Welcome to the GDPR – whats it all about?

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The General Data Protection Regulation (referred to as the GDPR) comes into force in May of 2018, and represents the biggest change in Data Protection Regulation for over 30 years.

88 pages of new theory and practice in Compliance have been succinctly distilled by Blackbaud and can be read here:

So, for more information on the following read the data fact-sheet above. Key points include:

  • Data Protection Principles remain largely unchanged and of utmost importance.
  • Enhanced consent collection – the death of the passive consent.
  • The bigger hurdle for legitimate interests.
  • A  revised focus on transparency.
  • New and expanded data subject rights.
  • Accountability and the requirement of a data governance programme.
  • Data breach notification requirements for all controllers and processors.
  • Processors are directly addressed.

As May 2018 draws nearer, watch this space for further articles, reviews or training.

Have your say on Children’s Centre proposals

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Here’s your chance to have your say on shaping the future of Children’s Centre Services across Cambridgeshire to make sure they work for children, families and your local community.

A consultation to redesign Children’s Centre Services has gone live, which aims to ensure every child thrives in Cambridgeshire.

You can read more and share their views – www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/childrenscentreconsultation

The wide ranging plans, from Cambridgeshire County Council, propose to create ‘family friendly’ services in the heart of communities. It builds on the current offer, offering support to families of all ages, from expectant parents to young adults. The new children centre services will be more flexible and tailored for each community delivered in places they know or already use, and in doing so, the Council will make savings of £1 million.

The proposals will also see Children’s Centres work more closely with parents and health professionals to provide a set of integrated services that seamlessly support communities. This service could include health visitors, midwifery and speech therapists.  The new approach will support Child and Family Centres, Child and Family zones and an Outreach Programme.

The consultation end on 22 September. Hard copy versions of the consultation can be found at Children Centres and Libraries. Website content can be translated for speakers of other language using the inbuilt google translate function.

We can provide versions of the consultation in other languages and braille on request.  Please contact ask.childrenscentres@cambridgeshire.gov.uk.

Frontline staff will also be at a range of events across the summer. Details of these events can be found on the consultation.

Decisions relating to the final proposals for Children’s Centre Services will be taken by the Children and Young People Committee meets in the autumn.

Please share your views here – www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/childrenscentreconsultation

The future of Data Protection – what does it mean for charities?

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Business advisors and accountants, Scott – Moncrieff set out the key areas that Charities need to consider when examining the forthcoming General Data Protection Regulation (or GDPR) which replaces the current Data Protection Act in May of 2018.

Source: Briefing Note June 2017

The Regulation will mean significant changes in the current Data Protection law and a much tougher enforcement regime.

They note that in 2017 a number of high profile charities have fallen foul of the Information Commissioners Office (or ICO) with many receiving substantial fines under the current arrangements.

Scott – Moncrieff  argue that charities will need to effectively manage the personal data they hold in order to ensure they can continue to deliver their services and raise money, while avoiding the significant fines under the Regulation.

They further note that the following charities have been fined under the current Data Protection Act:

  • The International Fund for Animal Welfare – £18,000
  • Cancer Support UK (formerly Cancer Recovery Foundation UK) – £16,000
  • Cancer Research UK – £16,000
  • The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association – £15,000
  • Macmillan Cancer Support – £14,000
  • The Royal British Legion – £12,000
  • The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children – £12,000
  • Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity – £11,000
  • WWF-UK – £9,000
  • Battersea Dogs’ and Cats’ Home – £9,000
  • Oxfam – £6,000

The current limit for ICO fines is £500,000, however, this will increase to 20 million euros or 4% of revenue under GDPR.

A sample of activities that led to these charities being fined by the ICO includes:

  • Profiling potential donors based on their wealth and  hiring third parties to discover more information about donors’ wealth and background than had originally been provided.
  • Sourcing information on donors to ‘fill in the blanks’ for any information they did NOT provide.
  • Illegally sharing information on donors with other charities, no matter what the cause.

Quote from the Information Commissioner:

“These fines draw a line under what has been a complex investigation into the way some charities have handled personal information. While we will continue to educate and support charities, we have been clear that what we now want, and expect, is for charities to follow the law”.

GDPR brings the Data Protection Act into the 21st century by seeking to protect data subjects from the inappropriate or unauthorised sharing of their data. Below are just a few of the key areas that charities need to consider where GDPR will strengthen or change the Data Protection Act:

  • The requirement to appoint a Data Protection Officer (for certain types of organisation)
  • Changes to how consent can be obtained from individuals for the use of their data. For example, data subjects will have to explicitly ‘opt in’ to allow their data to be shared, and it must be made clear to them exactly how their data will be used
  • The introduction of new rights for data subjects, including the right to be provided with a copy of their data so they can move it to another organisation (data portability) and the right to be forgotten (data erasure)
  • GDPR is also clearer around the need to ensure that data is being held only for the purpose that it was gathered, and that it is also being deleted when it is no longer needed.

In addition to addressing the above changes, GDPR also makes certain activities mandatory: These include:

  • Providing new and existing staff with suitable training and awareness, as well as additional sources of guidance and support when required
  • Conducting Data Protection Impact Assessments (or DPIA) in order to design data privacy into any new systems and processes. This is of particular importance if new technology is being deployed, where there is processing on a large scale of the special categories of data, or if profiling operations are being performed which are likely to have an impact on individuals;
  • Notifying the ICO within 72 hours of a data breach
  • Holding those at executive management and board level accountable for compliance, requiring them to produce and maintain documents that demonstrate what actions have been taken to achieve compliance.

Scott – Moncrieff note that GDPR represents a serious challenge for many organisations, particularly for charities that are dependent on their donor databases and hold large amounts of sensitive information on vulnerable individuals. Trustees and executive leadership are accountable for compliance with the new law and it is critical that they take steps now to ensure their organisations are ready for 25 May 2018.

 

 

The future of measurement and evaluation

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New Philanthropy Capital state that good measurement and evaluation is key to increasing the effectiveness of the social sector.

Without it, the sector as a whole has little idea about the impact it is having.

The sector is rudderless, relying on anecdote and instinct.

With Measurement, Evaluation and an assessment of Impact (however small) the sector can make good strategic decisions to  deliver for its various missions and causes.

And, they note, this is especially important today given reduced funding and growing social need.

Having developed initially in the public sector, measurement and evaluation is now growing in importance within the voluntary sector.

But for many, the words measurement and evaluation spell despair and are met with a deep sigh.

Complicated, jargon-filled, top down, box-ticking, funder-demanded, taking ages and very expensive are just some of the concerns and objections people have.

And yet times are changing: Measurement and Evaluation Tools are  becoming easier to use. Take Inspiring Impacts Measuring Up!, an important first step in understanding your organisations Impact practice. Take the challenge here:

Support Cambridgeshire will be running a number of Impact workshops in 2018. To register your interest in attending contact Support Cambridgeshire.

These workshops will cover:

  • A definition of terms and jargon – lets simplify the process.
  • An examination of different types of Impact Model.
  • Whats our recommendation – which one could you use to demonstrate the importance of your organisation to potential funders.
  • Where are the barriers and opportunities.

Measuring Up!

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Measuring Up!  – a way of getting organisations (large or small) to think about the difference they make.

Measuring Up! is a straightforward, step-by-step self-assessment tool that allows you to review and improve your organisation’s impact practice: The way you plan, evidence, communicate and learn from the difference that your work makes.

Its an important stepping stone to creating an Impact Plan – a plan you can readily show to funders as a way of demonstrating your effectiveness.

Once you have your report, you can contact Support Cambridgeshire if you require any further development, training or guidance.

Why not give it a go by clicking here

Village halls benefit from peer mentoring

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People wokring

As part of its Support Cambridgeshire contract, Cambridgeshire ACRE wished to explore whether peer mentoring, the provision of advice on village hall matters to trustees by trustees might be feasible. The concept is simple: less experienced trustees receive support and guidance from the more experienced.

A number of village halls have asked for advice on establishing a bar operation to increase income and diversify their portfolio. ACRE dispatched a peer mentor with experience of establishing a bar to provide key support, advice and guidance.

To date, two village halls have received practical guidance through E-Mail, telephone and through a learning and skills exchange, to see how practical a bar operation could or would be.

Advice provided has covered such subjects as directorship, accounting, stock control and the practical limitations of operating a bar given time and space.

Feedback from trustees who have received peer mentoring has been very positive and both halls have been highly appreciative of the support and guidance given. The peer support has increased their confidence and enabled trustees to return to their own halls with a better understanding of how to set up a bar that will contributes to the financial success of their village hall.

One trustee commented: “We found it very useful and it all seems much more straightforward than we had been led to believe. We will be feeding back at our committee meeting next week and will then start setting up our bar.”

Village hall benefits from social media

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Kirtling village hall approached one of the Support Cambridgeshire partners, Cambridgeshire ACRE, for advice on how to better market their events and increase attendance numbers.

ACRE’s Community Facilities Development Officer worked with the trustees on a range of potential marketing avenues, including social media and specifically the development of a village hall Facebook Page.

Support was given in a variety of ways, by E-Mail, telephone and a bespoke 1-1 training session on the advantages and disadvantages of Facebook and social media in general.

Patricia Lewis, Chair of Trustees said:

“We certainly value the support we receive from Cambridgeshire ACRE. The training session enabled me to gain confidence using social media and now I appreciate the need to keep this page updated as this will contribute to its success”

Kirtling village hall is located at 39 The Street, Kirtling, Newmarket, CB8 9PB

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