Public attitudes towards health data use in statistics production: Privacy notice

This privacy notice sets out how we will process your data if you decide to take part in this research.

What is the purpose of this research?

The National Centre for Social Research (NatCen), an independent social research agency, is carrying out this research on behalf of the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to explore people’s views towards health data use in statistics.

What is the legal basis for processing my data?

NatCen and the ONS are the joint data controllers for this research. This means we are responsible for deciding the purpose and legal basis for processing data, what personal information to collect, and how it is used.

Under GDPR, the lawful bases for processing your data are:

  • Public Task (Article 6(1)(e)). This means that we are processing your data because it is necessary for the ONS/NatCen to perform a task in the public interest or for official functions.
  • Statistical Purpose (Article 9(2)(j). This means that we are processing special category data because it is necessary for statistical purposes. Special category data is personal data that needs more protection because it is sensitive. The special category data we will be processing during this study includes racial or ethnic origin and health information.

Who will access my personal data?

If you take part in the survey, the NatCen research team will access your survey responses through our partner Yonder Data Solutions. Yonder will share the survey with participants through their panel and ask for permission to access your data.

If you take part in the interview, NatCen will access your contact details through our recruitment partner, Criteria Fieldwork Specialists, to invite you to take part. If you agree to be recorded, our transcription partner, McGowan Transcriptions, will have temporary access to the personal data you provide during the interview. This includes audio recordings and transcriptions (written accounts) of the interviews, which the NatCen research team will access and use for the research.

NatCen will not share your personal data with any other organisation unless a research participant discloses harm or a serious risk of harm to themselves or somebody else they identify.

How will my data be used?

The data collected will be used only for research purposes.

NatCen will produce a report for the ONS that summarises the main themes and issues discussed during the interviews and gathered from survey responses, which the ONS intents to publish. The report will include some verbatim quotes from the interviews but will not include names or specific details that could identify you.

The data held by NatCen will be stored securely in the UK, in line with international best practice.

All personal information and other project data will be securely deleted within 12 months of completed research, on March 31st, 2026.

You may withdraw your contribution from the study up to March 3rd, 2026. To do so, please contact the NatCen research team using the study email address provided below.

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 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 make a request based on any of these rights, please contact the NatCen research team using the study email provided below. 

Questions or concerns about personal data

If you have any questions or concerns about the research or how your data is used, please contact:  

If you prefer to contact someone outside of the research team, you can contact: 

Under GDPR, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office at: