Privacy Policy

Types of Personal Data We Process

The Council processes a variety of personal data, including but not limited to:

  • Personal details (e.g., name, address)
  • Contact details (e.g., email address, phone number)
  • Financial information (e.g., payments for services, donations)
  • Employment-related information (e.g., staff contracts, payroll information)
  • Meeting records (e.g., attendance at council meetings or consultations)
  • Special category data (e.g constituent assistance, event attendances, allotment tenants)

Lawful Basis for Processing Personal Data

The Council processes personal data for the following lawful purposes, as defined under the GDPR:

  • Consent – Where individuals have given clear and explicit consent for processing their data (e.g., participation in events, newsletter subscriptions).
  • Contractual necessity – When processing is required to fulfil a contract (e.g., employment contracts, service agreements).
  • Legal obligation – To comply with legal or regulatory requirements (e.g.tax reporting, health and safety records).
  • Public task – Where processing is necessary for the performance of tasks carried out in the public interest or the exercise of official authority vested in the Council.
  • Legitimate interests – When processing is necessary for the legitimate interests pursued by the Council, provided these interests are not overridden by individuals’ rights and freedoms (e.g., managing Parish planning applications, conducting public consultations).

 Purpose of Data Processing

The Council processes personal data for a variety of purposes, including but not limited to:

  • Administration of parish council meetings, including keeping records of attendance and decisions.
  • Provision of services to local residents, such as event organisation, community programmes.
  • Financial administration, including payments, invoicing, and reporting.
  • Legal compliance, such as ensuring compliance with local government regulations, tax obligations.
  • Communication with the public about council matters, policies, events, and other local government functions.

Data Retention

The Council will retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected or as required by law. Specific retention periods for different types of data are as follows:

  • Council meeting records and minutes: Retained indefinitely for legal and historical purposes.
  • Financial records: Retained for a minimum of 7 years for accounting and tax purposes.
  • Employee and volunteer records: Retained for a minimum of 6 years after the termination of employment or contract, in accordance with employment law.
  • General correspondence: Retained for a period of 3 years or as long as necessary for the purposes of the correspondence.

Data Security

The Council takes appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect personal data against unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures include:

  • Secure storage of both paper and digital records.
  • Access controls to ensure only authorised personnel can access personal data.
  • Regular data protection training for all staff and council members.
  • Use of encryption and other security protocols for electronic communications and data storage where necessary.

Sharing of Personal Data

The Council will not share personal data with third parties unless one of the following applies:

  • Consent: We have obtained explicit consent from the individual concerned.
  • Legal obligation: We are required to share the data to comply with a legal or regulatory requirement (e.g., sharing data with HMRC or the police).
  • Service providers: We may share data with third-party service providers, such as IT vendors or payroll providers, but only where necessary and under contract ensuring the service provider complies with GDPR.
  • Public interest: Where processing is necessary for the performance of a public task or the exercise of official authority vested in the Council.

We will ensure that all third parties handling personal data on our behalf are GDPR-compliant and bound by appropriate contracts and confidentiality agreements.

Rights of Individuals

Under the GDPR, individuals have the following rights in relation to their personal data:

  • Right to Access: Individuals have the right to request a copy of the personal data held by the Council.
  • Right to Rectification: Individuals can request corrections to inaccurate or incomplete data.
  • Right to Erasure: In certain circumstances, individuals may request the deletion of their data.
  • Right to Restrict Processing: Individuals may request that their data is no longer processed or only processed in specific ways.
  • Right to Data Portability: Individuals can request their data to be transferred to another organization.
  • Right to Object: Individuals may object to the processing of their data for certain purposes, including direct marketing.
  • Right to Withdraw Consent: If processing is based on consent, individuals have the right to withdraw that consent at any time.

Requests should be made to the Parish Council Clerk using the contact details provided above.

Data Breaches

In the event of a personal data breach, the Council will assess the situation and take appropriate action to minimize any potential harm. If necessary, we will notify the relevant supervisory authority (the Information Commissioner’s Office) within 72 hours of becoming aware of the breach, and where the breach poses a high risk to individuals’ rights, we will notify those affected without undue delay.

Our Use of Cookies and Other Similar Technologies

We use cookies and similar technologies like pixels, tags, web beacons, and other identifiers to help us personalise our website for you, remember your preferences, understand how users are using our website, and help customise our marketing offerings.

Cookies

A cookie is a small data file containing a string of characters that is sent to your computer when you visit a website. When you visit the website again, the cookie allows that site to recognise your browser. The length of time a cookie will stay on your computer or mobile device depends on whether it is a “persistent” or “session” cookie. Shield Preservation uses both types of cookies. Session cookies will only stay on your device until you stop browsing. Persistent cookies stay on your computer or mobile device until they expire or are deleted. We use the following types of cookies on our website.

  • Strictly necessary cookies. These cookies are essential for you to browse our website and use its features. Without these cookies, services like shopping baskets cannot be provided.
  • Performance cookies. These cookies collect information about how you use our websites. This data may be used to help optimise our website and make it easier for you to navigate.
  • Functional cookies. These cookies allow our websites to remember choices you make while browsing and personalise your experience. We may store your geographic location in a cookie for instance, to ensure that we show you the website relevant to your area.
  • Analytics cookies. We use analytics cookies, like those offered by Google Analytics, to help us understand things like how long a visitor stays on our website, what pages they find most useful, and how they arrived at www.shieldpreservation.co.uk. To learn more about Google Analytics and your data, visit this Google webpage.

How to control Cookie settings

Most web browsers allow you to control cookies through their settings preferences. However, if you limit the ability of websites to set cookies, you may impair your overall user experience, as it will no longer be personalised to you. Some browsers offer a “Do Not Track” (“DNT”) signal where you can indicate your preference regarding tracking and cross-site tracking. Although we do not currently employ technology that recognises DNT signals, we will only process your personal data in accordance with this Policy. Below you can learn about how to control cookie settings on popular web browsers:

Monitoring and Review

This policy will be reviewed regularly to ensure it remains in line with the GDPR and best practices for data protection. The review will take place annually or when there are significant changes to the way we process personal data or changes in legislation.

Contact Information

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this policy or how your personal data is handled by the Council, please contact: