Privacy Policy
Introduction
Solace UK, and the women we seek to help, are dependent on the generosity of our supporters as well as the goodwill and trust of the public. We are therefore committed to protecting any personal information we obtain about you, whether you are just visiting our website or are a donor, volunteer, campaigner, or beneficiary.
This Privacy Policy sets out how we obtain, use and protect any personal information you provide to us, whether online, via phone, text, email, in letters or in other correspondence and details how your rights under the UK GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation), the DPA 2018 (Data Protection Act) and the PECR (Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations) are adhered to. Additionally, it will explain the use of cookies or software or advertising on this website.
Who we are / Data Controller
Solace UK is the data controller responsible for the personal information we collect and process about you.
As the data controller, we are responsible for deciding how and why your personal information is used and for ensuring that it is handled in accordance with applicable data protection laws, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
We are committed to protecting the privacy and confidentiality of the people who engage with our organisation, including service users, supporters, donors, volunteers, staff, applicants and other individuals who provide us with personal information.
Our details are:
Organisation name: Solace UK
Registered charity number: 1149720
Company number (if applicable): 07952733
Registered address: Solace UK, Lock Studios, 7 Corsican Square, London, E3 3YD
Email address: info@solaceuk.org
If you have any questions about how we process your personal information, or if you wish to exercise your data protection rights, you can contact us using the details above.
What information do we collect?
- When you visit our site to make a donation or provide consent to receive information about any of our events or online content, such as newsletters, blog posts, or you telephone, email, write to or text Solace UK, or engage via social media channels, we may receive and retain personal information about you. This can consist of information such as your name, email address, postal address, telephone or mobile number, bank account details to process donations and whether or not you are a taxpayer so that we can claim Gift Aid.
- By consenting and submitting your details, you enable us to raise funds and to provide you with the services, information, activities, or online content you select.
- In order to enable us to receive your kind donation, we have to provide your identity and payment method details to one of three merchant services providers which we have carefully selected to process your kind donation in a cost-effective and safe manner. They are PayPal, Stripe and JustGiving. These Merchant Services Providers will contact you with a similar notice to this one, explaining clearly what they will do with your personal information in order to process your kind donation.
- In certain instances, we collect and use your personal information by relying on the legitimate interest legal basis. This is because when you, for example, request to receive services from Solace UK, we have a legitimate organisational interest to use your personal information to respond to you and there is no overriding prejudice to you by using your personal information for this purpose.
- If you actively provide your consent to us along with your email address and/or mobile phone number, we may contact you for marketing purposes by email or text message. By opting in, you grant us the right to contact you for marketing purposes.
How we use your information and our lawful basis
We only use your personal information where we have a lawful basis to do so under UK data protection law. The lawful basis we rely on depends on the nature of our relationship with you and the reason we are processing your information.
We may use your personal information for the following purposes:
Providing support services
We process information about people who access our services to understand their circumstances, assess their needs, provide appropriate support, maintain accurate records, and ensure safe and effective service delivery.
Our lawful basis is:
- performance of our support agreement with you where applicable;
- our legitimate interests in providing safe, effective and accountable services; and
- in some circumstances, protecting vital interests where there is a serious risk to an individual’s safety.
Safeguarding and risk management
We process information to identify, assess and manage safeguarding concerns, protect individuals from harm, and meet our responsibilities towards service users, staff, volunteers and the wider community.
Our lawful basis is:
- compliance with legal obligations;
- our legitimate interests in safeguarding individuals; and
- where required, the protection of vital interests.
Fundraising and donations
We process information about supporters and donors to manage donations, claim Gift Aid where applicable, maintain records, and communicate with supporters about our work.
Our lawful basis is:
- compliance with legal obligations (for example, financial record keeping);
- legitimate interests in maintaining relationships with supporters; and
- consent where required for direct marketing communications.
Volunteers, staff and applicants
We process personal information to recruit, manage and support employees and volunteers and to meet our legal and organisational responsibilities.
Our lawful basis is:
- taking steps before entering into a contract;
- performance of contractual obligations;
- compliance with legal obligations; and
- legitimate interests in managing our organisation.
Handling complaints, concerns and feedback
We process personal information to investigate and respond to complaints, concerns, compliments and feedback, resolve issues, improve our services, and ensure that we continue to provide safe and effective support.
Our lawful basis for processing this information is our legitimate interests in responding appropriately to concerns, maintaining service quality, and improving our services. Where we are required to do so, we may also process information to comply with legal or regulatory obligations.
Information about health, wellbeing and sensitive circumstances
Because of the nature of our work, we may need to collect and use information that is considered sensitive under data protection law. This may include information about health, disability, experiences of abuse or trauma, safeguarding concerns, family circumstances, or other information needed to provide appropriate support.
We only collect sensitive information where it is necessary and proportionate for the services we provide.
Where we process special category information, we rely on appropriate legal safeguards, including where processing is necessary:
- to provide support services and assistance to individuals who engage with our organisation;
- to protect individuals from harm;
- for safeguarding purposes;
- where you have given explicit consent; or
- where processing is necessary for reasons of substantial public interest under UK law.
We recognise that people who access our services may be in vulnerable situations. We take additional care to ensure that sensitive information is:
- only accessed by authorised people;
- shared only where necessary and appropriate;
- stored securely; and
- handled with respect, confidentiality and dignity.
Who we share your information with
We do not sell, rent or trade your personal information. We will only share your information where there is a lawful basis to do so and where it is necessary for the purposes explained in this privacy notice.
We may share your personal information with the following categories of organisations:
Service providers and suppliers
We may share information with trusted suppliers and service providers who support the delivery of our services and the operation of our organisation. These may include providers of IT systems, secure data storage, payment processing, communications platforms, website services, and other operational support services.
Where third parties process personal information on our behalf, we require them to comply with applicable data protection laws, follow our instructions, maintain appropriate security measures and only use information for agreed purposes.
Organisations supporting our charitable purposes
Where appropriate, we may share information with trusted organisations that work with us to deliver our charitable objectives, coordinate support, or communicate with individuals about our work, campaigns, events or fundraising activities. Any marketing communications will only be sent in accordance with your communication preferences and applicable data protection laws.
Safeguarding, statutory and professional organisations
We may share information with relevant organisations, including local authorities, healthcare providers, safeguarding partners, regulators, government bodies or law enforcement agencies, where this is necessary to:
- protect an individual from harm;
- safeguard children or adults at risk;
- comply with a legal or regulatory obligation;
- respond to a lawful request or legal process; or
- prevent or investigate serious crime.
Funders and commissioners
Where required as part of our funding arrangements, we may share limited information with funders, commissioners or organisations that support the monitoring and evaluation of our services. Where possible, information will be anonymised or aggregated.
Professional advisers and legal purposes
We may share information with professional advisers, such as legal, financial or audit advisers, where necessary for managing our organisation, meeting our legal obligations, protecting our rights, or responding to legal claims.
Protection of our organisation and others
We may share information where necessary to protect the rights, safety or property of our organisation, our service users, our staff, our volunteers or others. This may include situations involving suspected fraud, misuse of services, unlawful activity or threats to safety.
We only share the minimum amount of information necessary for the relevant purpose and take appropriate steps to ensure that information is shared securely and handled in accordance with data protection law.
Confidentiality, privacy and safeguarding
We respect the privacy and confidentiality of everyone who engages with our services. We understand that people may share very personal and sensitive information with us, and we are committed to handling that information with care, dignity and respect.
Information shared with us will normally only be accessed by people who need it to provide support, manage our services, maintain accurate records, or meet our legal and safeguarding responsibilities.
However, confidentiality is not absolute. There may be circumstances where we need to share information without your consent, for example where:
- we believe there is a serious risk of harm to you or another person;
- we have a legal obligation to share information;
- we need to protect a child or an adult at risk;
- information is required as part of a safeguarding investigation; or
- sharing information is necessary to prevent or detect serious crime.
Where appropriate and safe to do so, we will discuss any decision to share information with you. However, in urgent situations, or where discussing information sharing could increase risk, we may need to act without informing you beforehand.
When we share information, we only share what is necessary, with the appropriate people or organisations, and we take steps to ensure that information is handled securely.
Our approach is guided by the principles of respect, choice, safety and empowerment. We aim to work alongside the people we support, while also recognising our responsibility to help protect individuals and communities from serious harm.
How we protect your data
We take the security of your personal information seriously and are committed to protecting it from unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration or disclosure.
We have appropriate technical and organisational measures in place to protect the personal information we hold.
Access to personal information is limited to authorised staff, volunteers, trustees and contractors who need it to carry out their role. Everyone who handles personal information is required to follow our confidentiality, data protection and information security procedures.
Other measures include, where appropriate:
- ensuring those who handle personal information understand their confidentiality responsibilities;
- providing appropriate training and guidance on data protection and information security;
- using secure systems and processes to store and manage personal information;
- regularly reviewing our security arrangements and working practices; and
- taking appropriate steps to respond to any suspected data breach or security incident.
While we take appropriate measures to protect your information, no method of transmitting or storing information electronically can be guaranteed to be completely secure. The transmission of information via the internet may carry risks, and information sent electronically may, in rare circumstances, be intercepted. Any information you choose to send to us electronically is transmitted at your own discretion.
If you believe that your information has been accessed, lost or used inappropriately, please contact us as soon as possible so that we can investigate and take appropriate action.
Third-party links
Our website may occasionally contain links to external websites operated by third parties. These links are provided for information and convenience only and do not mean that we endorse or have control over those websites or their privacy practices.
We recommend that you review the privacy notices of any third-party websites before providing them with personal information. We cannot accept responsibility for the privacy practices, content or security of external websites.
How long we keep your information
We keep personal information only for as long as necessary for the purpose it was collected, including meeting legal, regulatory, safeguarding and reporting requirements.
Different types of information are retained for different periods. For example:
- Service user records: retained for an appropriate period after support ends to ensure continuity of care, meet safeguarding responsibilities, respond to legal requirements and support service evaluation.
- Safeguarding records: retained for longer where necessary due to the nature of the concern, potential risks, or legal obligations.
- Donation and Gift Aid records: retained in accordance with financial and tax requirements.
- Volunteer and employment records: retained in accordance with employment law and organisational requirements.
- Marketing and supporter records: retained until you withdraw consent, request deletion, or we determine that the information is no longer needed.
When information is no longer required, we securely delete it or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you.
Transfers of information outside the UK
Some of our service providers may process personal information outside the United Kingdom.
Where our suppliers process information outside of the UK, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your information. These may include:
- transferring information only to countries recognised as providing an adequate level of protection; or
- using approved contractual safeguards, such as the UK International Data Transfer Agreement or UK Addendum to Standard Contractual Clauses.
We regularly review our suppliers and the safeguards they use to ensure your information remains protected.
Marketing and Communications
We may use personal information to communicate with supporters, donors, volunteers, and other individuals who engage with our work. This may include information such as your name, contact details, communication preferences and your interactions with us.
We may use this information for the following purposes:
- communicating with you about our work, services, campaigns, events and fundraising activities;
- managing our relationships with supporters and donors;
- understanding engagement with our communications and improving our services;
- carrying out statistical analysis to help us plan and evaluate our activities; and
- maintaining and administering our systems and communications.
We will only send you marketing communications where we have a lawful basis to do so. Where we rely on consent as our lawful basis, we will only send marketing communications where you have provided freely given consent.
You can withdraw your consent or change your communication preferences at any time by contacting us at info@solaceuk.org. You can also unsubscribe from marketing communications by following the instructions provided in our emails.
Withdrawing consent will not affect the lawfulness of any processing carried out before consent was withdrawn.
Supporter research and profiling
To help us understand our supporters and improve our fundraising activities, we may analyse information such as donation history, engagement with our communications and publicly available information.
This helps us:
- understand how people support our work;
- communicate more effectively;
- plan fundraising activities; and
- ensure our resources are used effectively.
We do not use automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects on individuals.
Where we carry out supporter profiling, we do so responsibly and in accordance with data protection law. You have the right to object to this type of processing at any time.
Cookies
Our website uses cookies and similar technologies to help ensure the website functions properly, improve user experience, and understand how visitors use our website.
Cookies are small text files placed on your device when you visit a website. They allow the website to remember information about your visit, such as your preferences or how you interact with different pages.
How we use cookies
We may use the following types of cookies:
Strictly necessary cookies
These cookies are required for the website to operate correctly and cannot usually be disabled. They help with basic functions such as website security, accessibility and navigation.
Analytics cookies
Where you give consent, we may use analytics cookies to help us understand how visitors use our website, such as which pages are visited and how users navigate the site. This information helps us improve our website and services.
Preference cookies
These cookies allow the website to remember choices you make, such as preferences or settings, to improve your experience.
Managing cookies
Where required by law, we will ask for your consent before placing non-essential cookies on your device. You can choose to accept or reject these cookies through our cookie settings tool.
You can also manage or delete cookies through your browser settings. Please note that disabling certain cookies may affect how the website functions.
Third party websites
Our website may contain links to external websites or include content provided by third parties. These third parties may use their own cookies or tracking technologies. We recommend reviewing their privacy and cookie policies before interacting with their services.
We are not responsible for the privacy practices or cookie use of third-party websites.
Your rights in relation to your personal information
Under UK data protection law, you have rights in relation to the personal information we hold about you. Depending on the circumstances, not all rights may apply in every situation. These rights include:
The right to access your information
You have the right to request a copy of the personal information we hold about you and to receive information about how we process it. We will normally provide this free of charge, although we may charge a reasonable fee or refuse a request where the law allows us to do so.
The right to have inaccurate information corrected
You have the right to ask us to correct any personal information we hold about you that you believe is inaccurate or incomplete. We may ask for information to help us verify the correction.
The right to request deletion of your information
You have the right to ask us to delete your personal information in certain circumstances. This right is not absolute and does not apply where we have a legal obligation or another lawful reason to continue holding the information.
The right to restrict processing
You have the right to ask us to restrict the use of your personal information in certain circumstances, for example while we investigate concerns about how your information is being used.
The right to object
You have the right to object to certain types of processing, including where we process your information based on our legitimate interests and where we use your information for direct marketing purposes.
The right to data portability
Where applicable, you have the right to receive personal information you have provided to us in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format and to request that it is transferred to another organisation.
The right to withdraw consent
Where we rely on your consent to process your personal information, you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time.
Withdrawing consent does not affect the lawfulness of any processing carried out before consent was withdrawn. It also does not prevent us from retaining or using information where we have another lawful reason to do so, such as meeting legal, regulatory or safeguarding obligations.
The right to complain
If you have concerns about how we use your personal information, we encourage you to contact us first so that we can investigate and try to resolve your concerns.
Further information about how to raise a concern can be found in our Complaints Policy.
However, you also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK data protection regulator, at any time.
Further information about making a complaint to the ICO can be found here:
The right to manage marketing communications
You have the right to change your communication preferences or ask us to stop sending you marketing communications at any time. You can do this by contacting us or by using the unsubscribe options provided in our communications.
How to exercise your rights
If you would like to exercise any of your data protection rights, please contact us by emailing info@solaceuk.org.
To help us respond to your request, please provide enough information for us to identify you and understand the nature of your request. We may need to ask for additional information to confirm your identity and protect the security of your personal information.
We will respond to your request within one month of receiving it, in accordance with data protection law and our internal data management procedures. If your request is particularly complex or if you make a number of requests, we may extend this timeframe where permitted by law. If this happens, we will inform you and explain the reason for the delay.
If you need support in making a request, please contact us and we will do our best to assist you.
Policy updates
This Privacy Policy is reviewed regularly. Please visit this website page periodically in order to keep up to date with any changes. The date of the most recent revisions will appear on this page.
This policy was last reviewed July 2026.