DATA PROTECTION POLICY

Privacy & Data Protection Notice;

Apostolic Faith Mission – Stevenage (Salvation Fellowship) takes the privacy of its users seriously. We are committed to safeguarding the privacy of our users while providing a personalised and valuable service. This Privacy Policy covers the Church’s use of personal information which is provided by you, what we collect or hold, whether that is in person, over the phone, written information or electronically (via use of our website, third-party sites such as ChurchSuite, Eventbrite, social media,  or online communication such as by email).

Website Use: By continuing to browse and use this website, you are agreeing to comply and be bound with the terms and conditions set out in this policy. If you do not agree with any part of this policy, please do not provide any personal information and do not use our website.

  1. This policy is in place to explain how the Church and its website comply with the Data Protection Act and the General Data Protection Regulations which come into effect from 25th May 2018. It also complies with the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations. We reserve the right to amend this policy upon the UK’s exit from the European Union or accordingly should there be any changes to the laws which would require us to do so. By providing any personal information, you give permission for the Church to contact you by mail, email, telephone or SMS text message in connection with its charitable purposes. This is based upon the methods of communication that you have given the Church consent for or by means of legitimate interest in accordance with current data protection regulations.

How information is collected

Personal information is collected each time you are in contact with us. This can be done so by the following examples:

  • Forms, whether filled out manually or electronically
    • Signing up to events, activities online or in person
    • By registering your personal details with us and using ChurchSuite and its related functions.
    • Social media platforms
    • Email communications
    • Making donations, by completing giving envelopes, card payments, gift aid declarations, online and electronically.
    • Payments and donations made by credit or debit cards*
    • Visiting our website
    • CCTV
    • Face to face conversations and meetings
    • Communication including but not limited to in person, email, telephone or letters.
    • Interactions in church services, events, conferences, and other church activities.

 

*The Church does not hold any credit or debit card details for donations/payments. Any donation or payment made through an online means such as through our website or our third-party sites such as ChurchSuite or Eventbrite are handled by the service providers who encrypt card information.

 How information is used

Information that we collect is used for the purposes that is stated at time of collection or as stated in this policy. We will not use your information for any other purpose than what is set out in this policy without first seeking your consent, unless authorised or required by law. Your information may be used generally in the following ways:

  • Informing of church services, events & activities, resources or conferences.
  • Event, conferences, and activities sign up and in the management of these, including communication regarding further information about these events, conferences and activities.
  • Communication with you regarding any queries or complaints made regarding the church, its services, activities and events.
  • Aid for us to make our church website, services and products more suitable to our community.
  • Promotion of products/services, keeping you informed of developments that we believe would be of interest to you. If we contact you in this way without gaining prior consent, there will be an opportunity to decline further promotional communications.
  • Improve our general ability to assist church attendees and the wider community
  • To enable the church leadership with the management of issues relating to the church.
  • Enable pastors of Salvation Fellowship to occasionally personally and directly communicate with you.
  • Recoding your donations to us on our accounting software.
  • To help claim gift aid on donations you have made to us where you have signed a gift aid declaration.

Who has access to your information

The information you provide us with is held in secure onsite facilities and on computers in the UK and the EU and may be accessed by our staff at Salvation Fellowship for purposes set out in this policy or for other purposes approved by you.

Church staff and approved volunteers may process information received, fulfil and deliver orders, process debit/card payments and provide support services on our behalf.

There are confidentiality agreements in place which restrict the use of your information for the purpose of which it has been provided for and to ensure that it is stored securely and kept no longer than necessary.

By providing your details, you give Salvation Fellowship consent to transfer your data to our service providers including our database provider (ChurchSuite) and mailing houses, to enable fulfilment for the purpose of collection.

We do not store any financial details (debit or credit card numbers) obtained through any online transactions. We do not store financial details online, nor do we pass any information to third parties, except where we are legally required to do so, to assist fraud reductions, or to provide a service requested and minimise credit risks.

Sensitive personal information may be collected and stored in regards of medical information, religious information (church attendance tracking, key dates such as events, conferences, and activities sign up; baptism, dedications, coming into membership, marriages and funerals).

All information is kept strictly confidential and is never sold, given away, or otherwise shared with anyone, including other organisations and individuals without your given consent unless required by law.

We do not sell or pass on any of your information to any other organisations/individuals without your given consent.

Keeping details up to date

Information is kept in accordance with the guidelines set out by the GDPR and aim to maintain only information that is relevant, accurate and up to date.

In order to maintain the accuracy of the information we have about you, please tell us if any of your contact details change so we can keep our records up to date.

At any time you can change the way we communicate with you and what we communicate with you via your communication settings in My ChurchSuite or by contacting us direct by mail, email, telephone.

You can unsubscribe at any time from our regular emails by using the ‘unsubscribe’ or ‘change preferences’ links in any emails or texts we may send you.

If you register with My ChurchSuite you should personally log-on and update your contact and communications details through that service.

 

Access to your information

You can request to access your personal information that the church holds about you by submitting a request to the Church’s Data Protection Officer. Once your request has been received we will provide you access to your personal information unless we are legally authorised to decline your request. Contact details are available at the end of the policy.

If you wish to make any changes to your personal information due to it being out of date or inaccurate, you can contact us at any time. The church will take reasonable steps to correct any information that is inaccurate, incomplete or out of date. If you wish to have your personal information deleted, please let us know and we will delete that information wherever possible.

We may refuse your request to access, amend or delete your personal information in certain circumstances. If your access request is refused, we will provide you with a reason for our decision and, in case of amendment, we will make a note with your personal information that you have disputed its inaccuracy.

Security

The church will take reasonable steps to keep any personal information held, secure, accurate and up to date as possible. Personal information that is held electronically is stored in a secure server or secure files.

The internet is not a secure method of transmitting information. Accordingly, the church cannot accept responsibility for the security of information you send to or receive from us over the internet or for any unauthorised access or use of that information. We take security measures to protect your information from access by unauthorised persons and against unlawful processing, accidental loss, destruction and damage. Your information will be held for a reasonable period or as long as the law requires or permits.

Cookies

Cookies are small text files that we store on your computer when browsing our website for the first time, this helps to recognise your computer or device the next time you visit. Unless you changed your internet browser settings accordingly, our system will issue cookies to your computer when you view the website. Cookies make it easier for you to view and use the website. They also help us to monitor our website traffic, identify and fix any issues that may occur and review our website to see which pages are more popular and to personalise the content of the site for you but will not store, save or collect personal information. You may set up your computer to reject cookies, although in that case, you may not be able to use certain features on our site.

Links

The website may also contain links to other websites. Links provided by the church are for our convenience to provide further information.

We use websites such as YouTube to embed videos on our website; we also use service providers such as ChurchSuite, who may also send you Cookies via our site. Please refer to the Cookie and Privacy Policies on these third-party sites if you would like more information regarding this.

Our website may also contain sponsored links and adverts. These may typically be through partner ministries or service providers, who may have their own detailed privacy policies. Unless it is material supplied or posted by the Church, we do not endorse the website(s) and have no responsibility for the content of the linked website(s) nor for any damages or implications caused by visiting any external links.

Social Media

The Church uses social media such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, WhatsApp and YouTube. Users must verify authenticity of sites before posting or providing personal information on such sites.

Our website may provide social media buttons, permitting sharing our website content directly to a social media platform. Use of such buttons is at your own risk.

Unless it is material supplied or officially posted by the Church, we do not endorse social media website(s) and have no responsibility for the content nor for the cookies they contain.

The Church does not ask for passwords or personal details on social media (though you are invited to link your social media account to your ChurchSuite records of your own choice).

When you consent to be in church social media groups e.g. WhatsApp groups, you consent to receiving communication from other church members in the group and that they have access to your telephone numbers and your social media profile. You also consent to abide by the rules set up for each of these groups.  The church takes no responsibility for any damage or loss incurred from using social media platforms.

Downloads

Any document, file or podcast made available to download from our website or social media platforms is at the user’s own risk.

CCTV

We use CCTV on our premises for security purposes. This data collected is stored in a secure area and is only available to be seen by Church Staff. You can make a request to view the CCTV of your personal information. We may refuse your request to access your personal information in certain circumstances. If your access request is refused, we will provide you with a reason for our decision which will be recorded as a note on your personal information.

Changes to this policy

The Church has the right to amend this privacy policy from time to time to ensure compliance with changes or amendments to the law of the UK. Any amended version will be made available on our website www.afmstevenage.church. We would suggest that you visit our website regularly to keep up to date with any changes.

 

 

 

Contact Details

If you would like any further information or have any queries, problems or complaints relating to the Church’s privacy policy or our information handling practices in general, please contact our office by:

Ngonidzashe Chikanga

Data Protection Officer

AFM Stevenage

Poplars Community Centre

Magpie Crescent

SG2 9RZ

Stevenage