Policy Statement for Data Protection (GDPR)
Overview
In order to help you in mediation, we need to ask and keep information about you. The General Data Protection Regulations requires your consent to lawfully do this, along with any contractual arrangement you may also have with us and data retained on a Legitimate Interest basis.
All the information you give us, including your personal data and any financial information disclosed in mediation, will be held securely, and will only be accessible by authorised Essex Mediation personnel, support services or Industry professional organisations. The exception for this is if a significant concern is raised that someone, especially a child, is at risk of harm, in which case, we have a duty to contact the appropriate authorities, with or without your permission. If a disclosure is made that you have benefitted or are likely to benefit from the proceeds of crime, we may be required to pass this information to government authorities.
What we need and why
The mediators who work through the Essex Mediation and Essex Mediation Online web sites will be what’s known as the ‘Controller’ of the personal data you provide to us and occasionally a processor of information too. We will keep basic personal data about you such as name, address, email etc. in order to contact you. We will also ask you to tell us any other relevant details about yourself or your relationship that will assist us in helping you use mediation as a way of resolving outstanding issues; or in the mediator providing you with information to make choices about your future.
This might include information which the GDPR asks for explicit consent to process, called Sensitive Personal Data.
As with all information you provide to us we will only use it in so far as is necessary in providing our services to you and it will remain confidential.
What we do with it
All the personal data we process is processed by our staff and contractors in the UK to assist staff administer our services to you. We process information to support the provision of our mediation service to you and do not process information for any further business, or any other reason.
Our website www.Essexmediationonline.co.uk is hosted on the Wix.com platform. Wix.com provides us with the online platform that allows us to sell our products and services to you. Your data may be stored through Wix.com’s data storage, databases and the general Wix.com applications. They store your data on secure servers behind a firewall.
All direct payment gateways offered by Wix.com and used by our website adhere to the standards set by PCI-DSS as managed by the PCI Security Standards Council, which is a joint effort of brands like Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover. PCI-DSS requirements help ensure the secure handling of credit card information by our store and its service providers.
Occasionally an external professional mediator, professional industry bodies or the Family Mediation Council may review your file and this will be undertaken under strict levels of Confidentiality.
The Legal Aid Agency is a processor of personal data for those clients who have received or are receiving Legal Aid or who are mediating with a client who is receiving Legal Aid. The Legal Aid Agency also has the right to audit the files of those receiving Legal Aid and they have their own contractual requirements on the duration of file retention.
How long we keep it
Under General Data Protection Regulations, we are required to keep your basic personal data (name, address, contact details) only for as long as necessary. Please contact us if you would like more information on our Data Retention Policy.
What are your rights?
We will only use information lawfully permitted. If at any point you believe the information we process on you is incorrect you can request to see this information and have it corrected. If you wish to raise a complaint on how we have handled your personal data, you can contact our Data Protection Officer who will investigate the matter.If you are not satisfied with our response or believe we are not processing your personal data in accordance with the law you can complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
