Privacy Policy

The British Deaf Association is committed to protecting your personal information and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store and safeguard your information when you engage with us.

Introduction

The British Deaf Association (“BDA”, “we”, “us” or “our”) is committed to protecting your personal information and respecting your privacy.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store and share personal information about our members, donors, supporters, event attendees, volunteers, job applicants, website visitors, newsletter subscribers, service users and other people who engage with us.

We process personal information in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act 2018, the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations and other relevant UK data protection laws.

Who we are

The British Deaf Association is the Data Controller for the personal information described in this Privacy Policy. This means that we decide why and how your personal information is used.

We may also use trusted service providers to process personal information on our behalf. These organisations act as Data Processors and must only use your information in line with our instructions and relevant data protection requirements.

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we use your personal information, you can contact us by emailing: dataprotection@bda.org.uk

You can also contact us using the contact form on our website.

Personal information we collect

The type of personal information we collect depends on how you interact with us. We may collect and use the following types of information:

Contact and identity information
This may include your name, email address, postal address, telephone number, mobile number, membership number, job title, organisation, region or nation, and preferred contact details.

Membership information
This may include your membership status, membership category, communication preferences, consent records, attendance at member events, voting eligibility and information you provide to keep your membership record up to date.

Donation and fundraising information
This may include donation history, Gift Aid information, payment records, campaign support, fundraising preferences, supporter status and correspondence with us.

Event and booking information
This may include event registrations, ticket purchases, dietary requirements, access requirements, attendance records, workshop choices, payment information, feedback and related correspondence.

Payment and transaction information
This may include details needed to process donations, memberships, event tickets, shop purchases, conference bookings, photo or video purchases and other payments. We do not normally store full card details ourselves. Card payments are processed by secure third-party payment providers.

Communication preferences
This may include your preferences for email, post, telephone, SMS, newsletters, member communications, fundraising messages, supporter updates and other types of communication.

Access, equality and diversity information
Where relevant, we may collect information about your communication needs, access requirements, BSL use, Deaf/Deafblind/hearing identity, disability, ethnicity, gender, age, date of birth or other equality monitoring information. Some of this information may be special category data under data protection law. We only collect and use this information where it is necessary, where we have a lawful basis to do so, and where an additional special category condition applies.

Website and digital information
When you use our website, we may collect information such as your IP address, browser type, device information, pages visited, forms submitted, cookie preferences and analytics data.

Images, video and event recordings
We may take photographs, video recordings or livestream recordings at events, meetings, webinars or other BDA activities. Where appropriate, we will tell you in advance and explain how recordings or images may be used.

Enquiry and correspondence information
If you contact us, we may keep a record of your enquiry, complaint, request, feedback or correspondence.

Job, trustee, volunteer and application information
If you apply for a job, trustee role, steering group, volunteer opportunity or similar position, we may collect your application details, contact information, CV, supporting statement, references, interview notes, equality monitoring data and any other information relevant to the application process.

How we collect personal information

We may collect personal information when you:

  • become a member or update your membership record;
  • make a donation;
  • register for an event, webinar, conference, AGM or meeting;
  • buy tickets, products, photographs, videos or other items;
  • sign up to newsletters or supporter updates;
  • complete a form on our website;
  • contact us by email, post, video relay, online form or social media;
  • take part in a campaign, survey, consultation or petition;
  • apply for a role, trustee position, steering group or volunteer opportunity;
  • attend an event where photography, filming or recording may take place;
  • use our websites or interact with our online content.

We may also receive personal information from third parties where appropriate, for example payment processors, event platforms, fundraising platforms, CRM systems, professional advisers, partner organisations, or publicly available sources.

How we use your personal information

We use personal information for the following purposes:

Membership administration
We use personal information to manage memberships, maintain membership records, confirm eligibility, send membership communications, manage member events, support voting processes and keep members informed about BDA activity. Our lawful bases may include contract, legitimate interests, legal obligation and consent, depending on the specific activity.

Donations, fundraising and supporter engagement
We use personal information to process donations, manage Gift Aid, thank supporters, keep supporter records, send fundraising communications where permitted, understand supporter engagement and report on fundraising activity. Our lawful bases may include legal obligation, legitimate interests and consent.

Events, conferences, training and meetings
We use personal information to process event bookings, issue tickets, manage attendance, provide access support, communicate event information, process payments, manage feedback, and deliver online or in-person events. Our lawful bases may include contract, legitimate interests, consent and legal obligation.

Payments and purchases
We use personal information to process payments for memberships, donations, event tickets, conference bookings, shop purchases, digital content, photographs, videos and other transactions. Our lawful bases may include contract, legal obligation and legitimate interests.

Communications and newsletters
We use personal information to send newsletters, membership updates, supporter communications, event information, fundraising messages, campaign updates and service-related messages.

We will only send marketing or fundraising communications where we are allowed to do so under data protection and electronic communications law. You can opt out of marketing communications at any time.

SMS and mobile communications
We may collect mobile numbers in the future so that we can contact members, supporters or event attendees by SMS or similar messaging services. We may use SMS for service messages, such as event reminders or important membership information, where appropriate.

We may also use SMS for fundraising, campaign or supporter communications where we have consent or where another lawful route is available under relevant law.

You will be able to opt out of SMS communications.

Access and inclusion
We use personal information to provide appropriate access arrangements, communication support, BSL/ISL/English interpretation, Deafblind support, captions, dietary adjustments and other reasonable adjustments. Where this involves special category data, we will only process it where we have a lawful basis and an appropriate special category condition.

Campaigns, advocacy and research
We may use personal information to manage campaigns, consultations, petitions, surveys, research activity, policy work and advocacy. This may include analysing responses, understanding the needs of Deaf people and BSL users, and reporting on key findings.

Where possible, we will use anonymised or aggregated information for reporting and research.

Website management and analytics
We use website and analytics information to operate our websites, understand how people use our content, improve accessibility, monitor performance, prevent misuse and improve user experience.

Where cookies or similar technologies require consent, we will ask for consent through our cookie banner or cookie settings.

Event photography, filming and recordings
We may use images, video or recordings for event documentation, internal review, training, reporting, promotion, livestreaming, website content, social media or archive purposes. Where appropriate, we will tell attendees when photography, filming or recording is taking place and provide information about how to raise concerns.

Administration, records and governance
We use personal information for internal administration, audit, reporting, governance, safeguarding, risk management, complaint handling, legal compliance and organisational planning. Our lawful bases may include legal obligation and legitimate interests.

Recruitment, trustee and volunteer applications
We use personal information to assess applications, communicate with applicants, carry out interviews, take up references, make appointment decisions and meet equality, safeguarding or legal requirements. Our lawful bases may include legitimate interests, contract, legal obligation and consent, depending on the circumstances.

Special category data

Some of the information we collect may be special category data. This may include information about disability, health, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, access requirements or other sensitive personal information.

We may process special category data where it is necessary to:

  • provide access arrangements or reasonable adjustments;
  • understand and support the needs of Deaf, deafblind, disabled and BSL-using communities;
  • monitor equality, diversity and inclusion;
  • deliver services, events and activities safely and appropriately;
  • support research, advocacy, consultation or campaign work;
  • meet legal, safeguarding or public interest obligations.

Where we collect special category data, we will only use it where we have a lawful basis under UK GDPR and an additional special category condition: for example, within our body of members, to advance and protect their interests in the course of our activities as a disability charity; or to safeguard children or vulnerable persons. In some cases, we may ask for your explicit consent.

Lawful bases for processing

Depending on the purpose, we may rely on one or more of the following lawful bases:

  • Consent, where you have given us clear permission to use your information for a specific purpose.
  • Contract, where we need to use your information to provide something you have requested, such as membership, tickets, bookings or purchases.
  • Legal obligation, where we must use or keep information to comply with the law.
  • Legitimate interests, where we have a legitimate reason to use your information and this does not override your rights and freedoms.
  • Vital interests, where it is necessary to protect someone’s life.

Where we rely on consent, you can withdraw your consent at any time. This will not affect the lawfulness of anything we did before consent was withdrawn.

Where we process special category data, other than with your explicit consent, we will do so in accordance with an additional special category condition.

Marketing, fundraising and communication preferences

We may contact you about BDA news, campaigns, events, fundraising, membership matters, consultations, services and other activities.

Some communications are service or membership messages, for example information about your membership, an event you have booked, a payment, a meeting you have registered for, or important governance information. These are not always marketing communications.

Marketing and fundraising communications will only be sent where permitted by law. This may be based on your consent, our legitimate interests, or another lawful route available to charities.

You can opt out of marketing communications at any time by using the unsubscribe link in our emails, updating your preferences where available, or contacting us at bda@bda.org.uk.

Who we share personal information with

We do not sell your personal information.

We may share personal information with trusted third parties where necessary for our work. These may include:

  • CRM and membership management providers;
  • email newsletter and marketing platforms;
  • payment processors and banking providers;
  • website hosting, website management and form providers;
  • event registration, ticketing and conference platforms;
  • webinar, livestreaming and video platforms;
  • SMS or messaging service providers;
  • analytics and cookie management providers;
  • IT, cloud storage and email providers;
  • fundraising and donation platforms;
  • professional advisers, auditors, insurers and legal advisers;
  • partner organisations, funders or venues where necessary for event or service delivery;
  • regulators, public authorities or law enforcement bodies where required by law.

Where third parties process personal information on our behalf, we require them to keep it secure and only use it for the agreed purpose.

International transfers

Some of the systems and service providers we use may store or process personal information outside the United Kingdom.

Where personal information is transferred outside the UK, we will take steps to ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place. This may include using countries recognised as providing an adequate level of protection, contractual safeguards, or other lawful transfer mechanisms.

Cookies and similar technologies

Our website uses cookies and similar technologies to help the website work, improve user experience, analyse website traffic, remember preferences and understand how our website is used.

Some cookies are essential for the website to function. Other cookies, such as analytics or marketing cookies, will only be used where consent is required and has been given.

You can manage your cookie preferences using the cookie banner or settings available on our website.

How long we keep personal information

We only keep personal information for as long as necessary for the purpose it was collected, including to meet legal, accounting, reporting, audit, governance or safeguarding requirements.

Retention periods may vary depending on the type of information. For example:

  • membership records may be kept while you are a member and for a reasonable period afterwards;
  • donation and Gift Aid records may be kept for the period required by tax and accounting rules;
  • event booking records may be kept for administration, reporting and audit purposes;
  • recruitment records may be kept for a limited period after the recruitment process;
  • safeguarding, complaint or incident records may be kept for longer where necessary;
  • marketing consent and suppression records may be kept to ensure we respect your communication preferences;
  • event recordings may be kept for as long as they are needed for the purpose explained at the time.

When information is no longer needed, we will delete it securely or anonymise it.

How we keep personal information secure

We take appropriate steps to protect personal information from unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration or disclosure.

These steps may include access controls, password protection, secure systems, staff guidance, limited access to personal information, secure storage, supplier checks and appropriate technical and organisational measures.

However, no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. If we become aware of a personal data breach, we will take appropriate action in line with our legal responsibilities.

Your data protection rights

Depending on the circumstances, you may have the right to:

  • request access to the personal information we hold about you;
  • ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information;
  • ask us to delete your personal information;
  • ask us to restrict how we use your information;
  • object to how we use your information;
  • ask for your information to be transferred to another organisation;
  • withdraw consent where we rely on consent;
  • object to direct marketing at any time.

The right to object to direct marketing is absolute. If you object to direct marketing, we will stop sending you direct marketing communications.

Some rights may not apply in every situation. If we cannot fulfil a request, we will explain why.

To exercise your data protection rights or make a privacy enquiry, please contact us at: dataprotection@bda.org.uk

We encourage you to contact us first so that we can try to resolve your concern.

You can contact us using the contact form on our website.

Complaints

If you are unhappy with how we use your personal information, please contact us first so that we can try to resolve your concern. You may submit a complaint using the contact details above, and we will:

  • acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 30 days of receiving it;
  • request any further information we may need, for example to clarify your complaint or verify your identity;
  • investigate your complaint and take appropriate steps to address it without undue delay; and
  • keep you informed of progress where appropriate and notify you of the outcome without undue delay.

If you are not satisfied with the outcome or handling of your complaint, you also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office, the UK regulator for data protection.

Links to other websites

Our website may contain links to other websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of external websites. You should read the privacy information provided by those websites.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any significant changes will be highlighted on our website or communicated directly where appropriate.

Last updated: 11/06/2026