BLANDFORD & DISTRICT U3A
DATA PROTECTION – PRIVACY POLICY
Blandford & District U3A treats your privacy rights seriously. This privacy policy sets out how we will deal with your ‘personal information’, that is, information that could identify, or is related to the identity of, an individual.
What personal information do we collect?
When you express an interest in becoming a member of Blandford & District U3A you will be asked to provide certain information. This includes:
• Your name
• Home address
• Email address
• Telephone number
• Your subscription details
• Gift Aid entitlement (optional)
How do we collect this personal information?
All the information collected is obtained directly from you. This is usually at the point of your initial registration and again when renewing your annual membership. The information will be collected via membership forms. The lawful basis for collecting and storing your information is due to the contractual relationship that you, as a member, have with the U3A. In order to inform you about the groups, activities and events that you can access as a member we need to store and process a certain amount of personal data.
How is your data stored & who has access ?
Historically, all data was securely stored on a remote computer.
In spring 2024, B&D u3a introduced Beacon software. Beacon is a program specifically developed for use by u3a's. Among its many attributes are enhanced protection for data and an easy, secure system for group email communication.
Access to the database is restricted to Committee Members and Group leaders. However, in the case of Group Leaders, their access is restricted to members of their own group only.
How do we use your personal information?
We use your personal information:
• To provide our U3A activities and services to you
• For administration, planning and management of our U3A
• To communicate with you about group activities
• To monitor, develop and improve the provision of our U3A activity
We’ll send you messages by email, post, other digital methods and telephone to advise you of U3A activities.
Who do we share your personal information with?
We may disclose information about you, including your personal information:
• Internally – to committee members and group leaders/contacts as required to facilitate your participation in our U3A activities
• Externally - with your consent for products or services such as direct mailing for the Trust magazine, Third Age Matters, and Sources
• If we have a statutory duty to disclose it for other legal and regulatory reasons
Where we need to share your information outside of the U3A we will seek your consent and inform you as to who the information will be shared with and for what purpose.
How long do we keep your personal information?
We need to keep your information so that we can provide our services to you. In most instances information about your membership will not be stored for longer than 12 months. The exceptions to this are instances where there may be legal or insurance circumstances that require information to be held for longer whilst any outstanding issues are investigated or resolved. Where this is the case the member or members will be informed as to how long the information will be held for and when it is deleted.
How your information can be updated or corrected
To ensure the information we hold is accurate and up to date, members need to inform the U3A as to any changes to their personal information. You can do this by contacting the Membership Secretary. On an annual basis you will have the opportunity to update your information, as required, via the membership renewal process. Should you wish to view the information that the U3A holds on you, you can make this request by contacting the Membership Secretary as detailed above. There may be certain circumstances where we are not able to comply with this request. This would include where the information may contain references to other individuals or for legal, investigative or security reasons. Otherwise we will usually respond within 14 days of the request being made.
Availability and changes to this policy
The current version of this policy is available on the website https://blandford.u3asite.uk/data-protection/ . This policy may change from time to time. If we make any material changes we will make members aware of this via our quarterly newsletter.
Contact:
If you have any queries about this policy, need it in an alternative format, or have any complaints about our privacy practices, please contact us via our Hon.Secretary
May 2018
Beacon update September 2024