Privacy Policy

The Parochial Church Council of St James’s Church, Bramley and St Stephen’s Church, Little London

Data Privacy Notice

This note is written for all those who attend services at either of the two churches. It explains what data we hold relating to people, what we do with that data, how we store it and the rights of any individual whose data are used in that way.

The Electoral Roll

The Electoral Roll is a register of electors in our two churches. It is the list of those who are qualified to attend and to vote at the Annual Parochial Church Meeting (APCM), where an Annual Report is presented by the Parochial Church Council (PCC), where elections take place for the PCC for the coming year and also for the parish’s representatives on the deanery synod.

A new Electoral Roll is prepared every 6 years. The roll is updated in the interim as people leave the parish and as new people join the parish. The application form calls on you to confirm that you are either a member of the Church of England, or of a Church which subscribes to the doctrine of the Holy Trinity. In the past, each member was asked to provide their name, address, e-mail and phone number. The new forms provided by the Diocese seek only name and address. So, for the current version of the Electoral Roll we have deleted all e-mail addresses and phone numbers and the computer file contains only the names and addresses of its members. The Roll, at present, is only used to keep a record of those entitled to vote at the APCM. It is not used for communicating with members and it is not shared with any other person or organisation other than the PCC. It is not used for any kind of marketing or research exercise.

The PCC copy of the Electoral Roll is held in an encrypted file on the password protected laptop of one of the members of the PCC. All of the paper records collected are securely stored. You are free to remove yourself from the Electoral Roll at any time by speaking to one of the churchwardens, the Vicar, the PCC Secretary or any of the PCC members who are listed in the Annual Report, or by emailing the address at the bottom of this note.  In that case, arrangements will be made for your name and address to be permanently removed from the computer record and for the paper copy of your application to be securely shredded (or returned to you, if you prefer).

Gift Aid

A number of parishioners give to the Church by putting money into the blue “Gift Aid” envelopes which are provided at the end of each pew. If you provide your name, address and signature then the Church applies to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) for a refund of tax equivalent to that which you will have paid on the money you received to provide your gift. It is necessary for the PCC to keep a record of all donations that are Gift Aided in this way and we are legally obliged to share that data with HMRC. Furthermore, HMRC requires that we retain both the records and the associated envelopes for a period of six years. Our records are kept in an encrypted spreadsheet on the password protected laptop of a PCC member. The envelopes are kept under lock and key in office furniture.

We cannot offer you an “opt out” from this because of our legal obligations to HMRC. If you are unhappy about this procedure then it would be better if you did not use the Gift Aid envelopes for giving in the future. Nevertheless, please feel free to speak to any member of the PCC if you have any concerns about your Gift Aid giving.

Planned Giving

A number of parishioners give to the Church by means of direct debit to the Parish Giving Scheme. We have reassurance from the PGS that their information systems are fully compliant with the Data Protection legislation. If you wish to know more, you might like to visit their website: https://www.parishgivingscheme.org.uk/about/pgs-information-security/

Safeguarding

All those who are concerned with dealing with children and vulnerable adults as part of church services and activities must be in possession of a current DBS certificate. The responsible PCC officer keeps a computer record of the name, address, e-mail and DBS number of all those registered on a personal computer. This information is stored indefinitely and shared with the Diocese. We are also legally required to share data, if necessary, with police and social service agencies.

Other activities

The PCC has responsibility for other facilities – principally the Bramley Magazine and Cross House – where people provide names and contact details as a necessary part of the functioning of those activities. We take good care of such details and keep them only as long as is necessary. They are not used for mailing lists or other commercial purposes and are not shared with third parties. If you have any concerns about details stored in this way that may refer to you, please contact us or speak to any PCC member.