Scottish Connections Fund: guidance

How we will handle your data

Legal basis

The Scottish Government seeks to ensure that the data collected through the Scottish Connections Fund application form is fairly and lawfully processed in accordance with Data Protection Laws as detailed under the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA). Any personal information gathered through this application form will be treated as confidential in line with the principles of the Data Protection Laws. Article 6(1)(b) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will apply for the purposes of the fund.

Your data

We will collect data about you, your organisation and any organisation(s) you partner with for the purpose of the Scottish Connections Fund in to order to process your application. Information gathered will include the following: individual names and organisation names, postal addresses, email addresses, phone numbers, positions and charity numbers if applicable.

We collect a minimum amount of your personal data in order to contact you about your application. Decisions about the fund are made using business information provided, and not your personal data.

The purpose

The information provided in the application form will be used for administering the Scottish Connections Fund, including assessing your grant eligibility and making grant payments. Processing the information is obligatory in order to fully assess your application before a funding decision can be made.

Sharing of data

We may share the information gathered through the application form with directorates within Scottish Government assisting in the assessment process. Any data shared will refer to business information only and no individual data will be shared. The Scottish Government may publish Scottish Connections Fund data on its website, however it will not allow any individuals to be identified. The information may include your organisation’s name, type of enterprise, location/s in which the project is carried out, sector of activity, amount of grant and objectives of the grant.

Storing of data

Data gathered for the purpose of the Scottish Connections Fund will be securely stored on Scottish Government’s Record Management system – eRDM.

Retention period

The Scottish Government is committed to keep only what we need for no longer than necessary.

We keep the data for as long as the Scottish Connections Fund exists. After this period, the data will be disposed of. Payment records may be kept for longer - usually 6 years.

Data protection rights

You have the right to:

• request information about how your personal data is processed and to request a copy of your data
• to request that any inaccuracies in your personal data are rectified without delay
• request that any incomplete personal data is completed
• request that your personal data is erased if there is no longer a justification for it to be processed
• object to the processing of your personal data

Scottish Government’s Data Protection Officer

The Scottish Government endeavours to meet the highest standards when collecting and using your personal data. If you would like to raise any concerns, please contact DataProtectionOfficer@gov.scot

Complaints

If you consider that your personal data has been misused or mishandled, you may make a complaint to the Information Commissioner, who is an independent regulator. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
casework@ico.org.uk