Privacy policy
This privacy policy sets out how we use any personal information you submit to us via the Discovering Britain project and website. We are committed to safeguarding the privacy of personal information.
If you have any requests concerning your personal information or any queries with regard to these practices please contact us by email at [email protected].
Please read the Society’s main privacy policy to see how we deal with your personal information in other circumstances.
1. Who we are
We are the Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers). Founded in 1830, we are a learned society, professional body and charity that promotes the advancement of geographical science. With over 16,000 members we are the most active scholarly geographical society internationally.
This privacy notice covers what you need to know about how we collect, use and look after your personal data in relation to the Discovering Britain project and website (www.discoveringbritain.org). The notice also covers your rights and how you can contact us if you have any queries in relation to how we process your information. We strive to meet the highest standards of data protection and won’t do anything you wouldn’t reasonably expect with the data you give us.
This privacy notice only covers how we collect and use your personal data. There may be instances where our website links to other websites which aren’t under our control. Therefore, when following external links it is best to check third party privacy policies to be clear on their collection, processing and use of your information.
2. What information we collect and when we collect it
A) Personal information
We will collect personal information from you when you fill out one of our forms on the website and if you contact us for any reason by email, letter or phone. Depending on why you provide us with your information, the following may be collected: your name, email address, phone number and postal address.
When collecting your personal data, we will only ever ask for the information we need for that specific purpose.
B) IP addresses
When you visit our website (www.discoveringbritain.org) we collect internet log information. This information helps us to track the number of visitors and their behaviour on our website so we can better understand how our website is being used. This allows us to make our website experience better for everyone.
C) Cookies
Cookies are small text files that allow us to collect the above information. This means that our website will remember you for a particular reason and help to personalise your experience. The information provided to us through this method can include details about your device, the browsing system you use and any issues that may arise including a website crash.
The types of cookies we use include session and persistent cookies. Session cookies are temporary and are only stored until you close your browser or leave our website. Persistent cookies last for a longer period of time and allow our website to recognise you on return visits.
You can turn off cookies through your browser settings at any time if you do not want your browser to accept cookies. You can also delete existing cookies in your browser settings.
From time to time we may embed content from other sites such as Instagram. In such cases, where content is embedded or content can be shared on other sites, these third party websites may place cookies within our website. The Society does not have control over the settings of these cookies. Therefore, you should check the relevant third party website for more information on their cookie policy.
Instagram: Instagram’s data policy
D) Google Analytics
We use Google Analytics to help us get a clear idea of how people use and engage with our website. This information helps us to develop further our website and improve your online experience. Google Analytics uses cookies to collect information about our visitors’ website use, without personally identifying users.
More information can be found at Google Analytics privacy policy.
3. How we use your information
When you provide us with your personal details we will use this information to provide the services you require, including responding to queries from you.
We may also use your information to provide you with targeted communications from the Society that we think you will be interested in. However, we will ask for your consent before sending you any marketing emails. You can withdraw this consent at any time by unsubscribing through the relevant link located at the bottom of every email communication. If you unsubscribe from our email marketing we will place you on a suspension list so we know not to email you marketing materials in the future.
We may also use and process your information where we have a legitimate business interest to do so. This may include, but is not limited to: providing, modifying and improving our services; enabling our projects; and keeping our website and premises secure.
We will never keep your information longer than is necessary for the purposes which the information was provided.
4. Sharing your information
We will never exchange, sell or rent your personal information to another person or organisation.
The information you provide is used within the Society to deliver our services to you. We use Mailchimp to distribute our email communications to you including the Discovering Britain newsletter. We monitor statistics from our mailings such as the number of opens and link clicks in each email to help us improve our communication with you. To find out more about what information Mailchimp collects take a look at their privacy policy.
All third parties we work with to help us process your information work in line with our expectations and have agreements with us that include details of how they keep your data secure. This includes not exchanging, selling or renting your personal information.
5. Keeping your information secure
We have measures in place to make sure that your personal data is secure at all times.
If any of your information is transferred out of the European Economic Area by us or our service providers, we ensure it is done so with the relevant protection required by law.
6. Your rights
Under the General Data Protection Regulation, there are several rights you hold in relation to the processing of your data.
You have the right to request a copy of the information we hold about you. We will require two forms of identification from you before releasing this information. We will provide the information within one month of the receipt of your request. An administrative fee may apply
You have the right to have your data erased from our databases in certain circumstances. These include when your personal data is no longer necessary for the purpose it was originally collected and when you withdraw your consent for us to process your data for certain purposes.
You have the right to object to your data being processed under legitimate interests, upon which the processing will cease, unless there are compelling legitimate grounds such as fulfilling a contract between us.
If your contact details change, help us to keep our records up to date by contacting us using the details below.
If you no longer wish to receive marketing or information emails from us you can unsubscribe at any time using the relevant link at the bottom of every email communication or contacting us using the details below.
7. Changes to this privacy policy
We may update this policy from time to time. If we make any significant changes we will inform you via our website or email, if your details are registered with us. By continuing to use our services, we will recognise this as acceptance of these terms.
8. Contact us
At the Society, we strive to uphold the best standards of practice in collecting and using any personal data. Therefore, we take complaints very seriously and advise anyone to contact us if they believe our system of collecting and processing data is unfair, misleading or inappropriate. Any suggestions for improving our policy are always welcome.
You can contact the Society at:
Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), 1 Kensington Gore, London, SW7 2AR
T: 020 7591 3000
If you have any concerns or questions you would like answering in relation to this policy, you can contact the Head of Communications and Public Engagement on [email protected].
This policy was last updated on 25 May 2018.