I was recently drawn back into, on a purely temporary basis you understand, helping out with requests for help from charities, so not much time for me to send out my happy little homilies on barbers setting light to my ears and how to be a good listener. This is a version of a recent newsletter item which you may find helpful. (If you want me to keep you up to date with similar offerings, just drop me a note.)
SUBJECT ACCESS REQUESTS (SAR)
SARs have been much in the news lately. I dug out my GDPR training manuals to remind me of the detail. Anyone who attended my GDPR briefings may recall the emphasis I placed on dealing properly with such requests in a timely manner. They’re a heavy duty weapon with the capacity to make or break reputations, companies, and charities. Since the debacle at Coutts and the tidal waves it caused, we can expect a significant increase in SARs being issued. The big banks have whole departments doing nothing else but deal with them. Small organisations such as yours may be hard pressed to find the time to handle them. If you don’t deal with them properly the ICO will be down on you and you can end up with serious penalties for non compliance.
So, some timely words of advice. Before you get any requests, make sure you have a simple but effective system to deal with them. (You have a month to respond and you can’t plead holiday commitments to the ICO.) Remind yourselves of the fundamentals of GDPR in general and SARs in particular. I can send you a briefing if it will help, or I can arrange a refresher briefing for you. Then, if a SAR arrives on your doorstep, don’t panic; get advice from the professionals. Go to your professional advisor. If I can help contact me. I’ve steered a number of charities through this process and helped to keep them safe. There are times when you need not release a document if to do so places someone in danger for example. You’ll need outside help to determine this. One final note; is your charity registered with the Information Commission (ICO)? If not, check to see whether you should be registered. https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/data-protection-fee/self-assessment/ It’ll be a black mark if a complaint is made and you have omitted to register.
Always happy to respond to specific questions. My job is to help your charity stay safe. Enjoy your summer. Daryl Martin (daryl@trustadvice.org.uk)
DarylMartin.org 
Thanks for this Daryl… would deffo like to keep getting this stuff & your other more ‘relaxed’ offerings I always enjoy reading them!.
Blessings! BobM The Lighthouse Church – New Malden http://www.lighthouse-church.org.uk/ http://www.lighthouse-church.org.uk http://www.lighthouse-church.org.uk/ We are a community of people passionate about Jesus Christ and who want to make a positive difference in our community. Come and join us at one of our services. Visitor Information »
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Hi Bob, always good to hear from you. I trust you’re well, and continuing to meet Life’s challenges. As you might imagine, I’m suddenly rather busier than I have been. Things should settle down before too long, but meantime, it helps keep me out of mischief. Go well.
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