What is GDPR?
The General Data Protection Regulation is an EU regulation that is implemented in the UK by the Data Protection Act 2018. The Act affects all industry sectors and it addresses what we can and cannot do with your personal data. “Personal data” is information that identifies individuals directly or from which individuals can be identified indirectly. Under the Act, we are the “data controller” in relation to your personal data that we hold because we control the storage and use of that personal data.

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We write to all our clients personally.
One of the requirements of the Act is that we write to tell you how we “process” your personal data. When you become a client at D’Cern Consulting we write to the individual coaching client personally as well as the main contact in the organisation to explain how we handle any personal data. “Processing” includes obtaining, recording or storing personal data and carrying out any tasks using that personal data. This notice also describes your data protection rights, including your right to withdraw your consent to process your personal data.

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For what purposes does D’Cern Consulting process my personal data? 
We process your personal data because we deem it necessary for us to hold information about you and your circumstances in order to deliver the business and executive coaching services we provide to you. Taking and using notes of our coaching conversations is an integral part of how we work and allows us to be fully prepared for our sessions together. We process your personal data solely for the purpose of providing our service to you and do not share it within our firm or with any other affiliated organisations. 

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What allows D’Cern Consulting to process my personal data? 
The Act allows us to process your personal data if: 

• The processing is necessary for the performance of our service to you

• The processing is necessary for the purpose of our “legitimate interests”

• You consent to the processing

“Legitimate interests” is a heading that covers several different reasons why we might need to process your personal data which may not be covered by other headings. This might include: 

•   Providing you with a better service in the future

•   Including articles and papers written by us and by others

 

 

What sort of my personal data does D’Cern Consulting record and store? 
In summary, we keep comprehensive records of our coaching and mentoring sessions with clients and, as you know, these may include a variety of personal information, including (amongst other things): 

• Your name, organisational title and email address(es) - but not your home postal address or details

• The names and organisational titles of your colleagues

• Your education and career history

• The first names of your family – but not their contact details

 

How does D’Cern Consulting process and store my personal data? 
We continue to be committed to protecting your personal information. Our aim is to maintain your trust and confidence in the way we handle your personal information whilst continuing to provide you with a high quality coaching service. 

Our processing of your data includes: 

• Our system’s anti-virus software which is updated automatically

• Keeping any hard copies of our records in secured cabinets held within our office 

 

For how long will D’Cern Consulting keep my personal data? 
We have deemed that being able to provide you with support after the completion of our initial assignment, whether that be on an informal, unpaid basis or through further formal assignments, is part of our “service” to you and your employers. Consequently, unless you instruct us not to, we will keep your personal data for as long as we feel it appropriate to be able to provide the service. The length of time we will keep your personal data will also reflect the obligations we have under applicable regulation to store personal data and the practicality of deleting or permanently anonymising your personal data. 

 

Can I withdraw my “consent”? 
Yes, you can withdraw your consent at any time. Although the Act does not require us to gain your explicit consent to process your personal data, only to write to you to tell you how we process it, we are very keen to ensure that you are happy with our approach. If you decide, at any stage, that you would prefer us not to hold your personal data, and therefore to withdraw your consent to us, please contact your coach.    

 

Does the GDPR affect the confidentiality between me and my coach? 
No. Everything you discuss with your coach remains 100% confidential, subject only to the provisos regarding our discussions with our professional supervisor and our obligations to break confidentiality in the (highly unlikely) event of us believing you might be a danger to yourself or to others. 

 

Updates to this Notice 
We may update this notice from time to time to reflect changes in the way we process your personal data or to clarify information we have provided in this notice. Any changes will be lodged on our website and we will notify you directly about any details we think are significant, or when we are legally required to do so.

 

D'Cern Consulting 
May 2023