Privacy Policy

The Chelmsford Medical Education & Research Trust (CMERT) respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store and protect personal information when you visit our website, contact us, or otherwise interact with us.

1. Who we are

The Chelmsford Medical Education & Research Trust (CMERT) is a registered charity supporting medical education, research and healthcare initiatives in the Chelmsford area.

Charity number: 237690

Registered address:

Medical Academic Unit
Broomfield Hospital
Court Road
Broomfield
Chelmsford
CM1 7ET

For questions about this Privacy Policy or how we use your personal information, please contact us using the details above or through our website.

2. What personal information we collect

We may collect personal information that you provide to us when you contact us or interact with our website.

This may include:

• Your name
• Your email address
• Your telephone number
• The reason for contacting us
• Any information you include in a message or enquiry
• Any other information you choose to provide to us

We may also collect limited technical information when you visit our website, such as your IP address, browser type, device information and information about how you use the website. This information may be collected automatically through the technologies used to operate and secure our website.

We do not ask you to provide medical or other sensitive personal information through our website. Please avoid including unnecessary sensitive or confidential information in contact form messages.

3. How we use your information

We may use your personal information to:

• Respond to enquiries and requests submitted through our website
• Communicate with you about projects, collaborations, funding or other matters you have contacted us about
• Administer and manage applications, enquiries and correspondence
• Provide information about CMERT and its activities where appropriate
• Maintain and improve our website
• Protect the security and integrity of our website
• Comply with our legal and regulatory obligations
• Establish, exercise or defend our legal rights where necessary

We will only use your personal information for purposes that are compatible with the reason it was collected, unless we are required or permitted by law to use it for another purpose.

4. Our lawful basis for using your information

Under UK data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for collecting and using your personal information.

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

Legitimate interests

We may use your information where it is necessary for our legitimate interests, such as responding to enquiries, managing our activities, maintaining our website and communicating with individuals and organisations who engage with CMERT. We will only rely on legitimate interests where those interests are not overridden by your rights and interests.

Consent

Where required, we will ask for your consent before collecting or using your information for a particular purpose. Where processing is based on consent, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time.

Legal obligation

We may process your information where this is necessary for us to comply with a legal or regulatory obligation.

Contract

Where applicable, we may process your information where this is necessary to enter into or perform an agreement with you.

5. Information submitted through our website

If you use the contact form on our website, the information you provide will be used to respond to your enquiry and manage the matter you have contacted us about.

The contact form may collect your name, email address, telephone number, reason for contact and message.

Please only provide information that is relevant to your enquiry and avoid submitting unnecessary confidential or sensitive information.

6. Who we share your information with

We will not sell or rent your personal information.

We may share personal information where this is necessary to operate CMERT, provide services, respond to enquiries or comply with our legal obligations.

This may include sharing information with:

• Service providers who help us operate and maintain our website
• Website hosting and form-processing providers
• IT, security and technical service providers
• Professional advisers where necessary
• Government, regulatory or law enforcement authorities where we are legally required to do so

Where another organisation processes personal information on our behalf, we take appropriate steps to ensure that the information is handled securely and in accordance with applicable data protection law.

7. Website hosting and third-party services

Our website is hosted using third-party website infrastructure and may use third-party services to provide certain website functionality.

The website currently includes an embedded Google Maps service to display location information. Google may process certain technical information when you interact with embedded content. Google's own privacy policy and terms may therefore also apply to your use of these services.

Third-party services may change from time to time. Where we introduce additional services that process personal information or use non-essential cookies, we will update this Privacy Policy and, where required, ask for your consent.

8. Cookies and similar technologies

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies that are necessary for the website to function correctly, maintain security and provide basic website functionality.

Some third-party services may also place cookies or collect technical information when they are used on our website.

Where cookies or similar technologies are not strictly necessary, we will seek your consent where required by law.

You can control or block cookies through your browser settings. Please be aware that disabling certain cookies may affect how the website functions.

9. How long we keep your information

We will only keep your personal information for as long as it is reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected.

The length of time we retain information will depend on the nature of the information and why we need it. For example, information relating to an enquiry may be retained for as long as necessary to deal with the enquiry and maintain an appropriate record of our communications.

We may retain information for longer where this is necessary to comply with a legal, accounting or regulatory requirement, or to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

When information is no longer required, we will securely delete or dispose of it.

10. How we protect your information

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration or disclosure.

However, no transmission of information over the internet or electronic storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

If we become aware of a personal data breach that is likely to result in a risk to individuals' rights and freedoms, we will take appropriate action in accordance with applicable data protection law.

11. International transfers

Some of the service providers we use may process personal information outside the United Kingdom.

Where personal information is transferred outside the UK, we will take appropriate steps to ensure that the transfer is lawful and that appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with applicable data protection legislation.

12. Your data protection rights

Under UK data protection law, you may have a number of rights in relation to your personal information, including:

• The right to ask for a copy of the personal information we hold about you
• The right to ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information
• The right to ask us to delete your personal information in certain circumstances
• The right to ask us to restrict how we use your information in certain circumstances
• The right to object to certain types of processing, including processing based on legitimate interests
• The right to withdraw consent where we rely on consent as our lawful basis
• The right to data portability in certain circumstances

These rights are subject to certain exemptions and may not apply in every situation.

If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details provided in this Privacy Policy.

13. How to make a complaint

If you have concerns about how we have collected or used your personal information, please contact CMERT in the first instance so that we can try to resolve your concerns.

You also have the right to make a complaint to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's independent supervisory authority for data protection.

Information Commissioner's Office

Website: ico.org.uk

Telephone: 0303 123 1113

You can find further information about your rights and how to make a complaint on the ICO's website.

14. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our activities, the services we use, or changes in data protection law.

Any changes will be published on this page and the effective date at the top of the policy will be updated accordingly.

15. Contact us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how CMERT uses your personal information, please contact us:

The Chelmsford Medical Education & Research Trust (CMERT)

Medical Academic Unit
Broomfield Hospital
Court Road
Broomfield
Chelmsford
CM1 7ET

Charity number: 237690