Privacy Policy

Data Protection Policy

Introduction

Saracen Group Ltd is committed to protecting the rights and freedoms of data subjects and safely and securely processing their data in accordance with our legal obligations.

We hold personal data about our employees, customers, suppliers and other individuals for a variety of business purposes.

This policy sets out how we seek to protect personal data and ensure that our staff understand the rules governing the use of their personal data to which they have access in the course of their work. This policy requires staff to ensure that the Data Protection Officer (DPO) be consulted before any significant new data processing activity is initiated to ensure that relevant compliance steps are addressed.

Data Protection Contacts

Saracen Group Ltd – Data Controllers

Managing Directors – Overall responsibility for data protection

HR Advisor – Data Protection Officer & Responsible for cyber security on behalf of Outsourced IT

Definitions

	Personal data we gather may include:   ·        Individuals’ phone number ·        Individual’ email address ·        Educational Background ·        Financial, pay & Bank Details ·        Details of Certificates and diplomas ·        Education and skills ·        Marital status ·        Nationality ·        Job Title ·        CV
Special Categories of Personal Data	Special categories of data include information about an individual’s   ·        Physical or mental health or condition   Any use of special categories personal data should be strictly controlled in accordance with this policy.
Data controller	‘Data Controller’ means the person, public authority, agency or other body which, alone or jointly with others, determines the purposes and means of the processing of personal data; where the purposes and means of such processing are determined by law.
Data processor	‘Processor’ means a person, public authority, agency or other body which processes personal data on behalf of the controller.
Processing	‘Processing’ means any operation or set of operations which is performed on personal data or on sets of personal data, whether or not by automated means, such as   –      Collection –      Recording –      Organisation –      Structuring –      Storage –      Adaptation or alteration –      Retrieval –      Consultation –      Use –      Disclosure by transmission, dissemination or otherwise making available –      Alignment or combination –      Restriction, erasure or destruction.
Supervisory   authority	This is the national body responsible for data protection. The supervisory authority for our organisation is the Information Commissioners Office (ICO)

Scope

This policy applies to all staff, who must be familiar with this policy and comply with its terms

This policy supplements out other policies relating to internet and email use. We may supplement or amend this policy by additional policies and guidelines from time to time.

Any new or modified policy will by circulated to staff before being adopted.

Controlling vs. Processing data

Saracen Group Ltd is classified as a Data Controller meaning the organisation is responsible for determining either alone or in common with another person or organisation the purpose for which and the manner in which any personal data is or will be processed.

In some cases, personal data held by Saracen Group Ltd will be processed internally. In other instances, the data processing is outsourced to an external third party.

As we are only processing personal data for core business purposes we do not have to register as a Data Controller with the ICO.

If you are in any doubt about how we handle data, contact the DPO for clarification.

The Principles of GDPR

Saracen Group Ltd shall comply with the principles of data protection (the “Principles”) enumerated in the EU General Data Protection Regulation 2018 (GDPR). We will make every effort possible in everything we do to comply with these principles. The Principles are:

1. Lawful, fair and transparent.

Data collection must be fair, for a legal purpose and we must be open and transparent as to how the data will be used.

2. Limited for its purpose

Data can only be collected for a specific purpose

3. Data minimisation

Any data collected must be necessary and not excessive for its purpose.

4. Vital Interests

The data we hold must be accurate and kept up to date.

5. Retention

We cannot store data longer than necessary.

6. Integrity and confidentiality

The data we hold must be kept safe and secure.

Lawful basis for processing data

We must establish a lawful basis for processing date. Ensure that any data you are responsible for managing has a written lawful basis approved by the DPO. It is your responsibility to check the lawful basis for any data you are working with and ensure all your actions comply with the lawful basis. At least one of the following conditions must apply whenever we process personal data:

1.      Consent

We hold recent, clear, explicit and defined consent for the individual’s data to be processed for a specific purpose.

2.      Contract

The processing is necessary to fulfil or prepare a contract for the individual

3.      Legal obligation

We have a legal obligation process the data (excluding a contract).

4.      Vital interests

Processing the data is necessary to protect a person’s life or in a medical situation.

5.      Public function

Processing necessary to carry out a public function, as task of public interest or the function has a clear basis in law.

6.      Legitimate interest

The processing is necessary for our legitimate interests. This condition does not apply if there is a good reason to protect the individual’s personal data which overrides the legitimate interest.

Deciding which lawful basis to rely on

If you are assessing the lawful basis, you must first establish that the processing is necessary.

This means the processing must be a targeted, appropriate way of achieving the stated purpose. You cannot rely on a lawful basis if you can reasonably achieve the same purpose by some other means.

Remember that more than one basis may apply, and you should rely on what will best fit the purpose, not what is easiest.

Consider the following factors and document your answers:

o   What is the purpose for processing the data?

o   Can it reasonably to be done in a different way?

o   Is there a choice as to whether or not to process the data?

o   Who does the processing benefit?

o   After selecting the lawful basis, is this the same as the lawful basis the data subject would expect?

o   What is the impact of the processing on the individual?

o   Are you in a position of power over them?

o   Are they a vulnerable person?

o   Would they be likely to object to the processing?

o   Are you are to stop the processing at any time on request, and have factored in how to do this?

Our Commitment to the first Principle required us to document this process and show that we have considered which lawful basis best applies to each processing purpose, and fully justify these decisions.

We must also ensure that individuals whose data is being processed by us are informed of the lawful basis for processing their data, as well as the intended purpose. This should occur via a privacy notice. This applies whether we have collected the data directly from the individual, or from another source.

If you are responsible for assessing the lawful basis and implementing the privacy notice for the processing activity, you must have this approved by the DPO.

Data Categories

Regular Personal Data

Regular Personal Data is any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person (‘data subject’); an identifiable natural person is one who can have identified, directly, or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person.

Special categories of personal data

Previously known as sensitive personal data, this means data about an individual which is more sensitive, so requires more protection. This type of data could create more significant risks to a person’s fundamental rights and freedoms, for example by putting them at risk of unlawful discrimination. The special categories include information about an individual’s:

·        Race

·        Ethnic origin

·        Health (mental and physical)

·        Sexual orientation

The condition for processing special categories of personal data must comply with the law. If we do not have lawful basis for processing special categories of data that processing activity must cease.

Criminal Category Data

Criminal Category data is any information relating to the criminal history of an individual or any related proceedings.

Any criminal record checks must be justified by law. Criminal record checks cannot be undertaken based solely on the consent of the subject.

We cannot keep a comprehensive register of criminal offence data. Criminal offence data is cleansed so that we only retain a record of the data a criminal record check is undertaken, and a record of the certificate serial number.

All data relating to criminal offences is considered to be a special category of personal data and must be treated as such. You must have approval from DPO prior to carrying out a criminal record check

Responsibilities

Our responsibilities

• Analysing and documenting the type of personal data we hold
• Checking procedures to ensure they cover all the rights of the individual
• Identify the lawful basis for processing data
• Ensuring consent procedures are lawful
• Implementing and reviewing procedures to detect, report and investigate personal data breaches
• Store data in safe and secure ways
• Assess the risk that could be posed to individual rights and freedoms should data be compromised
• Ensure that any personal data we process is accurate, adequate, relevant and not excessive, given the purpose for which it was obtained.

Your responsibilities

• Fully understand your data protection obligations
• Check that any data processing activities you are dealing with comply with our policy and are justified
• Do not use data in any unlawful way
• Do not store data incorrectly, be careless with it or otherwise cause us to breach data protection laws and our policies through your actions
• Comply with this policy at all times
• If you believe that information is inaccurate you should record that fact that the accuracy of the information is disputed and inform the DPO.
• Raise any concerns, notify any breaches or errors, and report anything suspicious or contradictory to this policy or our legal obligations without

Responsibilities of the Data Protection Officer

• Reviewing all data protection procedures and policies on a regular basis
• Keeping management updated about data protection responsibilities risks and issues
• Arranging data protection training and advice for all staff members and those included in this policy
• Answering questions on data protection from staff and other stakeholders.
• Responding to individuals such as customers and employees who wish to know which data is being held on them by us.
• Checking and approving with third parties that handle the company’s data any contracts.

Responsibilities of Outsource IT

• Ensure all systems, services, software and equipment meet acceptable security standards
• Checking and scanning security hardware and software regularly to ensure it is functioning properly
• Researching third-party services, such as cloud services the company is considering using to store or process data

Responsibilities of Marketing

• Approving data protection statements attached to emails and other marketing copy
• Addressing data protection queries from customers, target audiences or media outlets
• Coordinating with the DPO to ensure all marketing initiatives adhere to data protection laws and the

company’s Data Protection Policy.

• Obtaining consent from individuals to send them marketing communication /

Data Security

Keeping HR data secure

Saracen Group ltd  take the security of HR related personal data seriously. The organisation has internal policies and controls in place to protect personal data against loss, accidental destruction, misuse or disclosure, and to ensure that data is not accessed, except by employees in the proper performance of their duties.

·        Hard copies of employee data are stored in a locked cabinet to which only HR and Managing Director hold a key.

·        Electronic personnel files are stored on a drive on a secure serer. Only HR and Managing Director have the relevant permission settings to access this drive.

·        Data is destroyed when it is no longer necessary for it to be kept for processing purposes.

·        Where the organisation engages third parties to process personal data on its behalf, such parties do so on the basis of written instructions, are under a duty of confidentiality and are obliged to implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure the security of data.

What you need to do to ensure personal data is stored securely

 ·        In cases when data is stored on printed paper, it should be kept in a secure place where unauthorised personnel cannot access it

·        Printed data should be shredded when it is no longer needed.

·        Data stored on a compute should be protected by strong passwords that are changed regularly. We encourage all staff to use a password manager to create and store their passwords

·        Data stored on CD’s or memory sticks must be encrypted or password protected and locked away securely when they are not being used.

·        The DPO must approve any cloud used to store data (with support from IT)

·        Data should be regularly backed up in line with the company’s backup procedures

·        Data should never be saved directly to mobile devices such as laptops, tablets or smartphones

·        All servers containing sensitive data must be approved and protected by security software

• All possible technical measures must be put in place to keep data secure

Data Security

Keeping HR data secure

Saracen Group Ltd take the security of HR related personal data seriously. The organisation has internal policies and controls in place to protect personal data against loss, accidental destruction, misuse or disclosure, and to ensure that data is not accessed, except by employees in the proper performance of their duties.

·        Hard copies of employee data are stored in a locked cabinet to which only HR and Managing Director hold a key.

·        Electronic personnel files are stored on a drive on a secure serer. Only HR and Managing Director have the relevant permission settings to access this drive.

·        Data is destroyed when it is no longer necessary for it to be kept for processing purposes.

·        Where the organisation engages third parties to process personal data on its behalf, such parties do so on the basis of written instructions, are under a duty of confidentiality and are obliged to implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure the security of data.

What you need to do to ensure personal data is stored securely

·        In cases when data is stored on printed paper, it should be kept in a secure place where unauthorised personnel cannot access it

·        Printed data should be shredded when it is no longer needed.

·        Data stored on a compute should be protected by strong passwords that are changed regularly. We encourage all staff to use a password manager to create and store their passwords

·        Data stored on CD’s or memory sticks must be encrypted or password protected and locked away securely when they are not being used.

·        The DPO must approve any cloud used to store data (with support from IT)

·        Data should be regularly backed up in line with the company’s backup procedures

·        Data should never be saved directly to mobile devices such as laptops, tablets or smartphones

·        All servers containing sensitive data must be approved and protected by security software

• All possible technical measures must be put in place to keep data secure

Data retention

We must retain personal data for no longer than is necessary. What is necessary will depend on the circumstances of each case, taking into account the reasons that the personal data was obtained, but should be determined in a manner consistent with our data retention guidelines.

Transferring data internationally

There are restrictions on international transfers of personal data. You must not transfer personal data abroad, or anywhere else outside of normal rules and procedures without the express permission from the DPO.

Rights of individuals

Individuals have rights to their data which must respect and comply with to the best of our ability. We must ensure individuals can exercise their rights in the following ways:

1.      Right to be informed

Providing privacy notices which are concise, transparent, intelligible and easily accessible, free of charge, that are written in clear and plain language,

Keeping a record of how we use personal data to demonstrate compliance with the need for accountability and transparency.

2.      Right of Access

Enabling individuals to access their personal data and supplementary information allowing individuals to be aware of and verify the lawfulness of the processing activities.

3.      Right to rectification

We must rectify or amend the personal data of the individual if requested because it is inaccurate or incomplete.

This must be done without delay, and not later than one month. This can be extended to two months with permission from the DPO.

4.      Right to erasure

We must delete or remove an individual’s data if requested and there is no compelling reason for its continued processing.

5.      Right to restrict processing

We must comply with any request to restrict, block, or otherwise suppress the processing of personal data. We are permitted to store personal data if it has been restricted, but not process it further. We must retain enough data to ensure the right to restriction is respected in the future.

6.      Right to data portability

We must provide individuals with their data so that they can reuse it for their own purposed or across different services.

We must provide it in a most commonly used machine- readable format and sent it directly to another controller if requested.

7.      Right to object

We must respect the right of an individual to object the data processing based on legitimate interest or the performance of public interest task.

We must respect the right of an individual to object to direct marketing, including profiling.

We must respect the right of an individual object to processing their data for scientific and historical research and statistic.

8.      Rights in relation to automated decision making and profiling

We must respect the rights of individuals in relation to automated decision making and profiling.

Individuals retain their right to object to such automated processing, have the rational explained to them, and request human intervention

Privacy notices

When to supply a privacy notice

A privacy notice must be supplied at the time the data is obtained if obtained directly from the data subject. If the data is not obtained directly from the data subject, the privacy notice must be provided within a reasonable period of having obtained the data, which mean within one month.

If the data is being used to communicate with the individual, then the privacy notice must be supplied at the latest when the first communication takes place.

If disclosure to another recipients is envisaged, then the privacy notice must be supplied prior the data being disclosed.

What to include in a privacy Notice?

Privacy notices must be concise, transparent, intelligible and easily accessible. They are provided free of charge and must be written in clear and plain language, particularly if aimed at children.

The following information must be included in a privacy notice to all data subjects:

• Identification and contact information of the data controller and the data protection officer
• The purpose of processing the data and the lawful basis for doing so
• The legitimate interests of the controller or third party, if applicable
• The right to withdraw consent at any time, if applicable
• The category of the personal data (only for data not obtained directly from the data subject)
• Any recipient or categories of recipients of the personal data
• Detailed information of any transfers to third countries and safeguards in place
• The retention period of the data or the criteria used to determine the retention period, including details for the data disposal after the retention period
• The right to lodge a complaint with the ICO, and internal complaint procedures.
• The source of the personal data, and whether it came from publicly available sources (only for data not obtained directly from the data subject)
• Any existence of automated decision making, including profiling and information about how those decisions are made, their significances and consequences to the data
• Whether the provisions of personal data are part of a statutory of contractual requirement or obligation and possible consequences for any failure to provide the data (only for data obtained directly from the data subject).

Subject Access Requests

How to submit a subject access request

An individual who wishes to submit a subject access request must do so in writing. If you receive a subject access request, you must make the DPO aware of this.

Employees who wish to make a subject access request should do so by emailing enquiries@saracengroupltd.com or completing the Subject Access Request form which has been made available.

If an individual opts not to use the form, they should include the following in their request:

• Their full name, address and contact number
• Details of any specific information they require and any relevant dates if applicable for example:
  • Their complete personnel file
  • Their medical records for a specified data range
  • Copies of specific correspondence from the Company

How we deal with subject access requests

We must provide an individual with a copy of the information requested, free of charge. This must occur without delay, and within one month of receipt of the request. We endeavour to provide data subjects access to their information in commonly used electronic formats. Where possible, a hard copy will be provided upon request.

If complying with the request is complex or numerous, the deadline can be extended by two months, but the individual must be informed within one month. You must obtain approval from the DPO before extending the deadline.

We can refuse to respond to certain requests if:

• It would cost too much or take too much staff time to deal with the request
• The request is vexatious
• The request repeats a previous request from the same person

If the requests is for a large quantity of data, we can request the individual specify the information they are requesting. This can only be done with express permission from the DPO

Once a subject access request has been made, you may redact or omit any information which by sharing you would be breaching the privacy rights of another individual.

Changing, amending or deleting any of the data requested for any other reason if prohibited and is a criminal offence.

The organisation may ask an employee to provide identification before processing a request. The organisation will inform the individual if it needs to verify their identify

Data portability requests

We must provide the data request in a structured, commonly used and machine- readable format. This would normally be a CSV file, although other formats are acceptable. We must provide this data either to the individual who has requested it, or to the data controller they have requested it be sent to. This must be done free of charge and without delay, and no later than one month. This can be extended to two months for complex or numerous requests, but the individual must be informed of the extension within one month and you must receive express permission from the DPO first.

Other Rights

Individuals have a number of other rights in relation to their personal data. They can require the organisation to:

·        Rectify inaccurate data;

·        Stop processing or ease data that is no longer necessary for the purposes of processing;

·        Stop processing or ease data if the individual’s interests override the organisations legitimate grounds for processing data (where the organisation relies on its legitimate interests as a reason for processing data);

·        Stop processing data for a period if data is inaccurate or if there is a dispute about whether or not the individual’s interests override the organisations legitimate grounds for processing data.

References

Requesting References

Any reference requests to former employers must be made by HR. A reference request for an individual should only be made where said individual (“the subject”) has completed and signed a reference consent form.

The signed Reference Consent Form should be enclosed or attached to the reference request. Reference requests should be made using the Reference Request Form.

References for candidates whose application is unsuccessful or employees whose employment is terminated within their probation period should be destroyed within a week of such decision made by the Company.

All references, regardless of whether the candidate was successful or not, must be securely destroyed within six months of a hiring decision being made.

Providing References

You may on occasion receive a reference request for a current or former employee. All reference requests should be forwarded to HR who will respond appropriately. HR will only provide references where evidence is provided that a subject has given their consent to a reference being given. The reference provided will confirm dates of employment, job title and salary. References provided by HR must be from a Saracen Interiors email address or on a Saracen Interiors Letterhead.

If you wish to provide a personal reference in addition to the Company reference provided by HR, you may do so. However, you are prohibited from providing a reference using a Saracen Interiors email address or letterhead.

Monitoring

CCTV

Saracen Group Ltd does not currently use CCTV on any Company premises.

If at any time in the future the Company has a legitimate lawful purpose for implementing this type of monitoring, all staff will be informed prior to installation of CCTV.

In the event that CCTV is installed on Company premises:

• There must be clear signage in areas that are monitored by
• Data must be used and kept only to fulfil its original purpose. For instance, if the purpose of holding data is to identify individuals engaged in criminal activity, the footage should be of sufficient quality to do so and be available to the police should they request to view
• CCTV recordings and other logs must be stored securely and encrypted wherever
• Individuals have the right to request a copy of any CCTV footage in which they are in focus and/or clearly identifiable. If the request is valid and permissible, the organisation must supply the individual with that footage within 30 days of the validation. The same is true of other kinds of data relating to employee

Email

Saracen Group Ltd has the ability to access/ monitor the work email addresses of all employees. Saracen Interiors considers the following to be valid reason for checking an employee’s email:

·        If the employee is absent for any reason and communications must be checked for the smooth running of the business to continue.

·        f it suspects that the employee has been viewing or sending offensive or illegal material

• Saracen Group has the ability to access / monitor the work email addresses of all Saracen Interiors considers the following to be valid reasons for checking an employee’s email:
• If the employee is absent for any reason and communications must be checked for the smooth running of the business to continue.
• If it suspects that the employee has been viewing or sending offensive or illegal material, such as material containing racist terminology or nudity (although the organisation understands that it is possible for employees inadvertently to receive such material and they will have the opportunity to explain if this is the case).
• If it suspects that an employee has been using the email system to send and receive an excessive number of personal communications.
• If it suspects that the employee is sending or receiving emails that are detrimental
• If it suspects that the employee is sending or receiving emails that are detrimental to the organisation.

When monitoring emails, the organisation will, save in exceptional circumstances, confine itself to looking at the address and subject heading of the emails. Employees should mark any personal emails as such and encourage those who send them to do the same. Where possible, the organisation will avoid opening emails clearly marked as private or personal.

Internet Use

Saracen Group Ltd reserves the right to access/monitor employees internet usage but will endeavour to inform an affected employee when this is to happen and the reasons for it. Saracen Interiors considers the following to be valid reasons for checking an employee’s internet usage:

• If it suspects that the employee has been viewing offensive or illegal material, such as material containing racist terminology or nudity (although the organisation understands that is possible for employees inadvertently to view such material they will have the opportunity to explain if this is the case.)
• If it suspects that employee has been spending an excessive amount of time viewing websites that are not work related.

Monitoring will consist of checking the websites that an employee has visited and the duration of such visits.

Third parties

Using third party controllers and processors

As a Data Controller, we must have written Contracts in place with any third-party Processors that we use. The Contract must contain specific clauses which set out our and their liabilities, obligations and responsibilities.

As a Data Controller, we must only appoint processors who can provide sufficient guarantees under GDPR and that the rights of data subjects will be respected and protected.

Contracts

Our contracts must comply with the standards set out by the ICO and, where possible, follow the standard contractual clauses which are available. Our contracts with Data Processors must set out the subject matter and duration of the processing, the nature and stated purpose of the processing activities, the types of personal data and categories of data subject, and the obligations and rights of the controller.

At minimum, our contracts must include terms that specify:

·        Acting only on written instructions

·        Those involved in processing the data are subject to a duty of confidence

·        Appropriate measures will be taken to ensure the security of the processing

·        Sub-processors will only be engaged with the prior consent of the controller and under a written contract

·        The controller will assist the processor in dealing with subject access requests and allowing data subjects to exercise their rights under GDPR

·        The processor will assist the controller in meeting its GDPR obligations in relation to the security of processing, modification of data breaches and implementation of Data Protection Impact assessments.

• Delete or return all personal data at the end of the contract
• Submit to regular audits and inspections and provide whatever information necessary for the controller and processor to meet their legal obligations.
• Nothing will be done by either the controller or processor to infringe on

Audits, monitoring and training

Data audits

Regular data audits to manage and mitigate risks will inform the data register. This contains information on what data is held, where it is stored, how it is used, who is responsible and any further regulations or retention timescales that may be relevant. You must conduct a regular data audit as defined by the DPO and normal procedures.

Monitoring

Everyone must observe this policy. The DPO has overall responsibility for this policy. Saracen Group will keep this policy under review and amend or change it as required. You must notify the DPO of any breaches of this policy. You must comply with this policy fully and at all times.

Reporting breaches

Any breach of this policy or of data protection laws must be reported as soon as practically possible. This means as soon as you have become aware of a breach. Saracen Group Ltd has a legal obligation to report any data breaches to Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) within 72 hours.

All members of staff have an obligation to report actual or potential data protection compliance failures. This allows us to

• Investigate the failure and take remedial steps if necessary
• Maintain a register of compliance failures
• Notify the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) of any compliance failures that are material either in their own right or as part of a pattern of failures

Any member of staff who fails to notify of a breach or is found to have known or suspected a breach has occurred but has not followed the correct reporting procedures will be liable to disciplinary action.

Failure to comply

We take compliance with this policy very seriously. Failure to comply puts both you and the organisation at risk. The importance of this policy means that failure to comply with any requirement may lead to disciplinary action under our procedures which may result in dismissal.