Privacy notice
How The Good Shepherd Parish and the Diocese of Northampton use and protect personal information.
Last reviewed .
Who is responsible for your information
The Good Shepherd Parish forms part of the Diocese of Northampton and is not a separate legal entity. The Diocese, through its Trustees, is the data controller responsible for personal information used by the parish. The charity is Northampton Roman Catholic Diocesan Trust, registered in England and Wales under charity number 234091, with its registered address at Bishop’s House, Marriott Street, Northampton NN2 6AW.
This notice covers this website and the usual work of the parish. Voluntary Aided Schools and Academy Trusts are separate data controllers and have their own privacy notices. A particular form, event or service may also give you more specific privacy information.
- Diocesan privacy notice: Read the full general privacy notice for the Diocese of Northampton
Information we may hold
The information used depends on how you are involved with the parish. It is rare for us to hold every type of information about one person. It may include:
- Identity and contact details: your name, title, address, email address, telephone number, date of birth, age, marital status and nationality.
- Family and parish life: family or dependant details and information about your involvement in worship, sacraments, groups, volunteering, events or pastoral care.
- Applications and roles: education, work history, qualifications, references, training and information from appropriate background checks.
- Financial information: bank or payment information, donation records and Gift Aid details where applicable.
- Photographs and recordings: photographs, video, livestream footage, audio and CCTV recordings where these are used.
- Health and practical needs: medical, psychological, dietary, accessibility or emergency information needed for care, an activity, event, residential or trip.
- Correspondence: enquiries, prayer or pastoral requests, complaints and any other information you choose to give us.
- Website information: IP address, device and browser details, pages requested, and technical or security logs created by our hosting provider.
Sensitive information
Some parish information is specially protected by data protection law. Taking part in church life can reveal religious belief, and pastoral care, safeguarding or volunteering may involve health, racial or ethnic origin, sexual orientation, or criminal-offence information.
We use this information only when it is necessary and an additional legal condition applies, such as explicit consent, the legitimate activities of a not-for-profit religious body, employment or social-protection law, vital interests, legal claims, archiving, or substantial public interest including safeguarding. Access is limited according to role and need.
How we receive information
Most information comes directly from you when you contact us, register for a sacrament or activity, donate, volunteer, attend an event, request pastoral support or otherwise take part in parish life. We may also receive relevant information from a parent or carer, another parish or diocese, a referee, a medical or safeguarding professional, the police or another lawful source.
Why we use information
We use relevant information to carry out the work of the parish and Diocese, including to:
- Parish life and pastoral care: organise worship, sacraments, funerals, visits, groups, volunteering, events and appropriate spiritual or practical support.
- Communications: answer enquiries and send service information, newsletters, invitations or updates you have asked to receive.
- People and safeguarding: manage clergy, employees and volunteers, safer recruitment, training, concerns, incidents and responsibilities to children and adults at risk.
- Stewardship and administration: process donations or payments, administer Gift Aid, maintain accounts and records, and support audits and statistical returns.
- Safety and compliance: protect people, premises and digital services; prevent or detect crime; handle complaints; and meet legal, regulatory, insurance, canonical and charitable obligations.
- Communicating our mission: produce parish notices, newsletters, photographs, recordings and online material with appropriate care and permissions.
Our lawful bases
We identify a lawful basis before using personal information. Depending on the purpose, we may rely on:
- Legitimate interests: the normal activities of a Roman Catholic parish and Diocese, advancing and maintaining the Catholic religion, supporting the community and ensuring the proper flow of charitable funds, where your rights do not override those interests.
- Consent: where you have freely agreed to a particular use, such as some email communications or uses of a photograph. You may withdraw consent at any time.
- Contract: where information is needed for an agreement, such as employment, a booking or facilities hire, or to take steps you request before an agreement.
- Legal obligation or public task: for records, safeguarding, tax, charity, employment, health and safety, marriage registration or another requirement imposed by law.
- Vital interests: in an emergency where using or sharing information is necessary to protect someone’s life.
Who we share information with
We use personal information within the parish and Diocese for the reason it was obtained. Where necessary and lawful, it may be shared with authorised clergy, employees or volunteers; other church bodies; service providers working for the Diocese; professional advisers, insurers or auditors; HMRC or another public body; and safeguarding, law-enforcement or regulatory authorities.
Service providers must protect the information and use it only for the agreed service. We do not sell or rent personal information or give mailing-list details to another organisation for its independent marketing.
International transfers
Some technology, communications or church services may process information outside the UK. Where this happens, the Diocese must use an approved adequacy arrangement or appropriate contractual and organisational safeguards. The diocesan privacy notice gives further information.
How long we keep information
Information is kept in line with the Diocese’s retention and disposal arrangements and only for as long as the purpose, law, safeguarding, insurance, accounting, archival or canonical requirements call for it. The period varies by record. Sacramental registers and historically significant archives may be kept permanently, while routine enquiries and event records should be removed when no longer needed.
Contact us if you would like to know the period that applies to a particular record.
Security
The parish and Diocese use proportionate administrative, technical and physical safeguards to reduce the risk of loss, misuse, unauthorised access or disclosure. Access is limited to people who need the information. Please avoid sending highly sensitive records by ordinary email unless you have agreed a safe method with us.
Your rights
Depending on the circumstances, you may ask for a copy of your personal information; ask us to correct, delete or restrict it; object to its use; receive certain information in a portable format; or withdraw consent. You have an absolute right to object to direct marketing.
These rights are not absolute. Some church, legal or safeguarding records must be retained, and we may need to verify your identity before responding. A parent, guardian or family member does not automatically have a right to another person’s information.
Questions, rights and complaints
Contact the parish office at parish.ourladyofwalsingham@northamptondiocese.org, telephone 01536 203121, or write to the parish office, 71 Occupation Road, Corby, Northamptonshire NN17 1EE if you have a question, want to exercise a right or wish to complain about how your information has been used. The parish can refer a data-protection matter to the Diocese where appropriate.
If your concern is not resolved, you have the right to complain to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office.
- Diocesan privacy notice: Current diocesan data-protection contact and full notice
- Information Commissioner’s Office: Make a data-protection complaint
Changes to this notice
We review this notice when parish activities, providers, diocesan policy or legal responsibilities change. Material changes will be published here and, where appropriate, brought to the attention of people affected.