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GDPR

The Alternative Animal Sanctuary GDPR Compliance Statement 2018

Introduction
The EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) came into force across the European Union on 25th May 2018 and brings with it the most significant changes to data protection law in two decades. The 21st Century brings with it broader use of technology, new definitions of what constitutes personal data, and a vast increase in cross-border processing. The new Regulation aims to afford individuals stronger, more consistent rights to access and control their personal information and the way in which it is utilised.


Our Commitment
The Alternative Animal Sanctuary are committed to ensuring the security and protection of the personal information that we process, and to provide a compliant and consistent approach to data protection. We have always had a robust and effective data protection program in place which complies with existing law and abides by the data protection principles but we recognise our obligations to meet the demands of the GDPR.


The Alternative Animal Sanctuary (AAS) are dedicated to safeguarding your personal information under our control and in developing a data protection regime that is effective, fit for purpose and demonstrates an understanding of the new Regulations. Our preparation and objectives for GDPR compliance have been summarised below and include the development and implementation of new data protection roles, policies, procedures, controls and measures to ensure maximum and ongoing compliance. If you have any difficulty in understanding any part then please do not hesitate to contact us.


How We are Preparing for the GDPR
AAS already have a consistent level of data protection and security across our organisation, however it is our aim to be fully compliant with GDPR. Our preparation included working with our third party
vendors to identify and address:-

  •  Policies & Procedures – data protection policies and procedures to meet the requirements and standards of the GDPR and any relevant data protection laws, including: –
    •  Data Protection – our main policy and procedure document for data protection has been overhauled to meet the standards and requirements of the GDPR. Accountability and governance measures are in place to ensure that we understand and adequately disseminate and evidence our obligations and responsibilities; with a dedicated focus on privacy by design and the rights of individuals.
    • Data Retention & Erasure – we have updated our retention policy and schedule to ensure that we meet the ‘data minimisation’ and ‘storage limitation’ principles and that personal information is stored, archived and destroyed compliantly and ethically. We have dedicated erasure procedures in place to meet the new ‘Right to Erasure’ obligation and are aware of when this and other data subject’s rights apply; along with any exemptions, response timeframes and notification responsibilities.
    • International Data Transfers & Third-Party Disclosures – where AAS stores or transfers personal information outside the EU, we have robust procedures and safeguarding measures in place to secure, encrypt and maintain the integrity of the data.
    • Subject Access Request (SAR) – we have revised our SAR procedures to accommodate the revised 30-day timeframe for providing the requested information and for making this provision free of charge.
  • Legal Basis for Processing – we have reviewed all processing activities to identify the legal basis for processing and ensuring that each basis is appropriate for the activity it relates to. Where applicable, we also maintain records of our processing activities, ensuring that our obligations under Article 30 of the GDPR and Schedule 1 of the Data Protection Bill are met.
  • Privacy Notice/Policy – We have revised our Privacy Notice(s) to comply with the GDPR, ensuring that all individuals whose personal information we process have been informed of why we need it, how it is used, what their rights are, who the information is disclosed to and what safeguarding measures are in place to protect their information.
  • Obtaining Consent – We have revised our consent mechanisms for obtaining personal data, ensuring that individuals understand what they are providing, why and how we use it and giving clear, defined ways to consent to us processing their information. We have developed stringent processes for recording consent, making sure that we can evidence an affirmative opt-in, along with time and date records; and an easy to see and access way to withdraw consent at any time.
  • Direct Marketing – We have revised the wording and processes for direct marketing, including clear opt-in mechanisms for marketing subscriptions; a clear notice and method for opting out and providing unsubscribe features on all subsequent marketing materials. 
  • Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIA) – where we process personal information that is considered high risk, involves large scale processing or includes special category/criminal conviction data; we have developed stringent procedures and assessment templates for carrying out impact assessments that comply fully with the GDPR’s Article 35 requirements. We have implemented documentation processes that record each assessment, allow us to rate the risk posed by the processing activity and implement mitigating measures to reduce the risk posed to the data subject(s). 
  • Processor Agreements – where we use any third-party to process personal information on our behalf (Data Processing / Collection), we have Agreements and procedures for ensuring that they (as well as we), meet and understand our GDPR obligations. These measures include initial and ongoing reviews of the service provided, the necessity of the processing activity, the technical and organisational measures in place and compliance with the GDPR. 
  • Special Categories Data – where we obtain and process any special category information, we do so in complete compliance with the Article 9 requirements and have high-level encryptions and protections on all such data. Special category data is only processed where necessary and is only processed where we have first identified the appropriate Article 9(2) basis or the Data Protection Bill Schedule 1 condition. Where we rely on consent for processing, this is explicit and is verified by a signature, with the right to modify or remove consent being clearly signposted.

Data Subject Rights and Requests
In addition to the policies and procedures mentioned above that ensure individuals can enforce their data protection rights, we provide easy to access information via our website of an individual’s right to access any personal information that AAS processes about them and to request information about:-

  • What personal data we hold about them
  • The purposes of the processing
  • The categories of personal data concerned
  • The recipients to whom the personal data has/will be disclosed
  • How long we intend to store your personal data for
  • If we did not collect the data directly from them, information about the source
  • The right to have incomplete or inaccurate data about them corrected or completed and the process for requesting this
  • The right to request erasure of personal data (where applicable) or to restrict processing in accordance with data protection laws, as well as to object to any direct marketing from us and to be informed about any automated decision-making that we use 
  • The right to lodge a complaint or seek judicial remedy and who to contact in such instances

GDPR Roles and Employees
AAS have designated Rachel Williams as our appointed person and have appointed Salters Law to develop and implement our roadmap for complying with the new data protection Regulation. The team are responsible for promoting awareness of the GDPR across the organisation, assessing our GDPR readiness, identifying any gap areas and implementing the new policies, procedures and measures. AAS understands that continuous employee awareness and understanding is vital to the continued compliance of the GDPR and have involved our employees in our preparation plans. We have provided all employees’ with updated training relating to the knowledge of GDPR and feel all employees are compliant now and in the future.

If you have any questions about our preparation for the GDPR, please contact Rachel Williams by email: williamslot1983@hotmail.com