Confidentiality Policy
INTRODUCTION
The Spark Foundation exists to provide those kinds of things and opportunities which loving parents would normally provide for their children but which, because they are or have been in care, children and young people are not able to have or experience. We do this by making grants of amounts up to £700 which will either help to advance the education or vocational training of children and young people under the age of 26 or encourage them to develop hobbies, skills or interests; or provide those who are leaving, or have left, care with basic items, facilities or equipment. Requests for grants are made via a written application form (available electronically) sent to the Administrator. All applications are decided by a panel solely on the basis of the merits of the application form. There is no meeting with the applicant.
This Confidentiality Policy should be read in conjunction with the Safeguarding Policy
CONFIDENTIALITY
It is a basic principle of The Spark Foundation that it offers confidentiality to all actual and potential applicants. Nothing learned by The Spark Foundation from applicants, including the fact of their application, will be passed on to anyone outside the Foundation without the express permission of the applicant or, if they are under 18, without the express permission of their carer or social worker. The only exception to this is if the information suggests harm to self, children, or vulnerable adults.
When information about young people is shared electronically with trustees it will be encrypted. Papers for meetings are sent by post and are shredded as soon as possible afterwards.
The Spark Foundation website is security certificated.
PRIVACY NOTICE
All applicants aged 16 or over are required to complete and sign a Privacy Notice which explains what information we seek to gather and why we need it, and what we do with it. Where applicants are under the age of 16 the adult/organisation with parental responsibility must complete and sign the Privacy Notice. Applicants are asked to sign the Privacy Notice to consent to their information being shared with the Spark Foundation.
DONOR PRIVACY
When an online donation is made, we ask for the donor’s name, address and email address for the sole purpose of processing the donation (including Gift Aid). We do not retain contact details unless the donor indicates their permission for us to do so while making the donation. Where a donor indicates that they wish to hear more from us, we may send communications via email, phone or post, in accordance with the donor’s permission. Payment is received via secure online banking services and we do not receive this information.
This Policy was updated September 2023 and is available in pdf form here.
