your personal information in certain circumstances.
• Your right to restriction of processing – You have the right to ask us to restrict the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances.
• Your right to object to processing – You have the the right to object to the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances.
• Your right to data portability – You have the right to ask that we transfer the personal information you gave us to another organisation, or to you, in certain circumstances.

You are not required to pay any charge for exercising your rights. If you make a request, we have one month to respond to you.

7) How to contact us

If you have any questions, comments or requests about this Privacy Policy, or would like to exercise any of the rights you have, as set out above, please contact us:

E-mail:                 [email protected]  

Telephone:          0300 133 0780

Address:              The Charity Service, Jactin House, 24 Hood Street, Ancoats, Manchester M4 6WX

8) How to complain

If you have any concerns about our use of your personal information, you can make a complaint to our Company Secretary and Data Protection Officer, Chris Mills, by emailing [email protected].

You can also complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) if you are unhappy with how we have used your data.

The ICO’s contact details are:

Telephone:          0303 123 1113

Website:              www.ico.org.uk   

Address:              Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF