Privacy notice

Privacy Notice

This notice explains what personal data (information) we hold about you, how we collect it, and how we use and may share information about you during your support and after it ends. We are required to make you aware of this information under data protection legislation. Please make sure that you read this privacy notice and any other similar notice that we may provide to you from time to time when we collect or process personal information about you.

Who collects the information?

Scotland’s Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline is a Scottish Government service that is managed by Scottish Women’s Aid. Scottish Women’s Aid is a ‘data processor’ and the Scottish Government is the 'data controller'. This means that the Scottish Government is responsible for deciding how and why your information is used, and Scottish Women's Aid handle and process the information on behalf of the Scottish Government to deliver the service.

Data protection principles

We will comply with the data protection principles when gathering and using personal information, as set out in our Data Protection Policy. This means we promise to respect and keep safe any personal information you share with us about you and your child(ren).

About the information we collect and hold

The tables set out on the following pages, called Appendix 1, summarises the information we collect and hold, explains why we hold it, and how long we keep it.

In providing our services, Scotland’s Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline will occasionally share personal information with other agencies/organisations. Details on agencies/organisations we may share your information with can be found in Appendix 2.

Information sharing with other agencies will only take place with your consent except in specific exceptional circumstances where we may have to disclose your personal information without your consent. These are:

• We believe a child or a vulnerable adult is at risk of serious harm
• We believe that an individual is in immediate danger and that there is a potentially life threatening situation
• We receive a court order requiring us to share information or are required to do so by legislation
• We receive information about acts of terrorism, bomb warnings, or other threats to life
• You threaten the safety of our staff or the delivery of our service.

We make sure that all data sharing is done securely, and that it is proportionate. By proportionate, we mean that we share only the minimum amount of personal data required, and only with those that need to have access to this information.

In certain circumstances, we will notify you of any changes to information we collect or the purposes for which we collect and process it.

Where information may be held

Information may be held at our offices and third-party agencies, service providers, representatives and agents. We have security measures in place to seek to ensure that there is appropriate security for information we hold.

How long we keep your information

Scotland’s Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline keeps your information for no longer than is necessary for the purposes for which we collected information in the first place. Further details on this can be found in our Retention Policy and the tables below. If you would like to see a copy of this policy, you can ask any Helpline Call Handler by phone or email.

Your rights to correct and access your information and to ask for it to be erased

Please contact Scotland’s Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline either by email or telephone if you would like to make any changes to the information that we hold relating to you, if you would like to see this information or if you have any questions about this notice. You may also have the right to ask Scotland’s Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline for the information we hold and process to be erased (the ‘right to be forgotten’) in certain circumstances. Please contact us if you require further information on this.

Keeping your personal information secure

Scotland’s Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline has taken care to make sure that the personal information we hold about you is protected from being accidentally lost, used or accessed by someone who does not need to see it.

We limit access to your personal information to those who have a genuine need to know it. Those processing your information will do so only in an authorised manner and are subject to a duty of confidentiality.

We also have procedures in place to deal with any suspected data security breach. We will notify you of a suspected data security breach where we are legally required to do so, as well as any applicable regulator e.g. the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), Police Scotland. Information about data security can be found in our Data Protection Policy.

How to complain

If you have any questions or concerns about our use of your information or if you want to make a complaint about the way we have processed your personal information, a complaint can be made by email to helpline@sdafmh.org.uk for the attention of the Helpline Manager. If you are unhappy with our response, you can contact the ICO at https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/ or telephone: 0303 123 1113 for further information about your rights and how to make a formal complaint.

Appendix 1 - Schedule relating to the information we collect and hold

Appendix 2 - Who we may share your information with

Agencies, organisations and other third parties that we may need to share information with (to ensure we meet your best interests and support you the best we can) include but may not be restricted to:

• Women’s Aid groups
• Emergency services (ambulance, police, fire and rescue)
• Local authorities (Housing, Social Work Children and Families, Social Work Adult

Services)

• Police Scotland
• Rape Crisis Scotland
• Men’s Advice Line
• Forced Marriage Unit
• Language Line