Privacy Policy

Data Privacy Notice

Key details

Data Protection Officer: Andreas Economides
Policy became operational on: 25th June 2020
Next review date: 1st October 2026

Introduction

Soteria Trust is a registered charity (Reg. Charity No: 1040766) based in Emsworth, Hampshire. Soteria Trust supports the ministry of Andy Economides and also provides education for vulnerable young people and children through sponsorships in Ibadan, Nigeria, West Africa. Soteria Trust funds the running of the Soteria Business School in Nigeria through its UK members or supporters.

This Privacy Notice explains what to expect when Soteria Trust collects and uses your personal information. It describes how, why and what personal data we collect, manage, handle and store to meet the charity’s data protection standards and to comply with the law under the “GDPR”.

Under the GDPR personal data must:

1. Be processed fairly and lawfully
2. Be obtained only for specific, lawful purposes
3. Be adequate, relevant and not excessive
4. Be accurate and kept up to date
5. Not be held for any longer than necessary
6. Be processed in accordance with the rights of data individuals
7. Be protected in appropriate ways and kept secure
8. Not be transferred outside the European Economic Area (EEA), unless that
9. country or territory also ensures an adequate level of protection.

Rules and regulations apply regardless of whether data is stored electronically, on paper or on other materials.

How We Collect Personal Information

We collect personal information in the following ways:

Directly from individuals who:

• Make a decision to become a sponsor, supporter, prayer partner, member of Friends of Soteria Trust, volunteer, ambassador or fundraiser.
• Make a donation (which may be financial or non-financial).
• Contact us with enquiries, become involved or interact with Soteria Trust or Andy Economides.
• Are a church leader and/or have a key role in a church working in partnership with Soteria Trust.
• Attend an event (i.e. Soteria Friends’ Day, outreach event, fundraising event).
• Apply for a job at Soteria Trust.
• Purchase Soteria resources.
• Request and/or receive a copy of the Soteria Trust newsletter/magazine or any other materials from Soteria Trust, or respond to our appeals.

Information may be collected in person, over the phone, via website, by letter, email or SMS.

From other sources:

• We may use the Royal Mail’s postcode finder to check the accuracy of the address we hold.
• The individual’s information may occasionally be given to us by third parties, for example fundraising sites like Just Giving, Stewardship or CAF Donate. These organisations will have their own data protection and privacy policies which the individual should be aware of before signing up.

The Personal Information We Collect

• Personal identifiers such as individual’s title and name.
• Contact details including postal address, post code, email and telephone number.
• Financial information such as individual’s bank details, if you are supporting us financially. (We do not store bank details).
• Whether the individual is a UK tax payer.
• Family, spouse or friends, when the individual is sponsoring jointly as part of a supporter group.
• Letters individual/s write to their sponsored person/s.
• Information individuals enter onto Soteria Trust website i.e. through ‘Contact Us’ page, or your request for sponsorship pack, or other hard copy forms.
• Records of individual’s contact/correspondence with us, if they have contacted us.
• Very occasionally individual’s date of birth for: i.e. Visa applications for Nigeria.

Soteria Trust collects only the minimum amount of personal data, which is processed for a specific purpose. We do not collect information through cookies, social media, CCTV or IP addresses.

Sensitive Personal Data

‘Sensitive personal data’ can include information such as; your religious beliefs, health issues, race or ethnic origin, genetic data, biometric data and others.

Soteria Trust does not collect ‘sensitive personal data’. However, there may be rare occasions when sensitive personal data, i.e. biometric data is necessary to collect for volunteers applying for Nigerian Visa for mission trips to Nigeria; Or if a sponsor provides a photograph of themselves to Soteria Trust to be passed on to their sponsored person. Rarely, sensitive information will be received by Soteria Trust through prayer requests. This is treated as strictly confidential for prayer.

Why We Collect Individual’s Personal Information

We will process your personal information in accordance with this Privacy Notice and our obligations under applicable data protection laws and regulations, for one or more of the following reasons:

• To administer records of those who support the work and ministry of Soteria Trust. To keep a record of your relationship with us.
• To administer your donation, purchase, enquiry or involvement.
• For the administration of the sponsorship programme. The benefits of becoming a sponsor include: sending the individual information about their sponsored person, correspondence with their sponsored child or young person and notifications, responding to individual’s queries and acknowledging the gifts they give. There are instances where a sponsored person departs the sponsorship programme for a number of reasons. Soteria Trust will promptly notify sponsor and reallocate a new person who is need of sponsorship.
• To provide you with information about Soteria Trust, sponsorship programme, Soteria prayer and financial needs, appeals, events, the opportunity to leave a gift in a will, news, resources, activities, overseas missions.
• To maintain our own accounts and records and to reclaim tax on Gift Aid donations, if applicable.
• To provide you with information about volunteering opportunities. To manage and coordinate our volunteers.
• To manage your communication preferences with us generally.
• To comply with applicable laws and regulations, and requests from statutory agencies.

Where Do We Store Data?

Soteria Trust stores data on secured office computers and laptop protected by passwords and accessed only by authorised Soteria staff. Soteria Trust does not store data on any other devices such as; smartphones, tablets, memory sticks, personal equipment used away from the office and in homes.

Soteria Trust does not store credit or debit card details.

Who We Share Data With?

We do not sell or share your data to third parties. However, we may share your personal information with trusted third parties where it is necessary, such as: to coordinate visits to our overseas projects with Soteria staff; or in the case of our third party to maintain our IT systems; or to administer your donation/s with your bank.  

Will your information ever go outside Europe?

If you are a sponsor of a child, young person or worker in Nigeria, some of your personal data such as your first name and surname may be shared with Soteria Trust members in Nigeria to enable the operation of the sponsorship programme. i.e. to send sponsored child or young person messages. We do not share any other personal data.  

How long will we keep your information?

We will only keep your personal information for as long as it is required and in accordance with statutory requirements. For example, HMRC requires that we keep a record of your name, address and Gift Aid declaration for six years from the date of your last donation. Where the information is no longer required, we will ensure that it is disposed of in a secure manner.

If you have indicated that you do not wish to hear from us in the future, we will keep the minimum information necessary to ensure we avoid contacting you any further.

The Individual’s Rights

The GDPR provides a number of rights of the individual, as follows:

• Right to be informed
• Right to Access
• Right to rectification
• Right to erasure; the right to be forgotten. When data no longer relevant to original purposes for processing or a data subject withdraws consent.
• Right to restriction of processing
• Right to portability
• Right to object
• Right to decision-making

How Do I request an information access report?

To request an information access report which details the information we hold about you, please send your request in writing to the Soteria Trust Data Protection Officer at the following address: Data Protection Officer, Soteria Trust, 39 North Street, Emsworth, Hampshire PO10 7DA. We will respond to your information access request within one month of receipt. It can be extended by a further two months where requests are complex or numerous.

Fees: A written request for personal information is free unless the request is ‘manifestly unfounded or excessive’. For multiple requests there will be a ‘reasonable fee’ charged due to the increase in administrative costs.