As the data controller of your personal data, London Metropolitan University is subject to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), introduced on 25 May 2018.
This privacy notice outlines how London Metropolitan University (also referred to as "we", "us" or "our") handles, uses and shares your personal data. It also explains your rights regarding the personal data we hold. The privacy notice relates to our processing of personal data of our alumni and past, current and future supporters (also referred to as "you" or "your") of London Metropolitan University and its predecessor institutions for marketing purposes.
Having a better understanding of London Metropolitan University’s alumni and supporters means we can stay in touch with you and keep you updated about developments. It also allows us to provide services (eg development programmes) and identify ways that you can support the University.
What personal data we collect
We may collect details such as:
- your name, email address, telephone number (and other contact details if known) as well as other details such as date of birth, student number, postal address, residency status, nationality, level of study and your areas of interest
- personal information about disabilities and dietary requirements to help us accommodate you at events
- details relating to your education with us (eg courses you have undertaken and those completed, dates of study, graduation dates, grade achieved)
- details about your interactions with us including:
- membership of alumni groups, clubs and societies
- your attendance at University events as well as partner events
- other contact with us or our partners
- information about any benefits and services we provide to you, including those set out on our alumni pages
- your relationships with other alumni or supporters of the University
- your communication preferences (to help us provide tailored and relevant communications)
We also record, where applicable, some personal data that is publicly available such as:
- financial information relating to you, including:
- your donation history to the University
- your ability and willingness to make donations
- information on your career and life achievements
- details on your areas of interest and extracurricular activities
We also use targeted internet searches and may search public websites (either directly or using search engines) to obtain and maintain the accuracy of the data listed above (eg LinkedIn to check business or employment details).
Please note, we run a refer a friend scheme that offers current London Met students, graduates and staff members to recommend a friend to study at London Met. We ask for personal data of others via this scheme. By submitting their details you are confirming that you have sought consent from that person to share their personal data. If you are the person who has been referred to us, we may hold your data as part of this scheme.
How we collect your personal data
There are numerous ways in which London Metropolitan University may collect your personal data. These include:
- when you communicate with us through our website, via email or telephone, or in person
- when you share your personal data with us at an external event
- when you respond to one of our marketing campaigns on a third party website (including social media channels) and provide your personal data
Personal data about former students of the University is also transferred from your student record to our other databases.
We store any data you may have provided to us as an enquirer, on your application, throughout your studies with us or at any point after graduation.
How we use your information
We may use your personal data for a number of purposes to support alumni relations, supporter communications and fundraising. These include:
- marketing and communications – for example, we may use your personal data to send you information about London Metropolitan University, details about upcoming events, opportunities to volunteer, fundraising requests and other relevant opportunities and services available to you
- events – for example, to ensure we accommodate your requirements (eg those relating to a disability or dietary needs)
- conducting surveys – for example, to find out information about your developmental needs and path after graduation
- internal record keeping – for example, the management of any enquiry, feedback or complaint you may have made
- administrative purposes – for example in order to process a donation you have made or to administer an event you have registered for/attended
How we share your information with others (our partners)
We may share some of your personal data with relevant third parties. This will be for the purposes referred to in this privacy notice. This may include disclosing limited personal data to employees, agents and contractors where there is a legitimate reason to do so, including:
- external marketing agencies, print suppliers or fulfilment houses we work with to send you relevant communications
- third parties who provide us with essential software that is used to store and process your personal data – the University will only transfer personal data to the receiving organisation who has provided they have adequate safeguards
- internal and external auditors
- organisations with an interest in tracking student progress, including student sponsors (eg the Student Loans Company and other relevant parties)
- government departments or agencies where we have a statutory obligation to provide information (eg the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), the Office for Students (OfS), the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) and the Home Office (for visa and immigration purposes)
- third parties conducting surveys for the purposes of gaining feedback about our marketing or events
- clubs, societies and independent charities with close connections to the University for which we process your donation
- volunteer partners closely related to us
- companies that provide us with data about alumni and supporters
- consultants advising us on donation trends and individuals’ capacity to donate
Changes to your personal data
It is important that you tell us promptly about any changes to the information we hold about you, including your contact details. You can do this via the contact page on our website.
How long your information is kept for
We do not retain your personal data for longer than is required in order to provide you with relevant information or services – unless you request us to do otherwise. We may retain some information indefinitely for archive purposes and to support your lifelong relationship with London Metropolitan University.
Should you choose to stop receiving marketing communications, London Metropolitan University is obliged to opt you out within 28 days.
Your rights
The General Data Protection Regulation gives you the rights outlined below:
- to obtain access to, and copies of, the personal data that we hold about you
- to require that we stop processing your personal data on your request
- to require that we do not send you marketing communications
- to require London Metropolitan University to make corrections to the personal data that we hold about you, if this is incorrect
- to require that we erase your personal data
- to require that we restrict our data processing activities (and, where our processing is based on your consent, you may withdraw that consent, without affecting the lawfulness of our processing based on consent before its withdrawal)
- to receive from the University the personal data we hold about you, which you have provided to us, in a reasonable and intelligible format, including for the purpose of you transmitting that personal data to another data controller
- to object, on grounds relating to your particular situation, to any of our particular processing activities where you feel this has a disproportionate impact on your rights
Please note that the above rights are not absolute, and we may be entitled to refuse requests where exceptions apply.
If you have given your consent and you wish to withdraw it, please contact the University Secretary’s Office using the contact details below. Please note that where our processing of your personal data relies on your consent and where you then withdraw that consent, we may not be able to provide all or some aspects of our services to you and/or it may affect the provision of those services.
This privacy statement was designed to be as clear and concise as possible – it does not provide exhaustive detail of all aspects of London Metropolitan University’s collection and use of personal data.
We may update this privacy policy to reflect changes to our information practices. If we make any material changes we will notify you through the channels that you’ve opted into or via a notice on this website. We encourage you to periodically review this page for the latest information on our privacy practices.
We are not responsible for the practices employed by third party websites. Links to and from our website, and therefore the information or the content contained on those websites, are provided solely as reference points to allow you to access information on topics that may be useful to our website users. Please note, when you use a link to go from our website to a third party website, our privacy policy will no longer apply.
Contact us
The legal basis for holding and utilising your personal data for the purposes set out in this privacy policy is that it is necessary for the pursuit of our legitimate interests.
If you’d like to know more about how we process your personal information or have any questions, please contact the Data Protection Officer using the following details:
Email: dsar@londonmet.ac.uk
Data Protection Officer
University Secretary’s Office
London Metropolitan University
166-220 Holloway Road
London
N7 8DB
You can also use the above details to request access to the personal information we hold about you.
To find out more about your data protection rights, visit the Information Commissioner’s Office website. You can also contact the Information Commissioner’s Office if you’re not happy with the way we are processing your personal data.