Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

The British Association for Supported Employment (BASE) and its trading company, Inclusive Trading CIC, hold personal information in order to carry out our work as a membership charity and provider of training and consultancy services.

It is our policy to respect your privacy and the privacy of all users of our services. This Privacy Policy has been established to help you understand our commitment to protecting your privacy and personal data, and the steps we take to ensure it. By visiting and/or using any of the Services, you agree to be bound by the terms of the present Privacy Policy. Where the present Privacy Policy refers to “BASE”, it may refer to the services of BASE or Inclusive Trading CIC, depending on the context.

 

Visitors to our websites

When someone visits www.base-uk.org we use a third party service, Google Analytics, to collect standard internet log information and details of visitor behaviour patterns. We do this to find out things such as the number of visitors to the various parts of the site. This information is only processed in a way which does not identify anyone. We do not make, and do not allow Google to make, any attempt to find out the identities of those visiting our website. If we do want to collect personally identifiable information through our website, we will be up front about this. We will make it clear when we collect personal information and will explain what we intend to do with it.

Use of cookies by BASE

You can read more about how we use cookies on our Cookies page.

Online contact and enquiry tools

We collect information about requests for information and/or support submitted by members of the public through our website forms. This includes contact information and any personal information supplied by the member of the public. This information is stored on our website for statistical purposes and to help us review the information requests that we receive from members of the public. Data from online forms is deleted after 12 months.  

Links to other websites

This privacy notice does not cover the links within this site linking to other websites. We encourage you to read the privacy statements on the other websites you visit.

Security and performance

BASE uses a third party service, Avec Solutions, to host our website on its UK servers and help maintain its security and performance. To deliver this service it processes the IP addresses of visitors to the BASE website.

 

E-newsletter

We use a third party provider, Mailchimp, to deliver our monthly e-newsletters and email alerts. We gather statistics around email opening and clicks using industry standard technologies to help us monitor and improve our e-newsletter. For more information, please see Mailchimp's privacy notice.

 

Surveys

BASE collects information through occasional surveys that we conduct. This information is used to improve how we support our members and customers. We may also use it to develop policy objectives within BASE. We use a third party provider, SurveyMonkey, to collect and analyse data including names and contact information. For more information, please see SurveyMonkey’s privacy notice.

 

People who contact us via social media

We use a third party provider, Hootsuite to manage our social media interactions.

If you send us a private or direct message via social media the message will be stored by Hootsuite for three months. It will not be shared with any other organisations. For further information, please see Hootsuite’s privacy notice.

We do not make any use of data from any interactions on Facebook or Twitter other than to reply to messages.

 

People who telephone our office

When you call our office we collect contact details where we need to respond to requests for information or support. This information may be stored until the query has been dealt with.

 

People who email us

We use Transport Layer Security (TLS) to encrypt and protect email traffic in line with government recommendations. If your email service does not support TLS, you should be aware that any emails we send or receive may not be protected in transit.

We will also monitor any emails sent to us, including file attachments, for viruses or malicious software. Please be aware that you have a responsibility to ensure that any email you send is within the bounds of the law.

Where enquiries are submitted to us we will only use the information supplied to us to deal with the enquiry and any subsequent issues and to check on the level of service we provide.

 

People who make a complaint to us

When we receive a complaint from a person we make up a file containing the details of the complaint. This normally contains the identity of the complainant and any other individuals involved in the complaint.

We will only use the personal information we collect to process the complaint and to check on the level of service we provide. We do compile and publish statistics showing information like the number of complaints we receive, but not in a form which identifies anyone.

We usually have to disclose the complainant’s identity to whoever the complaint is about. This is inevitable where, for example, the accuracy of a person’s record is in dispute. If a complainant doesn’t want information identifying him or her to be disclosed, we will try to respect that. However, it may not be possible to handle a complaint on an anonymous basis.

Any personal information relating to a complaint will be retained for two years from closure. It will be retained in a secure environment and access to it will be restricted according to the ‘need to know’ principle.

 

People who use BASE services

BASE offers various services to the public and to its members. We provide training and consultancy services through our trading company, Inclusive Trading CIC, and contact information may be shared between the two companies.

We have to hold the details of the people who have requested the service in order to provide it. However, we only use these details to provide the service the person has requested and for other closely related purposes. For example, we might use information about people who have requested delivery of a training course to carry out a survey to find out if they are happy with the level of service they received. When people do subscribe to our services, they can cancel their subscription at any time and are given an easy way of doing this.

 

Learners who enrol on the Level 3 Certificate for Supported Employment Practitioners

We use the standard enrolment form issued by the accrediting body, Gateway Qualifications, to register learners on the certificate course. Our trading company, Inclusive Trading CIC, collects information about your full name, date of birth, home address, gender, ethnicity, employment status and contact details. We also ask about any specific learning or mobility needs you may have so that we can better support you. This information is sent securely to Gateway Qualifications for their use as the accrediting body and you can view their Privacy Notice. We ask for next of kin information in case of emergency.

 

People who join BASE as members

We hold contact information for our members and details of the services that they offer. These details are held on a secure database register and public contact details are uploaded to the listings page on www.base-uk.org. Most of this information is available publically but may contain personal information, for example where the business is a sole trader. BASE cannot therefore give any guarantees as to how the information contained on the website will be used by those accessing it.

When organisations complete their membership forms, they are asked to provide the contact details of a relevant member of staff to act as our key contact with that member organisation. BASE will record and use this for its own communication purposes, for example where we have a query about a member organisation. This information is updated annually and is kept for a period of two years after the organisation’s membership of BASE has lapsed.

 

People who nominate individuals for the BASE practitioner awards

When individuals complete a nomination for the BASE practitioner awards they submit their information and that of the nominee in an application form. Any personal information that is provided is used only for the purpose of reviewing the nomination. Basic information about the winners will also be published on our own website.

 

Financial information

We hold bank account information for organisations and individuals who regularly invoice us. The information includes the account name, bank sort code and account number. This information is held on a secure computer at our office and by our bank, Barclays Bank, in order to process invoices sent to us. We do not disclose this information to any external parties other thaan our official accountants.

 

Job applicants, current and former BASE employees and Associates

BASE is the data controller for the information you provide during the application process unless otherwise stated. If you have any queries about the process or how we handle your information please contact us at admin@base-uk.org

What will we do with the information you provide to us?

All of the information you provide during the process will only be used for the purpose of progressing your application, or to fulfil legal or regulatory requirements if necessary.

We will not share any of the information you provide during the recruitment process with any third parties for marketing purposes or store any of your information outside of the European Economic Area. The information you provide will be held securely by us whether the information is in electronic or physical format.

We will use the contact details you provide to us to contact you to progress your application and to maintain contact with you. We will use the other information you provide to assess your suitability for the role you have applied for. 

If we make a conditional offer of employment we will ask you for information so that we can carry out pre-employment checks. You must successfully complete pre-employment checks to progress to a final offer. We are required to confirm the identity of our staff and Associates, their right to work in the United Kingdom and seek assurance as to their trustworthiness, integrity and reliability. 

You will therefore be required to provide: 

  • Proof of your identity – you will be asked to attend our office with original documents so that we can take copies.
  • Proof of your qualifications – you will be asked to attend our office with original documents so that we can take copies.

You will be asked to complete a criminal records declaration to declare any unspent convictions. We may contact you to complete an application for a Basic Criminal Record check via the Disclosure and Barring Service, which will verify your declaration of unspent convictions.

We will contact your referees, using the details you provide in your application, directly to obtain references. We may also ask you to complete a questionnaire about your health. This is to establish your fitness to work.

If we make a final offer, we will also ask you for the following:

  • Bank details – to process salary payments
  • Emergency contact details – so we know who to contact in case you have an emergency at work
  • Membership of a pension scheme – so we can send you a questionnaire to determine whether you are eligible to join your previous scheme.

How long is the information retained for?

If you are successful, the information you provide during the application process will be retained by us as part of your employee file for the duration of your employment plus 6 years following the end of your employment. This includes your criminal records declaration, fitness to work, records of any security checks and references.

If you are unsuccessful at any stage of the process, the information you have provided until that point will be retained for 6 months from the closure of the campaign.

Information generated throughout the assessment process, for example interview notes, is retained by us for 6 months following the closure of the campaign.

Equal opportunities information is retained for 6 months following the closure of the campaign whether you are successful or not.

 

Your rights

Under the Data Protection Act 1998, you have rights as an individual which you can exercise in relation to the information we hold about you.

 

Complaints or queries

If you want to make a complaint about the way we have processed your personal information, please contact us at admin@base-uk.org

 

Access to personal information

BASE and Inclusive Trading CIC try to be as open as possible in terms of giving people access to their personal information. Individuals can find out if we hold any personal information by making a ‘subject access request’ under the Data Protection Act 1998. If we do hold information about you we will:

  • give you a description of it;
  • tell you why we are holding it;
  • tell you who it could be disclosed to; and
  • let you have a copy of the information in an intelligible form.

To make a request to BASE for any personal information we may hold you need to put the request in writing addressing it to our registered address.

If you agree, we will try to deal with your request informally, for example by providing you with the specific information you need over the telephone. If we do hold information about you, you can ask us to correct any mistakes by contacting us at admin@base-uk.org

 

Disclosure of personal information

We do not disclose personal data without consent. We may disclose workplace contact details in response to a public request for information or support where we believe that our member organisation is able to meet the request for support. These contact details are also available through our website member listings pages.

 

Changes to this privacy notice

We keep our privacy notice under regular review. This privacy notice was last reviewed on 11 October 2021.

 

How to contact us

If you want to request information about our privacy policy you can email us at admin@base-uk.org or write to us at:

 

BASE

Room 58, Aldershot Enterprise Centre

Louise Margaret Road,

Aldershot

GU11 2PW