St Mary The Virgin Horsell

Data Privacy notice

Download also available: data privacy notice and data consent form.


The Parochial Church Council (PCC) and Vicar (the Vicar) of St Mary the Virgin Church Horsell


1. Your personal data – what is it?

Personal data relates to a living individual who can be identified from that data. It includes items such as your name and address, phone number and email address.  Identification can be by the information alone or in conjunction with any other information in the data controller’s possession or likely to come into such possession. The processing of personal data is governed by the General Data Protection Regulation (the “GDPR”).


2. Who are we? 

The PCC and the Vicar are both data controllers (contact details below).  This means that each of them holds personal data and decides how your personal data is processed and for what purposes.


3. How do we process your personal data?

The PCC and the Vicar both comply with their obligations under the “GDPR” by keeping personal data up to date; by storing and destroying it securely; by not collecting or retaining excessive amounts of data; by protecting personal data from loss, misuse, unauthorised access and disclosure and by ensuring that appropriate technical measures are in place to protect personal data.

The PCC uses your personal data for the following purposes: -

  • To enable us to provide religious and pastoral services for the benefit of the public in the parish of Horsell; 
  • To administer church membership and visitor records; 
  • To fundraise and promote the interests of St Mary’s because we are a charitable body dependent upon financial support to carry out our ministries ; 
  • To manage our employees and volunteers; 
  • To maintain our own accounts and records (including the processing of gift aid applications);
  • To inform you of news, events, activities and services running at St Mary’s;
  • To ensure appropriate pastoral care can be provided
  • To carry out surveys from time to time researching  your views on St. Mary’s ministries
  • To share your contact details with the Diocesan office so they can keep you informed about news in the diocese and events, activities and services that will be occurring in the diocese and in which you may be interested.


The Vicar uses your personal data for the following purposes:

  • to provide pastoral care to the parish and those in contact with St. Mary’s
  • to assist with the administration of church services and St Mary’s ministries


4. What is the legal basis for the PCC and the Vicar processing your personal data?

  • Explicit consent of the data subject so that we can keep you informed about news, events, activities, services and also to fundraise for St. Mary’s ministries. It will also enable us to process your gift aid donations and to keep you informed about diocesan events.
  • Processing is necessary for carrying out obligations under employment, social security or social protection law, or a collective agreement;
  • Processing is carried out by a not-for-profit body with a  religious  aim provided: -
    • the processing relates only to members or former members (or those who have regular contact with it in connection with those purposes); and 
    • and save as required by law there is no disclosure to a third party without consent. 


5. Sharing your personal data

Your personal data will be treated as strictly confidential and will only be shared with other members of the church in order to carry out a service to other church members or for purposes connected with the church. Save as required by law we will only share your data with third parties outside of the parish with your consent.


6. How long do we keep your personal data?

We keep data as required by law and in accordance with the guidance from the Church of England (this is currently summarised in the guide “Keep or Bin: Care of Your Parish Records” which is available from the Church of England website).

Specifically, we retain electoral roll data while it is still current; gift aid declarations and associated paperwork for up to 6 years after the calendar year to which they relate; and parish registers (baptisms, marriages, funerals and burials) permanently.


7. Your rights and your personal data  

Unless subject to an exemption under the GDPR, you have the following rights with respect to your personal data: -

  • The right to request a copy of your personal data which either the PCC or Vicar holds about you; 
  • The right to request that the PCC or Vicar corrects any personal data if it is found to be inaccurate or out of date;  
  • The right to request your personal data is erased where it is no longer necessary for the PCC or Vicar to retain such data;
  • The right to withdraw your consent to the processing by the PCC or Vicar at any time
  • The right to request that either data controller provide the data subject with his/her personal data and where possible, to transmit that data directly to another data controller, (known as the right to data portability), (where applicable) .
  • The right, where there is a dispute in relation to the accuracy or processing of your personal data, to request a restriction is placed on further processing;
  • The right to object to the processing of personal data, (where applicable)
  • The right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioners Office.


8. Further processing

If the PCC or Vicar wish to use your personal data for a new purpose, not covered by this Data Protection Notice, then we will provide you with a new notice explaining this new use prior to commencing the processing and setting out the relevant purposes and processing conditions. Where and whenever necessary, we will seek your prior consent to the new processing.


9. Contact Details

To exercise all relevant rights, or to send queries or complaints please in the first instance contact the PCC Secretary, St. Mary’s Parish Office, The Vicarage, Wilson Way, Horsell, Woking, Surrey, GU21 4QJ or by email at stmaryshorsell@btinternet.com


You can contact the Information Commissioners Office on 0303 123 1113 or via email https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us/email/ or at the Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire. SK9 5AF.


St. Mary’s PCC is a Registered Charity Number: 1128175



  • St Mary the Virgin
  • Church hill
  • Horsell
  • Surrey
  • GU21 4QQ

01483 772134
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