Overview

Bryson Care is committed to taking your privacy very seriously and protecting and respecting your information. We aim to be clear about how we use your personal information and this Privacy Notice will inform you about how we look after your information, what information we process and the reasons why. It includes the relevant requirements of the Data Protection Act 2018, and UK General Data Protection Regulation which has effect following the UK’s formal withdrawal from the European Union.

This Privacy Notice explains when and why we collect personal information, how we use it, the conditions under which we may disclose it to others and how we keep it secure.

Who we are

Bryson Care is part of the Bryson Charitable Group and we deliver a diverse range of services including domiciliary care services, both in the Eastern and Western Regions of Northern Ireland.

If you have any questions in relation to this Privacy Policy or the personal information we have about you please contact the Data Protection Representative for Bryson Domiciliary Care, Julie Geoghegan on 028 90325835.  Alternatively, contact the Data Protection Officer for the Bryson Charitable Group, Gail Wright on 028 90325835.

Purpose of processing and the legal basis for processing

Any information that we collect from you is necessary for the delivery of the highest standards of domiciliary care services by Bryson Care on behalf of the Trust. 

We rely on the following lawful bases for our processing activities:

• Public Task – Processing is necessary for the provision and management of essential domiciliary care services for the public on behalf of local Trusts.
• Compliance with a legal obligation – We may process or retain certain information in order to comply with statutory requirements or demands.
• Legitimate interests – Processing which is necessary in accordance with our insurance, our contracts with local Trusts, in order to maintain or defend legal claims, or in order to further our charitable purposes.

How we have collected information about you

It is essential that relevant information is collected about you so that we can provide you with the best possible service to meet your needs. The majority of the personal data we process about you is provided to us by the relevant Trust, based on any assessment carried out by them, which helps us understand the support that you will require. We may also process personal data directly provided by you in any communications or appointments.

What personal and sensitive information we collect 

The personal information that we collect includes; name, address, home telephone and mobile number, email address, date of birth, gender, next of kin. 

We may also collect sensitive information called special category data including; equality information such as ethnic group, religion or beliefs, information relating to health, disability and medical history. It is important for us to have a complete picture as this information assists staff involved in the services to deliver and provide effective and person centred care to meet your identified needs. 

Processing of this sensitive data is necessary for the provision of social care. Data protection legislation requires that this information is treated with the absolute care and security.  We are required to process this information in line with legislation in relation to equality, health and safety and disability.  

How we use your personal and sensitive information

The personal and sensitive data outlined will be used by Bryson Care:

• To help inform decisions that we make about your care and support
• To ensure that your care/support is safe, effective and compassionate
• To review the care/support provided to you regularly
• To work well with other organisations who may be involved in your care
• To provide training relevant to meet your needs
• To produce outcome reports to assess the impact of the services
• To produce statistical reports which will be anonymised and may be made publicly available

Sharing your information

We will only share your personal information with stakeholders who are part of the delivery, monitoring, and funding of the Domiciliary Care Services and the information will only be used for the purposes discussed in this policy. This will include Health and Social Care Organisation eg Trusts and regulatory bodies eg Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority. We have a variety of methods for collecting and sharing information eg telephone, emails, reports, home visits and electronically on our computer system.

How long will we hold onto your information

We review our retention periods for personal information on a regular basis.  We will hold your personal information on our systems in line with contractual requirements, legal requirements or international standards including ISO9001. Once the retention periods have been reached or we no longer need to process your information we will dispose of it through secure means which are approved under data protection legislation.

Further information as to our retention periods is available upon request.

Ending Poverty Through Maximising Potential

Bryson Group has embarked on a multi-decade strategy to eliminate poverty by maximising the effectiveness of our support services through targeted intervention.

To do so, we work closely with academic research partners to survey current and past service users and document their experiences and outcomes.

In conducting the project we rely on the lawful basis of legitimate interests in furthering our charitable purpose.

We will not process any more of your personal data than necessary for the purposes of carrying out the project, including:

• Name
• Phone Number
• Email address
• Postal address
• Type of interaction and outcome of interaction with Bryson.
• Survey responses
• Any further biographical information provided by the respondee in the course of their survey.

All personal information captured in the course of the project will be fully anonymised to protect your confidentiality, and robust information security measures are in place to prevent your privacy being compromised.

By taking part in this project you will be directly helping us to combat poverty and improve the provision of charitable support across Northern Ireland.

If you do not wish for your personal data to be involved in the scheme you are free to opt out at any time by contacting the Bryson Group DPO at optout@brysongroup.org

How we keep your information safe

We ensure that there are appropriate technical and organisational controls in place to protect against unauthorised or unlawful processing and against accidental loss, destruction or damage. Information is retained in secure electronic and paper records and access is restricted to only those who need to know. Closed files are stored securely at Morgan Document Security Storage Services

Your rights explained

• Right of access:  You have a right to ask for a copy of the information that we hold about you this is known as a Subject Access Request.  We will have 30 days to respond to your request.  Please contact Julie Geoghegan or Gail Wright on the telephone numbers provided to exercise this right.
• Right to rectification:  You have the right to have personal data corrected.  The accuracy of your information is important to us.  We would really appreciate if you let us know if your contact details change or if any other pieces of information that we hold on you are inaccurate.
• Right to erasure:  You have the right to have personal data erased in certain circumstances.  For example if information is not being used for its original purpose.
• Right to restrict processing:  You have a right to ask us to stop processing your personal data, if for example the information is inaccurate or if we are processing the information unlawfully.
• Right to object to processing: You have the option not to agree to the processing of your personal data if you feel it is impacting on your rights as an individual
• Right to transfer: You have a right to ask for your personal information to be given to you directly or a third party
• Right to lodge a complaint with ICO: You have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office: 

The Information Commissioner’s Office – Northern Ireland 

10th Floor Causeway Tower 

9 James Street South, Belfast 

BT2 8DN 

Telephone: 0303 123 1114 

Email: ni@ico.org.uk

Julie Geoghegan

Assistant Director 

Social Care Services

August 2024