Evaluation of the Acas Individual Conciliation Service: Privacy notice

Who are the data controllers?

For data protection legislation, Acas and NatCen are data controllers. NatCen is the data processor for the research. This means Acas and NatCen are responsible for deciding the purpose and legal basis for processing personal data from this study.

What is the legal basis for processing my data?

For this study, the legal basis for processing your personal data is ‘Public Task’. The condition for processing special category personal data is ‘Reasons of substantial public interest’. These legal bases pertain to Acas’ statutory duty “to promote the improvement of industrial relations” (Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992). 

Who will have access to my personal data?

Acas provided NatCen with your contact details for you to take part in the individual conciliation representative survey. NatCen will also have your email address and/ or telephone number where you have indicated an interest in taking part in an interview and with your consent. This information is transferred between Acas and NatCen securely and is stored securely in line with data protection legislation.

How will NatCen use your information?

Data will only be used for specific research purposes. NatCen will write up the findings in a report in a way that protects your anonymity. The report may contain direct quotes from the data you provide us; however, no information that could specifically identify you or your employer will be included.

NatCen will not attribute any views to you but will report the overall views of all the people who participated in the research. NatCen will also not tell anyone else, including Acas, what you have personally said, nor will NatCen include any names or personal details in the report. The findings of the research will be published on the Acas website. All information for this study will be securely deleted six months after the research is complete.

You can withdraw your data from this study at any time prior to analysis up to the end of October 2026.

Who are NatCen?

NatCen is an independent social research institute. We design, conduct, and analyse research studies in the fields of social and public policy. NatCen researchers are responsible for this project and are delivering the surveys and interviews.

Your data protection rights

You have rights regarding your personal data. These include:

• The right to request copies of your personal data.
• The right to ask us to correct any personal data that we hod about you that’s inaccurate or incomplete.
• The right to ask us to delete personal data that we hold about you.
• The right to object or restrict how we’re processing your personal data.

Who to contact if you have a query or complaint?  

To contact the research team at NatCen, please email ConciliationRepStudy@natcen.ac.uk.

Alternatively, to contact the research team at Acas directly, please email research@acas.org.uk. 

If you have any questions about how your data will be used for this research, you can contact NatCen’s Data Protection Officer at dpo@natcen.ac.uk. Or you can contact Acas’s Data Protection Officer at dataprotection@acas.org.uk. Acas’s full privacy notice is available at acas.org.uk/privacy.

Under General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), you have the right to lodge a complaint about how information has been used or managed with the Information Commissioner’s Office on 0303 123 1113.