Privacy notice: Research into the needs of the Royal Navy submariner community

This privacy notice sets out how we will process your information if you decide to take part in this research. In line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), it explains the legal basis for data processing; who will have access to participants’ personal data; how this data will be used, stored and deleted; and how to submit a query or a complaint.

What is the purpose of this research?

The National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) has been commissioned by The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust to conduct research into the needs of Royal Navy submarine community to guide the development of focused interventions within the future grant framework of the trust.

If you would like to know more about the research and what taking part will involve, please see the information letter received alongside this privacy notice.

What is the legal basis for NatCen processing my data?

The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust is the data controller for this research and NatCen is the data processor. This means by The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust is responsible for deciding the purpose and legal basis for processing data. NatCen is responsible for the collection, processing and storage of the data.

In order for the use of personal data to be lawful, one (or more) conditions in the data protection legislation, as set out in Article 6(1) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), must be met.

For this project, the lawful basis is twofold:

Legitimate interest: this means that there is a genuine reason for NatCen to collect and process data, to fulfil research requirements and objectives and using this data will not interfere with individuals’ interests, rights or freedoms.
Public task: this relates to The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust’s statutory duties around promoting an individual's wellbeing – wellbeing in this sense can mean participation in education, an individual's contribution to society and their social and economic wellbeing.

More details on how by The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust complies with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), can be found under this link: Privacy Policy : Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust.

Who will have access to my personal data?

NatCen is carrying out this research. Named individuals on the NatCen research team will have access to:

Details (such as name, role and email) of participants and organisations.
Interview recordings and transcripts.

McGowan Transcriptions transcribe our interviews and will have access to audio recordings and transcripts. McGowan Transcriptions is on our approved supplier list and compliant with all our information security policies.

How will my data be used?

The results collected will be used for research purposes only. All data collected will be handled in accordance with GDPR. The information you provide will be used to write research outputs. All findings, including any verbatim quotations that are used, will be anonymised. This means we will not include the names of any individuals or organisations in the research outputs.

The data held by NatCen will be stored securely in the UK, in line with international best practice and NatCen’s ISO 27001, ISO 20252 and Cyber Essentials Plus certifications. Data will not be stored in overseas servers.

Within one year of acceptance of the final deliverable (we expect this to be 27th of January 2026) we will ensure that all data is securely deleted and that other outputs as listed above are securely stored.

Can I change my mind during the research?

Yes. You have the right to withdraw your permission for processing at any time and you don’t have to justify or explain why you are doing so if you don’t want to state your reasons. To withdraw your permission, please contact the study team at subfamresearch@natcen.ac.uk.

Participants taking part in research encounters also have the right to withdraw their contribution to this research by contacting the research team by October 15th. After this date, the data they provide has been aggregated with other responses in analyses, and we will be unable to remove their contribution from our outputs.

What are your rights under GDPR?

Under certain circumstances, by law you have the right to:

Be informed about the collection and use of your personal data. We must provide this privacy notice to explain the purpose for processing your personal data, retention periods for your personal data, and who it will be shared with.
Request access to your personal information (commonly known as a “data subject access request”). This enables you to receive a copy of the personal information we hold about you and to check that we are lawfully processing it.
Request correction of the personal information that we hold about you. This enables you to have any incomplete or inaccurate information we hold about you corrected.
Request erasure of your personal information. This enables you to ask us to delete or remove personal information where there is no good reason for us continuing to process it. You also have the right to ask us to delete or remove your personal information where you have exercised your right to object to processing (see below).
Object to processing of your personal information where we are relying on a legitimate interest (or those of a third party) and there is something about your particular situation that makes you want to object to processing on this ground.
Request the restriction of processing of your personal information. This enables you to ask us to suspend the processing of personal information about you, for example if you want us to establish its accuracy or the reason for processing it.
Request the transfer of your personal information to another party.
Rights in relation to automated decision-making and profiling. We will not use your data for automated decision making or profiling in any way.

If you want to exercise any of these rights during the research, including if you change your mind about taking part, please contact the study team at subfamresearch@natcen.ac.uk.

Who can I contact with a query or a complaint?

We would welcome the opportunity to discuss the research with you to address any concerns directly. Please do feel free to contact us if you have any questions – at subfamresearch@natcen.ac.uk.

If you believe we have not complied with your data protection rights, you can contact us at dpo@natcen.ac.uk.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office on 0303 123 1113, at https://ico.org.uk/concerns, or by writing to Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.