Volunteer Hub > Index > Data Protection Policy
The Inland Waterways Association, here after referred to as ‘the organisation’, or with the abbreviation IWA, charity registration number 212342, with a registered address at Unit 16B, Chiltern Court, Asheridge Road, Chesham, HP5 2PX, is committed to being fully compliant with all applicable UK and EU data protection legislation in respect of personal data, as well as safeguarding the rights and freedoms of persons whose information The Inland Waterways Association may process pursuant to the UK General Data Protection Regulation 2020 (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 and any other applicable legislation. In this document, all such legislation is collectively referred to as ‘data protection legislation’.
This policy applies to all employees and volunteers of the organisation including contractors and subcontractors, and any other persons that are authorised to access the data for which the organisation is the controller.
This policy should be read in conjunction with the following IWA policies:
Data controller: the natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which, alone or jointly with others, determines the purposes and means of the processing of personal data
Data processor: a natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which processes personal data on behalf of the controller
Data Protection Lead/accountable person: is the member of the organisation’s staff who oversees data protection obligations and procedures
Data subject: refers to any living person who is the subject of personal data (see below for the definition of ‘personal data’) held by the organisation. A data subject must be identifiable by name, an identification reference, address, online identifiers or other factors such as physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic or social factors
Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO): the UK’s independent authority set up to uphold information rights in the public interest, promoting openness by public bodies and data privacy for individuals
Personal data: means any information that identifies, directly or indirectly, a data subject
Processing: refers to any action taken in relation to personal data including, but not limited to, collection, adaptation, alteration, recording, storage, retrieval, consultation, use, disclosure, dissemination, combination or deletion, whether by automated means or otherwise
Special categories of data: racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade-union membership, biometric data (where used for identification purposes), data concerning health, data concerning a person’s sex life or sexual orientation
The organisation has assessed the need for Data Protection Officer and has decided that this role is not currently required. This decision is reviewed on an annual basis and its findings are recorded. The Data Protection Lead is Tracy Higgin. The lead trustee for data protection is Peter Marlow.
The Inland Waterways Association is committed to adhere to Article 5 of the UK GDPR which lists the seven principles of data protection:
The Inland Waterways Association identifies a lawful basis every time it starts processing personal data. Please see section 5 for more information on the six lawful bases of processing data.
The Inland Waterways Association is committed to informing all data subjects about the processing of their data beforehand, so that they can make an informed decision about whether to provide that data. A general privacy notice is made available to anyone who wants to know more about how the organisation processes data of the data subjects. Shorter privacy notices are made available when the organisation collects data for specific purposes.
The Inland Waterways Association has complied with Article 13 and 14 of the UK GDPR which lists the content that needs to be included in the privacy notice and shorter statement.
Unless it would involve disproportionate effort, the organisation will provide the data subject with the privacy notice within a reasonable period, but no more than a month from when the data has been obtained. If the data is to be used for communicating with the data subject, the data subject must be informed within the first communication. The organisation may not actively provide the data subjects with a privacy notice if the data subject already has already received such information by the source of the data.
The Inland Waterways Association may periodically change how personal data is processed. The organisation will inform data subjects accordingly, as required by the data protection legislation.
The Inland Waterways Association collects personal data for specified, explicit and legitimate purposes, and the data is not further processed in a manner that is incompatible with those purposes.
The organisation may extend a purpose to cover new processing, if the new purpose is compatible with the old. Compatibility is measured according to ‘reasonable expectation’ the data subject may have. The organisation needs to process information to carry out its work, meet objectives and comply with its contractual obligations. The organisation will only ever collect information that is needed to carry out its work, improve its services, report to funders, contract holders and partners, fulfil any request that data subjects make, personalise services to best meet data subjects’ needs and keep track of the impact and quality of the organisation’s work.
The purpose of the data processing is included in the Privacy notices and in the Record of Processing Activities spreadsheet which is maintained and reviewed regularly.
The Inland Waterways Association is committed to the quality of the data that it collects and processes. This means that the data must be:
To guarantee data quality, employees and relevant volunteers receive clear guidance and training, refresher training and briefings during meetings in reference to personal data collection and processing.
Managers monitor the quality of the data that employees or relevant volunteers record and take appropriate action if standards show any sign of slipping.
The Record of Processing Activities spreadsheet keeps a log of the personal data processed for each type of data subject and where that data is stored. This helps to identify the employees and relevant volunteers who are responsible for updating or deleting data from the different sources of storage.
The organisation carries out annual reviews of all methods of data collection, checking that they are still appropriate, relevant, and not excessive.
The organisation is aware of the importance of collecting and maintaining accurate personal data. The organisation will assume that information submitted by data subjects is accurate at the date of submission. Data subjects are promptly informed via the privacy notice that they are responsible for ensuring that the personal data held by the organisation is accurate and up to date.
All employees and volunteers are required to update the organisation as soon as reasonably possible of any changes to their personal information to ensure records are always up to date.
The organisation shall, on an annual basis, carry out a review of all personal data controlled by the organisation and decide whether any data is no longer required to be held for the stated purposes, and where required arrange for that data to be deleted or destroyed in accordance with the requirements of the Data Protection Legislation.
The Inland Waterways Association will not keep data subjects’ data longer than is necessary. When the organisation no longer needs it, it will dispose of the information securely and may, in rare cases, use specialist external companies to do this.
In some cases, retention will be based on legal consideration. In other cases, the reason may be more practical or based on organisational decisions. The retention schedule is logged in the Record of Processing Activities spreadsheet and data subjects are informed via the privacy notice. Personal data is retained according to the retention schedule, logged in the spreadsheet and destroyed or deleted in a secure manner as soon as the retention date has passed.
Data, other than in historic archives, that is kept for long periods of time is examined and amended, if necessary.
Should any personal data be required to be retained beyond the retention period set out in the Record of Processing Activities, this may only be done with the express written approval of the Data Protection lead and must be in line with data protection requirements.
The Inland Waterways Association maintains appropriate, technical and organisational security to protect personal data from unauthorised access or intrusion.
The organisation limits access to the data only to those employees, trustees, relevant volunteers, contractors and agents who need such access to provide products or services to data subjects, or for other legitimate purposes.
The organisation will strive to train its employees and relevant volunteers about its data protection practices.
All employees and relevant volunteers of the organisation are responsible for keeping secure any personal data controlled by the organisation. Under no circumstances may any personal data be disclosed to any third party unless the organisation has provided express authorisation, or has entered into a confidentiality agreement, a data processor agreement, or a data sharing agreement with the third party.
There are also several physical security measures that The Inland Waterways Association puts in place, including (but not limited to):
The Inland Waterways Association operates under a policy of confidentiality. It is committed to providing confidential services to its stakeholders and ensuring that all personal data about employees, trustees, volunteers and other stakeholders is treated as confidential and is collected, processed and retained in line with the data protection law. In certain situations, information may need to be shared with third parties, for example for distribution of magazines to members.
In accordance with legal requirements, the organisation keeps records so that they can demonstrate the steps taken to comply with the UK GDPR:
The Inland Waterways Association processes personal data by identifying a lawful basis chosen from the six possibilities set out in Article 6 of the UK GDPR:
The most common lawful bases that the organisation identifies are consent, contract, legal obligation and legitimate interest. The lawful bases for the different processing activities are recorded in the Record of Processing Activities spreadsheet which is maintained and reviewed regularly.
When data processing poses particular risks, such as the processing of special category data, the organisation will complete a Data Protection Impact Assessment to justify their data protection approach.
When processing special category data or criminal records without the consent of the data subject, data protection law requires controllers to identify another lawful basis under Article 6 of the UK GDPR other than consent, supported by one of the exemptions of Article 9 (2) which might need to be further supported by the Data Protection Act 2018. When processing criminal records, the lawful basis identified in Article 6 needs to be additionally supported by the Act
The organisation may complete an Appropriate Policy document for the processing of special category data and criminal data without consent of the data subjects as required by law.
If The Inland Waterways Association chooses consent as its ‘lawful basis’, it means that the data subject has given their consent to the processing of their personal data for one or more specific purposes. The organisation will gather proof of that consent to demonstrate that the data subject has consented to processing of their personal data (as per Article 7.1 of the UK GDPR). The data subject has the right to withdraw their consent at any time (as per Article 7.3 of the UK GDPR).
Consent to the processing of personal data by the data subject must be:
The organisation understands that Consent is for the time being and may review and refresh consent as appropriate.
Consent will not be the condition for processing data where a service or product is purchased.
The organisation identifies contract as its lawful basis when processing is necessary for the performance of a contract to which the data subject is party, or to take steps at the request of the data subject prior to entering a contract.
The organisation identifies legal obligation as a lawful basis when processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the controller is subject.
If the organisation chooses legitimate interest as its lawful basis, a Legitimate Interest Assessment may be completed in order to show what The Inland Waterways Association’s interest is and that it is legitimate, to show why the processing is necessary in pursuing this interest, to consider potential impact on any data subjects’ rights and freedoms and to measure whether the data subject might reasonably expect IWA to process their data. An opt-out option may be made available to the data subject. Data subjects always have a right to object to the processing of their data.
The organisation collects personal information from different groups of data subjects, including:
Our privacy notices and Record of Processing Activities will explain the different kinds of data we collect and the lawful basis for processing them. We process normal category data, and we may also collect special category data and criminal data.
Criminal record data is not formally special category data; however, under the Data Protection Act 2018, criminal record data receives the same additional protection as special category data.
The Record of Processing Activities spreadsheet keeps a record of the data specifications that the organisation collects for each type of data subject.
The Inland Waterways Association is committed to comply with additional obligations in reference to the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. These include:
Article 4.12 of the UK GDPR defines a personal data breach as ‘a breach of security leading to the accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, authorisation, and authorised disclosure of, or access to, personal data transmitted, stored or otherwise processed’.
These are the steps taken by the organisation in case of a data breach. Please refer to the Breach Management Policy, Procedure and Form [link to form on Volunteer Hub of website]
The Inland Waterways Association is fully aware of the data subject rights described in Articles 15 – 22 of the UK GDPR, and these are listed in the privacy notice.
The data subjects’ rights include:
Additional rights of data subjects include:
If data subjects wish to exercise any rights, they can contact the organisation at:
The Inland Waterways Association, Unit 16B, Chiltern Court, Asheridge Road, Chesham, HP5 2PX
Tel: 01494 786453
E-mail: [email protected]
Data subjects are reminded of their rights and how to exercise them in the privacy notice they receive.
All employees and relevant volunteers are trained to recognise an incoming request to exercise any right, to understand when the right applies and to pass it on without delay to the designated person.
All requests from data subjects to exercise any rights are recorded into the ‘Activity, Incident and Risk reporting spreadsheet’.
Under certain circumstances, mostly described in Schedules 2-4 of the Data Protection Act (2018), the organisation may not need to comply with the request by a data subject to exercise one of their rights. Those circumstances will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
7.2.1 The right to be informed
Data subjects have the right to be informed about the collection and use of their personal data. This is a key transparency requirement under the UK GDPR. The organisation is committed to comply with this right and they do so via the privacy notice.
7.2.2 The right of access and Subject Access Rights procedure
A data subject has the right to make access requests in respect of personal data that is held and disclosed. To understand how we deal with Subject Access Requests, please view our Subject Access Rights policy.
7.2.3 The right of rectification
The Inland Waterways Association is aware of the provisions in Article 16 of the UK GDPR – if the data subject becomes aware that the organisation is holding incorrect information about them, they have the right for it to be corrected, and if their information is incomplete, they can also submit additional information to be added.
7.2.4 The right to be forgotten (erasure)
If a data subject asks the organisation to delete their information, as stated in Article 17 the organisation will do so without undue delay when:
In addition, if the organisation has made the information public, the organisation will try to have it erased in other locations as well. In conjunction with Article 19 of the UK GDPR, the organisation informs anyone to whom data has been disclosed, unless this ‘proves impossible or involves disproportionate effort’. The organisation will also inform the data subject which recipients their data has been disclosed to, if they ask.
There are exceptions to the ‘right to be forgotten’ for reasons relating to freedom of expression, public health, archiving, research and statistics, legal claims and legal obligation.
Where personal data has been published, with the data subject’s permission at the time, and is now in the public domain (e.g. in magazines and local branch journals), it is not possible to unpublish and remove such data.
There may also be circumstances where the organisation has no choice but to retain data, for example to mark a record for suppression to ensure that no direct marketing is sent to that individual in the future.
The organisation will process a request for erasure without undue delay, and within one month of receipt. The organisation gives particular weight to any request of erasure if the request relates to data collected from children.
7.2.5 The right to restrict processing
The data subject shall have the right to restriction of processing of their personal data where one of the following applies:
7.2.6 The right to data portability
This right applies when processing is based on consent or a contract between the organisation and the data subject, and the processing is taking place ‘by automated means’. It allows data subjects to move, copy or transfer personal data easily from one IT environment to another in a safe and secure way, without affecting its usability.
Data subjects are entitled to receive from the organisation a copy of any personal data they have provided in a ‘structured, commonly used and machine-readable format’, so that they can provide the data to a different controller.
7.2.7 The right to object processing
Data subjects can object to any processing of their data that organisation is carrying out on the lawful basis of legitimate interests. The organisation will stop processing if not able to demonstrate ‘compelling legitimate grounds’.
7.2.8 Rights in relation to automated decision making and profiling
Automated decision making takes place when an electronic system uses personal information to make a decision without human intervention. Profiling refers to any form of personal data processing that is automated, with the intention of assessing personal aspects of a data subject or analysing a data subject’s employment performance, economic status, whereabouts, health, personal preferences and behaviour.
The data subject has the right to object to profiling and a right to be informed of the fact that profiling is taking place, as well as the intended outcome(s) of the profiling. The data subject has the right not to have decisions made about them solely by automated processing if this has a significant effect on them, unless the decision is necessary in conjunction with a contract between the data subject and the controller, or the data subject has provided explicit consent.
7.2.9 The right not to receive direct marketing
Every data subject has the right not to receive direct marketing if that is their choice.
7.2.10 The right to claim damages in case of data breach
If a data subject has been harmed by a breach of data protection legislation, they can take the controller (i.e. IWA) to court for compensation.
If data subjects wish to make a complaint or share concerns, they should be firstly encouraged to liaise directly with the organisation. They can make a complaint or send an email to the Data Protection Lead at
The Inland Waterways Association, Unit 16B, Chiltern Court, Asheridge Road, Chesham, HP5 2PX
Tel: 01494 786453
E-mail: [email protected]
The Data Protection Lead will respond within 5 working days and lead on the resolution of the complaint within 28 days.
As stated in the privacy notice, we inform the data subject that they can also make a complaint to the ICO and request that the ICO carries out an assessment as to whether any of the provisions of the UK GDPR have been breached. Data subjects can remain anonymous if they wish.
Risk Assessment is an important part of the accountability of an organisation. It is vital that the organisation is aware of all risks associated with personal data processing and it is via its risk assessment process that the organisation can assess the level of risk.
It is the policy of the organisation not to transfer or share data into an environment that is not considered compliant with UK data protection law.
Where personal data processing is carried out using new technologies, or when a high risk is identified in relation to the rights and freedoms of natural persons, the organisation is required to engage in a risk assessment of the potential impact, also known as a ‘Data Protection Impact Assessment’. More than one risk may be addressed in a single Assessment. The organisation has developed and agreed upon a procedure for completing such as Assessment. This procedure is always followed where there is a need to measure risk. The procedure is completed by the Data Protection Lead and, if necessary, the opinion of a professional Data Protection Practitioner is considered.
In addition to this, and if the outcome of a Data Protection Impact Assessment points to a higher risk than the organisation intended and personal data processing could result in distress and/or may cause ‘damage’ to the data subjects, it is for the Data Protection Lead to decide whether the organisation ought to proceed, and the matter should be escalated. In turn, the accountable person may escalate the matter to the regulatory authority if significant concerns have been identified.
This policy includes procedures in relation to data protection across the organisation, involving different employees, relevant volunteers and means of delivery. These procedures include adherence to use of e-mail and data storage policies, which require all employees and volunteers to only store personal data in authorised e-mail accounts, server files and other media, and not to use personal or other employer e-mail accounts or data storage facilities for such purposes.
As the organisation aims towards full compliance, and therefore also towards a data protection “by design and by default”, these procedures will be embedded into operating guidance as appropriate.
The goal of this principle would mean that in the organisation, everyone who starts a new project or sets up a system or process must ensure that they incorporate data protection as a matter of course, consulting the Data Protection Lead. Consideration of the data protection implications should be a standard check point before any project or system is signed off.
The organisation has registered with the Information Commissioner as it engages in the processing of personal information identifying data subjects directly or indirectly.
The organisation pays an annual fee to the ICO, as required by law. The Registration Reference is Z5840005.
As with any other organisation, The Inland Waterways Association may collaborate with:
All third parties we work with who have or may have access to personal data of our data subjects will either comply with this policy, or we will ensure that their data protection policy aligns with this policy.
A data processor is a company, organisation or individual who is not an employee or volunteer, that processes data on behalf of the data controller (The Inland Waterways Association in this policy).
Before deciding to use a particular service, the organisation would check the terms and conditions and decide whether it is compliant before deciding to use that service.
With freelancers, external researchers and IT companies, the organisation stipulates a Processing Agreement, or a contract including data protection provisions, as outlined by Article 28.3 of the UK GDPR.
The Inland Waterways Association remains responsible for what happens to the data and remains liable for any mistakes of the data processors. In the contract with the data processor, The Inland Waterways Association may include a provision that requires the data processor to indemnify The Inland Waterways Association for any losses incurred.
Article 26 of the UK GDPR defines joint controllers as ‘two or more data controllers which jointly determine the purpose and means of processing’. When The Inland Waterways Association collaborates with a data controller, the parties must agree to a Joint Controller Agreement which could include the following:
The purpose for which information will be shared, the lawful basis on which the sharing will take place and general information about each data controller will need to be included in the privacy notice for those data subjects affected by the data sharing and collaboration between the organisation and the joint controller.
The organisation may collaborate with another organisation which is a separate controller, as information is merely disclosed to one other. In this case, the organisation may agree to a Data Sharing Agreement with the other separate controller(s), which defines the following:
The purpose for which information will be shared, the lawful basis on which the sharing will take place and general information about each data controller will need to be included in the Privacy notice for those data subjects affected by the data sharing and the collaboration between the organisation and the other separate controller(s).
Where personal data is stored outside of the UK and the EU, safeguards to protect personal data may include, but are not limited to, the UK Addendum used in conjunction with the EU Standard Contractual Clauses, or UK International Data Transfer Agreement. Such safeguards will be subject to Transfer Risk Assessments .
This Policy is updated regularly by the Data Protection Lead when required. It is reviewed annually by the board of trustees.
This Policy was approved by trustees on 5th April 2025.
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