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Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

The MCS Charitable Foundation (“MCS”; “we”; “us”; “our”) respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal data. 

This document refers to personal data, this is defined as information concerning any living person (a natural person who hereafter will be called the Data Subject) that is not already in the public domain. 

The Data Protection Act (DPA 2018), Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) and The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), all seek to protect and enhance the rights of data subjects. These rights cover the safeguarding of personal data and protection against the unlawful processing of personal data. It should be noted that UK GDPR does not apply to personal data already in the public domain such as Companies House records. 

In accordance with UK GDPR, this privacy notice sets out how we use your personal data and also lists your legal rights concerning the personal data we hold about you. 

The MCS Charitable Foundation is a Data Controller (for the purposes of UK GDPR) concerning the personal data we collect and hold about you. As a Data Controller, we are responsible for determining how we process all personal data held. 

The MCS Charitable Foundation has a trading arm the MCS Service Company Ltd, which is responsible for the registration of energy producing renewables. In certain circumstances we may use this relationship to promote our legitimate interests with those that have already installed low carbon technologies. 

This Privacy Notice applies to everyone including employees, trustees; individuals representing organisations which have applied for grants or bursaries; other service providers of the MCS Charitable Foundation; and any other individuals or organisations associated with us. It sets out: (i) how we use your information; and (ii) the rights you have in relation to your personal data. 

Personal data we hold about you 

To enable us to operate our Charity and comply with our legal obligations, it is necessary for us to hold and process relevant personal data. This may include (but not limited to) the following information: 

  • Name 
  • Title 
  • Address (residential and/or business) 
  • Telephone number 
  • Email address (personal and/or business) 
  • Age 
  • CCTV footage when you visit our premises 
  • In certain circumstances, personal data provided by the MCS Service Company, which includes renewable registrations entered on their MID database. 

How we use your information 

We may use personal data about you in order to communicate with you about developments within the foundation or to track interactions you have made from us over a period of time. 

Any plans to make public the names of individual grant applicants would be agreed between the parties in advance. 

Our legal basis for processing your personal data 

In most cases, we will process your personal data on the legal basis of our legitimate interests including: (i) carry out our functions; (ii) assess whether to award a grant or not; (iii) track the delivery and impact of the project for which the grant has been awarded; (iv) use platforms including Engaging Networks to communicate with target audiences and (v) ensure the effective day-to-day operation of the MCS Charitable Foundation. 

In certain circumstances where we have a contractual relationship, we will process your personal data on the basis of contractual. 

We may also process your personal data where necessary in compliance with a legal obligation. 

In limited circumstances such as those involving Special Categories of Personal Data, we will seek your explicit consent in advance of any processing. 

How long we retain Personal Data 

We will retain your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. To determine the appropriate retention period for personal data, we consider the amount, nature, and sensitivity of the personal data, the potential risk of harm from unauthorised use or disclosure of your personal data, the purposes for which we process your personal data and whether we can achieve those purposes through other means, and the applicable legal requirements. 

Personal Data will be retained by us for the following periods 

  1. For trustees, personal data will be retained by us for a period of Seven (7) years following the end of the calendar year in which the relevant trustee ceased to be a trustee of MCS;
  2. For successful grant applicants, personal data will be retained by us for a period of five (5) years following completion of the project;
  3. For unsuccessful grant applicants, personal data will be retained by us for a period of one (1) year following the date on which the applicant has been notified of his/her unsuccessful grant application.
  4. For other service providers, personal data will be retained for a period of up to eight (8) years following the end of the calendar year in which the relevant service provider ceases to provide services to the Charity. 
  5. Information about key stakeholders and industry contacts will be retained for a period of up to five (5) years after the last contact. 
  6. Please see our Data Retention Schedule for more detailed information concerning different documents.

Third parties with whom we share your personal data 

We may need to share your personal data with third parties who act on our behalf as a Data Processor and/or provide services to us. Your information will be kept secure at all times and will only be shared with such third parties when necessary. Your personal data may be disclosed to the following third parties: 

  1. Professional advisers (including legal advisers and accountants), insurers, auditors and financial organisations;
  2. The UK Government or any other public authorities or regulatory authorities if we are obliged to do so by any applicable laws; 
  3. Service providers including: Maximiser and Xero; 
  4. Companies to help us promote our legitimate interests including: Mailchimp, ‘Mail and Print’ and Engaging Networks. 

Sources of information about you 

We may collect personal data about you directly from you. In addition, we may also collect information about you from other third parties (examples above) providing services in connection with the administration and management of the MCS Charitable Foundation. We may also collect information about you if you are an employee from HMRC and other public authorities. 

If your personal details change at any time, please inform us as soon as possible to ensure that all information held about you remains accurate and up to date. 

International data transfers 

Where we need to transfer personal data outside the European Economic Area, the MCS Charitable Foundation will always put in place appropriate data processing agreement and where required IDTAs, to ensure your data subject rights are upheld. 

Your rights as a UK and EU data subject 

At any point whilst we are in possession of, or processing your personal data, all data subjects have the following rights: 

  • Right of access – you have the right to request a copy of the information that we hold about you. 
  • Right of rectification – you have a right to correct data that we hold about you that is inaccurate or incomplete. 
  • Right to be forgotten – in certain circumstances you can ask for the data we hold about you to be erased from our records. 
  • Right to restriction of processing – where certain conditions apply you have a right to restrict the processing. 
  • Right of portability – you have the right to have the data we hold about you transferred to another organisation. 
  • Right to object – you have the right to object to certain types of processing such as direct marketing. 
  • Right to object to automated processing, including profiling – you also have the right not to be subject to the legal consequences of automated processing or profiling. 

In the event that we refuse your request under rights of access, the MCS Charitable Foundation will provide you with a reason as to why, which you have the right to legally challenge. 

The MCS Charitable Foundation at your request will confirm what personal data it holds about you and how it is processed. You can also request the following information: 

  • Identity and the contact details of the person and business or charity that has determined how and why to process your personal data. 
  • Contact details of the data protection officer, where applicable. 
  • The purpose of the processing as well as the legal basis for processing. 
  • If the processing is based on our legitimate interests, information about those interests. 
  • The categories of personal data collected, stored and processed. 
  • Recipient(s) or categories of recipients that the data is/will be disclosed to. 
  • How long the data will be stored. 
  • Details of your rights to correct, erase, restrict or object to such processing. 
  • Information about your right to withdraw consent at any time. 
  • How to lodge a complaint with the supervisory authority (ICO). 
  • Whether the provision of personal data is a statutory or contractual requirement, or a requirement necessary to enter into a contract, as well as whether you are obliged to provide the personal data and the possible consequences of failing to provide such data. 
  • The source of personal data if it wasn’t collected directly from you. 
  • Any details and information of automated decision making, such as profiling, and any meaningful information about the logic involved, as well as the significance and expected consequences of such processing. 

To access personal data that is being held, identification will be required 

The MCS Charitable Foundation will accept the following forms of ID when information on your personal data is requested: a copy of your driving licence, passport, birth certificate and a utility bill not older than three months. A minimum of one piece of photographic ID listed above and a supporting document is required. If we are dissatisfied with the quality, further information may be sought before any personal data can be released. 

How to contact us 

If you have any questions about how we use your personal data or you wish to raise a Data Subject Access Request, please contact us at [email protected] or write to us at First Floor, Violet 3, Sci-Tech Daresbury, Keckwick Lane, Cheshire, WA4 4AB. 

If you do not get a response within 30 days you have the right to complain to the ICO. 

The ICO, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, SK9 5AF 

Telephone +44 (0) 303 123 1113 or email: https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us/ 

This Privacy Notice was last updated February 26 2024. Future updates will be posted here.