The information that we collect about you is known as your “personal data”. There are very important privacy laws to protect your personal data. At Wester Hailes Youth Agency, we will always keep your personal data safe and only use it in ways you would reasonably expect.
Why we collect your personal data
If you are a young person taking part in any of our activities then we will need to process personal data about. When we say that we “process” your personal data this describes how we handle it (e.g. how it is collected, stored, or analysed). For example, we may collect your details so that we can register your attendance at an event. Or, we might keep a record of information you provide us with in one of our sessions.
If you are an employee, volunteer, or director then we will need to process personal data about so that we can check that you are suitable to work with us. We will also collect and process personal data about you in our records of the activities you are involved in and other support you provide.
If you are an external individual or organisation that we work with then we may process personal data as part of our background checks; or to record the activities we engage in.
If you sign up for one of our events, send an enquiry, donate, or communicate with us in other ways we may process your personal data to support your request.
Sometimes, we may provide you with more detailed information about our privacy policies. For example, if you apply to work for us. If so, please make sure you let us know if anything is unclear.
How we collect your personal data
It is most likely that you will provide us with any personal data that we process about you. However, sometimes we are provided with information about you by other people (e.g., teachers and social workers) we are working with or by other agencies who support us (e.g., Disclosure & Barring Service). It is also possible that we could collect personal data about you from publicly available sources of information such as the internet.
How long we keep your personal data
We only keep your personal data for as long as we need it to support the work of the Agency or to make sure it complies with its obligations. For example, we need to keep records of the people we employ to meet our tax obligations and comply with employment laws.
You can find out more details about how long we keep personal data by looking at our Retention Schedule which we are happy to provide you with upon request.
External websites
Please be aware that our website contains links to other websites. Once you have accessed these links and leave our website we do not have any control over the website you are visiting. We cannot therefore be responsible for the protection and privacy of information provided on external sites as they are not governed by our privacy policy. Please check the websites privacy policy to ensure you protected on that website.
Cookies
When you access our website, it may use small computer text files known as “cookies” to remember you. Cookies work by transferring these files from our website onto the device that you are using. This means that information could be collected about the device you are using and how you are using it on our website.
This information is collected so that the website is faster and easier to use. But it does mean that information is being collected about your online activity. This is generally the case when you access any website; not just ours.
If you are concerned about cookies, you can contact your device manufacturer to find out about how to block any unwanted cookies. You can also find out more information about cookies in general here All About Cookies | Online Privacy and Digital Security
How can I find out more about how we protect your personal data?
The law gives you important rights. These include rights to access personal data that we hold about you; correct mistakes; stop us processing your personal data or restrict what can be done with your personal data.
If you would like to exercise any of your privacy rights or have any concerns whatsoever about your personal data; please contact us at info@youthagency.co.uk.
If you have a complaint about how we process your personal data you can contact the Information Commissioner’s Office Home | ICO. We hope that this does not happen, and would encourage you to contact us first so that we can try to deal with your concerns.
