Privacy Policy

Mikeysline Privacy Notice

What is a privacy notice?

A Privacy Notice is a statement by Mikeysline to service users, visitors, carers, the public and staff that describes how we collect, use, retain and disclose personal information which we hold. It is sometimes also referred to as a Privacy Statement, Fair Processing Statement or Privacy Policy. This privacy notice is part of our commitment to ensure that we process your personal information/data fairly and lawfully.

Why issue a privacy notice?

Mikeysline recognises the importance of protecting personal and confidential information in all that we do and takes care to meet its legal and regulatory duties. This notice is one of the ways in which we can demonstrate our commitment to our values and being transparent and open, and commitment to our values of Respecting Diversity, Acting with Integrity, Demonstrating Compassion, Striving for Excellence and Listening and Supporting Others. This notice also explains what rights you have to control how we use your information.

What are we governed by?

The key pieces of legislation/guidance we are governed by are:
Data Protection Act 2018
Human Rights Act 1998 (Article 8)
Access to Health Records Act 1990
Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002
Health and Social Care (Scotland) Act 2008,
Public Records (Scotland) Act 2011
Copyright Design and Patents Act 1988
The Re-Use of Public Sector Information Regulations 2015
The Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004
Computer Misuse Act 1990
The Common Law Duty of Confidentiality
General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR)

What data do we collect?

You directly provide Mikeysline with most of the data we collect. We collect data and process data when you:
Contact our services for support either through our text-based services, SMS, Messenger, Twitter or Webchat or at the Hive. This will include personal identification information.
We also collect data when you use or view our website via your browsers’s cookies and through our social media sites or via e-mail.

Why and how we collect information

If we are providing support to you, we may ask for or hold personal confidential information about you which will be used to support delivery of appropriate support and guidance. This is to support the provision of high quality support and guidance. These records may include:

Basic details, such as name, postcode (for text based services),address, date of birth, next of kin (for Hive only).
Contact we have had, such as visits to the Hive and your contact with our text based services.
Details and records of messages received and responded to and any notes taken during a visits to the Hive regarding issues you wished to discuss and a summary of the support provided.
Information from any other organisations you are in contact with, whom you have given us permission to contact, or we have contacted on your behalf.

It may, depending on which of our services you use, also include personal sensitive information such as sexuality, race, your religion or beliefs, and whether you have a disability or health conditions. It is important for us to have a complete picture, as this information assists staff and volunteers involved in your support to support and guide you to meet your needs.
If we hold your data through our website/e-mail/social media accounts, we may use this information as appropriate to contact you, unless you request otherwise.
Information is collected in a number of ways, via your (volunteer) support worker from information given directly by you or by others on your behalf with your consent that we contacted them or via your browsers cookies on the website.

How we use information

To help inform decisions that we make about the support and the guidance we can give you.
To ensure that our support and guidance is best tailored to your needs.
To work effectively with other organisations who may be involved in your care & support and may need to know more about your current support needs.
To ensure our services can meet future needs.
To review the support and guidance provided to ensure it is of the highest standard possible.
To train staff and volunteers
To prepare statistics on the numbers of people we support for funding applications. (All personal information is anonymised)
To monitor how we spend our income.
To ensure we are reaching our target audiences in any information we post online.
Through cookies to understand how you use our website and to help us improve your experience on the website in future.

How do we use Cookies?

Mikeysline uses cookies in a range of ways to improve your experience on our website including:
Keeping you signed in
Understanding how you use our website

How to manage Cookies

You can set your browser not to accept cookies

How information is retained and kept safe

All Service Users’ records are retained by Mikeysline. Information is retained in secure electronic and paper records and access is restricted to only those who need to know. It is important that information is kept safe and secure, to protect your confidentiality. There are a number of ways in which your privacy is shielded; by removing your identifying information, ensuring that strict sharing or processing agreements are in place.
The General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) regulates the processing of personal information. Strict principles govern our use of information and our duty to ensure it is kept safe and secure.
Technology allows us to protect information in a number of ways, in the main by restricting access. Our guiding principle is that we are holding your information in strict confidence.

How do we keep information confidential?

Everyone working and volunteering for the charity is subject to the Common Law Duty of Confidentiality and the GDPR. Information provided in confidence will only be used for the purposes to which you consent to, unless there are other circumstances covered by the law.
Under Mikeysline’s Confidentiality Policy, all staff and volunteers are required to protect information, inform you of how your information will be used and allow you to decide if and how your information can be shared.

Who will the information be shared with?

To provide best possible support, sometimes we will need to share information about you with others. We may share your information if we need to contact other services, i.e. emergency services on your behalf. We may share information about you with other organisations that can support you or who are already involved in your care and support, if you have given us your consent to do so. You may be contacted by any one of these organisations for a specific reason; they will have a duty to tell you why they have contacted you. Information sharing is governed by specific rules and law.
Sharing with other organisations for your benefit
We may also need to share information from your records with non-NHS organisations, from whom you are also receiving care, such as local authority social services or private healthcare organisations. However, we will not disclose any health information to third parties without your explicit consent, unless there are exceptional circumstances, such as when the health or safety of your or others is at risk or where the law requires the disclosure of information. We may also be asked to share basic information about you, such as your name and parts of your address. Generally, we would only do this to assist them to carry out their statutory duties (such as usages of healthcare services, public health or national audits). In these circumstances, where it is not practical to obtain your explicit consent, we are informing you through this notice, which is referred to as a Privacy Notice, under the Data Protection Act.
Where service user information is shared with other organisations, an information sharing agreement is drawn up to ensure information is shared in a way that complies with relevant legislation. Other organisations may include, but are not restricted to: social services, education services, local authorities, the emergency services, voluntary sector providers and private sector providers.
Your right to withdraw consent for us to share your personal information
You have the right to refuse/withdraw consent to information sharing at any time. We will fully explain the possible consequences to you, which could include delays in you receiving support and care from others.

Contacting us about your information

The Service Manager is responsible for protecting the confidentiality of your information and enabling appropriate sharing. You can contact the Service Manager by e-mailing: enquiries@mikeysline.co.uk. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the information we hold on you, the use of your information or would like to discuss further, please contact the Service Manager, Mikeysline, 19 Academy Street, Inverness IV1 1JN tel (01463) 729000.

Can I access my information?

Under the GDPR a person may request access to information (with some exemptions) that is held about them by an organisation. For more information on how to access the information we hold about you please contact Mikeysline on (01463) 729000.

Contacting us if you have a complaint or concern

We try to meet the highest standards when collecting and using personal information. We encourage people to bring concerns to our attention and we take any complaints we receive very seriously. You can submit a complaint through our web site, or you can write to: Mikeysline, 19 Academy Street, Inverness, IV1 1JN.
If you remain dissatisfied with our decision following your complaint, you may wish to contact: Information Commissioner’s Office Wycliffe House Water Lane Wilmslow Cheshire SK9 5AF. Their web site is at www.ico.gov.uk The Information Commissioner will not normally consider an appeal until you have exhausted your rights of redress and complaint to Mikeysline.

Changes to our Privacy Policy

Mikesyline keeps its Privacy policy under regular review and places any updates on this webpage. This privacy policy was last updated on 9th November 2020.