This is the website of Balanced Earth
Balanced Earth treats all personal data in our care with respect. We are committed to ensuring that any personal data we collect is processed lawfully, fairly and in a transparent manner. This policy explains how we collect, manage, and protect your data. It also explains how you can gain access to your information, ensure that it is accurate and up to date, and control how we use it.
Who we are?
Balanced Earth is a registered charity in England and Wales (reg. no. 1191945).
Our registered address is:
Barnes Roffe
Brook Business Centre
Cowley Mill Road
Cowley
Uxbridge
UB8 2FX
Tel. +44 (0) 1985256423
Email: victoria@balancedearth.org
Privacy Policy
We will only ever collect, store, and use your personal data that you supply voluntarily through our digital channels, which include our website, social media networks, 3rd party mailing provider Mailchimp as well as by postal, telephone and personal contact.
We only collect the information we need for specific reasons, and this might include, for example, your name and home address. We will collect your email address and contact you once a year to see if you wish to repeat your donation with us, (that would include information of your previous carbon emission number and the project you support).
The information we hold may also include details relating to your involvement with us (such as your record of financial transactions, communications history, attendance at events).
Cookie Policy
When you visit a Balanced Earth website details such as domain or email addresses are not automatically collected. Anonymous information relating to website activity is collected: for example, the number of site visitors in a specified period may be collected for statistical purposes via Google Analytics but this information is not used to identify an individual user.
If you visit our website, we may place a cookie on your computer. This is a file created by the website to store information on your computer, such as information that identifies you or the preferences you have specified. If you do not wish your computer to accept cookies you may disable them by clicking on the icon on the bottom left of your screen.
We retain all information you submit while on the Balanced Earth website (for example, if you make an online donation).
If you subscribe to our email newsletter, your clicks on links in the newsletter are monitored by us. These clicks are associated with the email address you used to subscribe, but the information is only available to us, and we use it solely to measure how popular the newsletters and its links and articles are.
Sensitive personal information
We do not collect special category information (for example, information relating to health, political, philosophical, or religious beliefs, race or ethnicity, sexual orientation), unless this is necessary for very specific purposes (for example, to fulfil our responsibilities and legal obligations as an employer, to ensure the health and safety of those who work for us or attend our events). This information is never used for marketing purposes.
Children’s personal information
We welcome donations from all persons of all ages, but we will take particular care of the personal information of children and young people which we may collect and process.
We will collect only personal information which is freely given by the young person themselves, or an appropriate responsible adult.
We encourage all children and young people under the age of 16 to obtain the consent of a parent or legal guardian before donating or supplying their personal data.
Where we have reason to be concerned about the source of a donation from a young person under the age of 16, we may make further enquiries before accepting the donation.
How we use your personal information
We will only use your personal information on specific lawful grounds. These include:
When it is necessary to perform a contract (for example, if you make a purchase or donation, or are employed by us).
When we have a legal obligation (for example, retaining financial records).
When we have your consent (for example, to send you direct marketing communications by post, email).
When we have a legitimate purpose to do so which does not override your rights (for example, keeping supporters and enquirers updated with information about our conservation programmes, news about Balanced Earth and Balanced Earth events).
If you do not wish it, we will not make any further contact, but we will retain the details associated with the donation.
Third party service providers working on our behalf
We may pass your information to our third party service providers for the purposes of completing tasks and providing services to you on our behalf, for example to process basic bookkeeping. However, when we use third party service providers, we disclose only the personal information that is necessary to deliver the service and we have a contract in place that requires them to keep your information secure and not to use it for their own purposes.
Data retention
We will only retain your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it is collected.
When assessing what retention period is appropriate for your personal data, we take into consideration: the requirements of our business and the services provided, any statutory or legal obligations, the purposes for which we originally collected the personal data, the lawful grounds on which we based our processing, the types of personal data we have collected, the amount and categories of your personal data
Sharing your personal information
We only disclose your personal information to third parties or individuals if we are legally obliged to do so or:
When we use other companies, or contractors to provide services on our behalf (for example, providing IT services such as our contact relationship database, online services, and email, sending communications by email, processing credit/debit card and online banking transactions).
If we run an event in partnership with another organisation your personal details may need to be shared for administration or security purposes.
As part of an investigation into a complaint or allegation of wrongdoing, in line with relevant Balanced Earth policies.
With your consent (for example, where you have authorised another person to act on your behalf).
How we keep your personal information safe
We employ appropriate technical, physical, and organisational measures to protect your personal information.
All personal data, whether in electronic or paper form, is kept securely and access is restricted to those require it for their work. We have appropriate security measures in place in our physical facilities to protect against the loss, misuse, or alteration of information that we have collected from you.
Balanced Earth is fully compliant with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) to ensure that we process your credit/debit card transactions securely. We do not hold your credit or debit card data on our electronic systems. Payments are processed on our behalf by Paypal & Coutts Merchant who maintain a high level of security and hold appropriate security certificates.
Keeping you in control of your personal information
If at any time you wish to change the way we contact you, or decide that you do not want any further contact from us, please let us know by one of the following methods:
Email: victoria@balancedearth.org
Or by visiting the website and completing the contact us form.
Under the data protection legislation, you have certain rights to access your personal data, to correct inaccurate information and to object to certain types of processing. If you would like further information or wish to exercise your rights to access your personal data, please contact us in writing. Before access is granted, we will require proof of identity, which may include, for example, copies of passport, driving licence, or recent utility bills.
You will not have to pay a fee to access your personal data (or to exercise any of the other rights). However, we may charge a reasonable fee if your request for access is clearly unfounded or excessive. Alternatively, we may refuse to comply with the request in such circumstances.
Complaints
We seek to directly resolve all complaints about how we handle your personal information, but you also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office at
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Telephone – 0303 123 1113 (local rate) or 01625 545 745
Website: https://ico.org.uk/concerns
We will honor your request for a refund. The request must be made within 15 days of your donation.
Updates and changes to this policy
We will not use your personal information for purposes that we have not previously advised you of. If our information practices change at some time in the future, we will post the policy changes to our website to notify you of these changes and provide you with the ability to opt out. We will do our best to obtain your consent should we wish to use personal information for new, unanticipated purposes, and we will always respect your decision if you wish to opt out of receiving communications from us.