ICO Unveils Privacy Notice Tool for Charities

THE Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has launched a new, quick and easy-to-use tool to help small organisations in the charity and voluntary sector create a bespoke privacy notice and protect people’s information rights.  

Under data protection law, every organisation that holds people’s information needs to explain why it holds it and what it does with it. This is so their customers and suppliers, including beneficiaries and donors, as well as staff and volunteers, know what will happen to it.

Organisations can provide this information through a privacy notice, which is displayed on their website or included in other communications, to ensure they’re compliant.

In just a few simple steps, the new privacy notice generator can create tailored privacy notices relevant to small organisations in all sectors of the economy.

For example, there are sections of the tool specific to organisations in the charity and voluntary sector. They often have people’s information, such as names, contact and payment details, or more sensitive information including medical conditions and counselling sessions. By using the privacy notice generator, they can create an up-to-date privacy notice to let people know what they do with their information.

 Bob Iles, owner of a small organisation said: 

“I absolutely love the privacy notice generator. It’s incredibly user-friendly and intuitive. With just a few details and a handful of questions, it created a privacy document for my website.

“The fact that this service is free is mind-blowing. It generated the privacy policy in no time, and I was able to seamlessly integrate it into my website.

“Legal jargon can be tricky to navigate, but it seems like this generator covers all the necessary elements.

“I would highly recommend the privacy notice generator to anyone in a similar position, whether they are building their own website or promoting their own services online.” 

Faye Spencer, Head of Business Services at the ICO said:

“We’re always looking for ways to make data protection compliance simple and stress-free for smaller organisations, who tend to have less time and fewer resources.

“Our new privacy notice generator does just that. It’s a quick and easy solution that provides organisations with the support they need, so they can concentrate on what they’re good at, serving the needs of their customers and growing their organisation.”

The tool offers two different types of privacy notices. One is for customer and supplier information, which organisations can display on their website or external communications. And another for staff and volunteer information, for inclusion in welcome packs, policy libraries or other internal channels accessible to staff and volunteers.

Tina McKenzie, Policy Chair, Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) added:

“We’re very pleased to have supported the development of this tool, which will allow small businesses to generate tailored privacy notices in far less time and with far less hassle and cost than previously, or to check the robustness of their current notice.

“Data protection is a vital component of consumer rights, reassuring customers that their personal information won’t be mistreated, and is something small firms are keen to get right. By reducing small businesses’ cost of compliance, and the associated stress, the ICO’s tool should be a big help.”

The ICO is also encouraging those organisations that already have a privacy notice to use the generator to check it’s up to date.

You can find the privacy notice generator on the ICO’s website for small organisations here: ico.org.uk/create-your-own-privacy-notice.