Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) Your Voice survey 2026: Privacy Notice
Who are NatCen?
The National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) is an independent, not-for-profit social research organisation. You can find a link to our website here: https://natcen.ac.uk/.
What is this research about?
This privacy notice sets out how your information will be used for the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) Your Voice survey 2026. This survey is a key part in understanding what is working well and what can be improved about the NMC as a place to work. This survey will give insights to the NMC, your directorate and your team to shape improvements in the future.
NatCen are conducting this survey to handle responses independently and securely, provide robust insight at the organisational, directorate and team level, and translate findings into clear priorities for action.
What is the legal basis for processing my data?
For the purpose of data protection legislation, NMC is the data controller and NatCen is the data processor. This means that NMC are responsible for deciding the purpose and legal basis for processing data collected in relation to the Your Voice survey 2026 data collection activities. In order to use personal data in a manner which is lawful, we need to meet one (or more) conditions in data protection legislation, as set out in Article 6(1) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). As such, the lawful basis for this data processing will be Article 6 (1)(f): For the purposes of the legitimate interests pursued by the controller and Article 9 (2)(b): Data is processed for the purposes of carrying out the obligations and exercising specific rights of the controller in the field of employment and social security and social protection law. Schedule 1, Part 2, Paragraph 8 allows organisations to process special category data, such as racial or ethnic origin, religious beliefs, or health data, for equality of opportunity or treatment.
Who will have access to my personal data?
Only named individuals in the NatCen research team will have access to the contact details of people who take part in the survey. No one at NatCen outside of the designated research team will have access to the data. This will be stored in secure folders which have restricted access.
How will my data be used?
NatCen is independent from the NMC and will manage the survey and analyse the results. Your individual responses will be collected directly by us and held in the strictest confidence. Information gathered from the data collection activities will be used for findings in relation to the Your Voice 2026 survey only.
During the survey, NatCen will store and manage all data securely and confidentially.
All findings from multiple-choice questions will be delivered to the NMC in anonymised summary reports that combine individual data into groups, where a group has a minimum of five responses. For example, scores will be reported at the team level, where a team has five or more responses.
Written, open-ended feedback will be provided to the NMC as a separate list detached from any identifying details (such as names, job roles, teams and demographic details).
No individual-level data or identifying combinations will be shared with the NMC.
NMC plans to publish the findings internally. As in previous years of the Your Voice survey, summary findings may be published in the NMC Council Papers.
Once the project is completed, all personal information, and any other data held, will be securely deleted. Personal data will be retained for as long as necessary for research purposes, in accordance with the UK GDPR and the DPA 2018. The completion of the project is currently scheduled for November 2026.
Do I have the right to withdraw permission?
You have the right to withdraw your permission for data processing and ask for your contributions to be redacted or withdrawn entirely. You do not have to justify or explain why you wish to do so. If you do decide to withdraw your permission, we will stop processing your data and remove the data that you have provided. However, after your participation, your data will be combined with other responses as part of analysis. It will not be possible to withdraw or redact data following this analysis. Therefore, you can withdraw your permission up to the point at which analysis has started which is scheduled for 16 October 2026. After analysis has taken place, if you wish to do so, you are still able to withdraw your permission for any further data processing.
If you do wish to withdraw your permission to take part in the survey, or wish to redact your contribution, you can contact the research team by emailing: NMCYourVoice@natcen.ac.uk.
What are my rights as a data subject?
Under UK GDPR, people whose personal data is being processed have certain rights. Data subjects have the right to be informed about the collection and use of personal data. In addition, as a data subject, you have the following rights:
- You are able to access personal data which is held by NatCen in relation to this research, in a format which is easy to transfer;
- If NatCen hold data which is not accurate, you have the right to correct this and for inaccuracies to be rectified;
- You are able to withdraw your permission, object to your data being processed, and have your data erased (please refer to the above section for further information);
- Under certain circumstances, you are able to restrict the processing of your data; and
- You can make a complaint relating to the processing of your data (please refer to the below section for further information).
Who can I contact with a query or complaint?
If you have any questions about how your data will be used for the Your Voice survey, please contact the research team at NMCYourVoice@natcen.ac.uk.
If you have any concerns over how your data is used, you can contact NatCen’s Data Protection Officer at dpo@natcen.ac.uk.
Under UK GDPR, you have the right to lodge a complaint about how information has been used or managed with the Information Commissioner’s Office. Please go to www.ico.org.uk for more information.