Menu

Privacy Policy

Smile For Life Children’s Charity

Last reviewed: October 2026

Our commitment to your privacy

At Smile For Life Children’s Charity, we are committed to protecting your personal information and respecting your privacy.

We understand the importance of trust, particularly when working with children, young people with disabilities and additional needs, their families, our volunteers and the people who generously support our work.

We take our responsibility to protect personal information seriously and aim to be open and transparent about how we collect, use, store and share it.

This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, why we need it, how we keep it safe and the rights you have over your personal information.

We process personal information in accordance with applicable UK data protection legislation, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025.

1. Who we are

Smile For Life Children’s Charity is a charity dedicated to supporting children and young people with disabilities, learning difficulties and additional needs.

Through our programmes, activities, employment opportunities and community initiatives, we help young people develop confidence, independence, skills and a sense of belonging.

For the purposes of data protection legislation, Smile For Life Children’s Charity is the data controller for the personal information described in this policy.

Our contact details:

Smile For Life Children’s Charity
The Old Fire Station, 234-236 High Street, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE3 1HH
Email: info@smileforlife.org.uk
Telephone: 0191 2844166
Registered Charity Number: 1129935

For any questions about this policy or how we use your information, please contact us using the details above.

2. What personal information do we collect?

The information we collect depends on your relationship with the charity.

This may include:

  • Personal details: Your name, date of birth, address, telephone number and email address.

  • Family and emergency contacts: Parent, carer, next-of-kin and emergency contact information.

  • Information about young people: Details relevant to participation in our programmes, activities, training and employment opportunities.

  • Health and support information: Where necessary, information about disabilities, medical conditions, allergies, medication, communication preferences, accessibility requirements and individual support needs.

  • Volunteer and employment information: Application details, relevant experience, references, training records, safeguarding checks and other information required to manage volunteering or employment.

  • Fundraising and donation information: Details of donations, fundraising activities, Gift Aid declarations, sponsorship and event participation.

  • Photographs and videos: Images and recordings taken during activities, events and celebrations, subject to appropriate permissions and safeguards.

  • Communications: Information you provide when contacting us by email, telephone, social media, online forms or other means.

  • Website information: Information about how visitors use our website, including technical information and cookies where applicable.

We only collect information that is necessary and relevant to our charitable activities, legal responsibilities or legitimate organisational needs.

3. How do we collect your information?

We may collect information directly from you when you:

  • Register yourself or a young person for our activities or programmes.

  • Apply to volunteer or work with us.

  • Make a donation or support a fundraising campaign.

  • Register for an event or challenge.

  • Subscribe to our newsletters or updates.

  • Contact us by telephone, email, website or social media.

  • Visit or engage with Café Beam or other charity services.

  • Provide feedback or complete a survey.

  • Give permission for photographs or videos to be taken and used.

We may also receive relevant information from parents, carers, support workers, referring organisations, schools or other professionals involved in supporting a young person.

Where we receive information from other sources, we will ensure there is an appropriate lawful basis for using it and provide relevant privacy information as required.

4. Why do we use your personal information?

We use personal information to deliver our charitable services safely, effectively and responsibly.

This includes:

Supporting young people

  • Assessing individual needs and providing appropriate support.

  • Organising and delivering activities, training, work placements and other opportunities.

  • Supporting young people to develop independence, confidence and employment skills.

  • Communicating with young people, parents, carers and relevant professionals.

  • Managing safety, wellbeing and safeguarding responsibilities.

  • Monitoring progress and evaluating the impact of our work.

Managing volunteers and staff

  • Processing applications and arranging appropriate checks.

  • Coordinating volunteering opportunities, placements and training.

  • Maintaining necessary employment and volunteer records.

  • Supporting the safety and wellbeing of everyone involved.

Fundraising and supporter relationships

  • Processing donations and Gift Aid declarations.

  • Managing fundraising events, challenges and campaigns.

  • Thanking supporters and providing relevant information about their involvement.

  • Maintaining accurate financial and donation records.

  • Communicating news and opportunities in accordance with applicable marketing rules.

Running the charity

  • Responding to enquiries, requests and complaints.

  • Managing our cafés, services, events and other activities.

  • Meeting legal, regulatory, financial and safeguarding obligations.

  • Improving our services and measuring our charitable impact.

  • Maintaining the security and effectiveness of our website and systems.

5. Our legal basis for using personal information

Data protection law requires us to have a valid legal reason, known as a lawful basis, for processing personal information.

Depending on the circumstances, we may rely on:

  • Consent: Where you have given us permission to use your information for a particular purpose, such as certain marketing communications or promotional photographs.

  • Contract: Where information is necessary to enter into or fulfil an agreement with you, such as employment or a paid service.

  • Legal obligation: Where we must process information to comply with the law, including employment, tax, financial reporting and certain safeguarding obligations.

  • Legitimate interests: Where processing is reasonably necessary for our charitable activities, administration, supporter relationships or service improvement, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms.

  • Vital interests: In exceptional circumstances where processing is necessary to protect someone’s life.

We identify the appropriate lawful basis for each activity and assess the impact on individuals, particularly children and vulnerable people.

Where we process sensitive information, such as health or disability details, we also identify an appropriate additional legal condition under data protection legislation.

We will not rely on consent where another lawful basis is more appropriate.

6. Protecting children and young people

Protecting the privacy, dignity and wellbeing of the young people we support is especially important to us.

We may need to collect information about a young person’s health, disability, support requirements, communication needs or personal circumstances to ensure they can participate safely and fully in our activities.

We will:

  • Collect only information that is relevant and necessary.

  • Explain how information will be used in an accessible way.

  • Respect young people’s privacy, choices and developing independence.

  • Involve parents, carers or appropriate representatives where necessary.

  • Restrict access to sensitive information to authorised individuals who need it.

  • Share information only where there is an appropriate lawful reason.

  • Store information securely and review it regularly.

Where a young person has the capacity to make decisions about their own information, we will respect their rights and choices.

We recognise that having a disability or additional support needs does not automatically mean that a young person cannot make their own decisions.

Where there are safeguarding concerns, we may need to share relevant information with appropriate professionals or statutory authorities to protect a child or young person.

7. Photographs, videos and publicity

We regularly celebrate the achievements of our young people, volunteers and supporters through photographs, videos, social media, newsletters, presentations and our website.

We recognise the importance of protecting people’s privacy and dignity when sharing these achievements.

Where consent is our lawful basis, we will obtain appropriate permission before using identifiable photographs or videos for promotional purposes.

We will explain how images may be used and respect individual preferences and restrictions.

Permission can be withdrawn by contacting us. We will take reasonable steps to stop future use and remove images from platforms under our control where appropriate. However, we may not be able to remove material that has already been printed, distributed or shared by others.

We take particular care when using images of children and young people, including those with additional support or safeguarding needs.

8. Fundraising and marketing communications

We value the relationships we have with our supporters and want to keep people informed about the difference their generosity makes.

We may send information about:

  • Our charitable programmes and activities.

  • Fundraising campaigns and events.

  • Volunteering opportunities.

  • News, achievements and stories from the charity.

  • Opportunities to support our charitable work.

We will only send electronic marketing communications where we have an appropriate lawful basis and the communication is permitted under applicable marketing legislation.

This may be through your consent or, where all legal requirements are satisfied, the charitable purposes soft opt-in.

Where we use the charitable purposes soft opt-in, we will provide an opportunity to opt out when collecting your contact details and in every subsequent marketing message.

You can change your communication preferences or unsubscribe from marketing at any time.

We will never sell your personal information to other organisations for marketing purposes.

9. Sharing your information

We respect the confidentiality of the information entrusted to us.

We may share personal information where necessary and lawful with:

  • Relevant staff, volunteers and authorised representatives of the charity.

  • Organisations or professionals involved in delivering or supporting our charitable programmes.

  • Payment processors, fundraising platforms and financial service providers.

  • IT, website, email and other service providers working on our behalf.

  • Insurers, auditors and professional advisers.

  • Safeguarding professionals, emergency services or statutory authorities where necessary.

  • Regulators or other authorities where disclosure is required by law.

We only share information that is relevant and necessary for the particular purpose.

Where external organisations process personal information on our behalf, we take appropriate steps to ensure that suitable data protection arrangements are in place.

We do not sell personal information or share it with third parties for their own unrelated marketing purposes.

10. How we keep your information safe

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

These measures may include:

  • Secure electronic systems and password protection.

  • Restricted access to confidential records.

  • Secure storage and disposal of paper documents.

  • Appropriate staff and volunteer training.

  • Confidentiality requirements.

  • Regular review of information security procedures.

  • Procedures for identifying and responding to personal data breaches.

We take additional care with sensitive information relating to children, young people and individuals with additional needs.

Although no system can guarantee absolute security, we are committed to maintaining appropriate safeguards and responding promptly to any concerns.

11. How long do we keep your information?

We only retain personal information for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, including any relevant legal, regulatory, safeguarding, financial or contractual requirements.

Retention periods vary depending on the type of information and the reason we hold it.

For example:

  • Financial and donation records may need to be retained to meet accounting and tax obligations.

  • Staff and volunteer records are retained in accordance with relevant employment, safeguarding and legal requirements.

  • Information about young people is retained according to the nature of the service, safeguarding considerations and applicable retention requirements.

  • Marketing information is retained while we have an appropriate reason to contact you, subject to your rights and preferences.

We periodically review the information we hold and securely delete or anonymise information when it is no longer required.

12. Your rights over your personal information

Under UK data protection law, you have a number of rights regarding your personal information.

Depending on the circumstances, these include:

  • The right to be informed: To understand how and why we use your information.

  • The right of access: To request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.

  • The right to rectification: To ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.

  • The right to erasure: To request deletion of your information in certain circumstances.

  • The right to restrict processing: To ask us to limit how we use your information in certain circumstances.

  • The right to data portability: To receive certain information in a portable format where this right applies.

  • The right to object: To object to certain uses of your information, including processing based on legitimate interests.

You have the right to object to direct marketing at any time. If you do so, we will stop using your personal information for that purpose.

You also have rights relating to certain automated decisions and profiling.

Where we rely on your consent, you can withdraw it at any time. Withdrawal does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before consent was withdrawn.

To exercise your rights, please contact us using the details in Section 1.

We will respond in accordance with applicable data protection requirements, normally within one month, subject to any permitted extensions.

Some rights are subject to legal conditions and exceptions.

13. Our website and cookies

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to support its operation, understand how visitors use it and improve the experience we provide.

Cookies are small files stored on your device when you visit a website.

Some cookies are essential for the website to function. Others, such as analytics or marketing cookies, may require your consent.

Where consent is required, we will seek it before using those technologies and provide a way to manage your preferences.

Our website may contain links to external websites or services. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those organisations, and we encourage you to read their privacy policies.

14. Information stored or processed outside the UK

Some of the technology providers and online services we use may process or store personal information outside the United Kingdom.

Where personal information is transferred internationally, we will ensure that an appropriate legal mechanism or safeguard is in place, as required by UK data protection law.

Details of relevant international transfers and safeguards can be requested using our contact details.

15. Making a complaint

If you have any concerns about how we collect, use or protect your personal information, please contact us in the first instance.

We will take your concerns seriously and aim to resolve them promptly and fairly.

You also have the right to raise a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK’s independent data protection regulator.

Information Commissioner’s Office

Website: www.ico.org.uk
Telephone: 0303 123 1113

16. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in legislation, our activities or the way we handle personal information.

The latest version will always be available on our website.

Where changes significantly affect how we use personal information, we will take appropriate steps to inform those affected.

Our promise to you

At Smile For Life Children’s Charity, people are at the heart of everything we do.

We are committed to treating everyone with dignity, respect and care. Protecting your personal information is an important part of that commitment.

We will always aim to be open about how your information is used, responsible in how it is protected and respectful of your choices and rights.