Friends of Meersbrook Hall (“FOMH”, “we”, “us”) is committed to protecting your personal data and being transparent about how we use it. This policy explains what we collect, why, and your rights under UK data protection law.
Who we are
FOMH is an unincorporated community association based in Sheffield. We are the data controller for the personal data we process. You can contact us about any data protection matter at info@meersbrookhall.org.uk.
We are not currently required to register with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) as we do not fall within the categories requiring mandatory registration, but we are committed to complying with UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.
What data we collect and why
Membership. When you sign up as a member via our online form, we collect your name, email address, postcode, and optionally your address, phone number, age range, skills, and ideas for the Hall. We use this information to keep you updated on the project, to seek your views, and to demonstrate community support to funders and Sheffield City Council. Our lawful basis is legitimate interests — you are actively joining a community campaign and we have a legitimate interest in maintaining our membership list.
We also ask, optionally, for your ethnic group and whether you consider yourself disabled. We collect this to provide funders and the local authority with an anonymised overview of our membership’s diversity. This is special category data under UK GDPR. Our lawful basis for processing it is your explicit consent, given by completing and submitting the form. You can ask us to delete this information at any time.
Newsletter and email updates. If you sign up to receive our newsletter or email updates, we collect your email address and use it to send you information about the project. Our lawful basis is consent. You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in any email we send.
Contact form submissions. When you contact us via the website, we collect your name and email address and any information you choose to include in your message. We use this only to respond to your enquiry. Our lawful basis is legitimate interests.
Photos. We occasionally photograph public events and may publish images on our website and social media. Photos taken at public events are not subject to the same consent requirements as other personal data, but if you would prefer not to appear in published photos please contact us and we will remove any images of you promptly.
Website. Our website uses standard WordPress functionality. We do not run advertising or tracking analytics. Standard server logs may record your IP address for security purposes.
WhatsApp. We operate a WhatsApp Community for members and supporters. Messages sent in those groups are subject to WhatsApp’s own privacy policy, which is outside our control. We do not store or process WhatsApp data outside of the app itself.
How long we keep your data
We keep membership data for as long as you remain a member. If you ask to be removed from our records we will delete your data within 30 days. Email correspondence is retained for as long as it remains relevant to the project. We do not have a formal retention schedule beyond this and will review our approach as the organisation develops.
Who we share your data with
We do not sell or share your personal data with third parties for marketing purposes. Your data may be held on third party platforms we use to operate: currently Google (membership form responses), and EmailOctopus (newsletter). Both are used under their standard terms. We do not share personal data in an identifiable form with our partner organisations Heeley Development Trust or Meersbrook Park Users Trust.
Transfers outside the UK
Some of the platforms we use (Google, EmailOctopus) may process data outside the UK. Both operate under standard contractual clauses or equivalent safeguards recognised under UK GDPR.
Your rights
Under UK data protection law you have the right to access the personal data we hold about you, to have inaccurate data corrected, to have your data deleted, to object to processing based on legitimate interests, and to data portability. To exercise any of these rights, contact us at info@meersbrookhall.org.uk. We will respond within 30 days.
You also have the right to complain to the ICO at ico.org.uk or by calling 0303 123 1113.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. The current version will always be available on this page.
Last updated: June 2026
