Privacy notice

Version 1; last updated 23/02/2022

This privacy notice explains when and why we collect personal information about participants using the Habitat Matters website. This notice sets out how Habitat Matters and joint controllers, ACO Technologies Plc, Biological Records Centre and UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, process and store personal data which we collect from you or which you provide to us and how these data may be shared.

We may update this notice from time to time and will seek to notify participants, directly where possible, and display a notification on the website for material changes.

Please direct any questions about this privacy notice or data protection to contact@habitat-matters.com or write to Habitat Matters (ACO Technologies Plc), ACO Business Park, Hitchin Road, Shefford, Bedfordshire, UK, SG17 5TE.

Who are we?

Habitat Matters and its partners are dedicated the protection of biodiversity in the built environment. ACO supported by industry partners have create Habitat Matters educational resources and the mapping system to raise awareness of the plight of biodiversity and the importance of habitat conservation, encouraging people to take part in citizen science, and through our education programme, training and connecting communities to the  built environment and nature, contributing towards national biological record keeping.
 
Habitat Matters (2021-current) is the property of ACO Technologies Plc. All rights reserved. Company Registration Number: 1854115. 

ACO Technologies Plc are a proprietary product manufacturer in the surface water management industry. ACO are committed to the protection of biodiversity and the diverse range of habitats that support them. ACO have an extensive water manage range that protect natural system and connect with Nature Based Solutions and SuDS. ACO have an extensive wildlife range to protect biodiversity and mitigate the danger imposed by the built environment. 

Who are our joint data controller partners?

The Habitat Matters website provides data to iRecord, a website for sharing wildlife observations irecord.org.uk. iRecord and the Indicia database it is powered by are operated by the Biological Records Centre (BRC) as part of the work of the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH).

UKCEH https://www.ceh.ac.uk/ is an independent, not-for-profit research institute and is a registered Charity in England & Wales (number 1185618) and in Scotland (number SC049849), and a registered Company Limited by Guarantee in England & Wales (number 11314957).

UKCEH is strategically funded by the Natural Environment Research Council, part of UK Research and Innovation.

BRC https://www.brc.ac.uk/ is a national focus in the UK for the capture, quality assurance, synthesis and analysis of wildlife sightings. BRC is supported by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) and UKCEH (through National Capability funding via Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)).

Why are we collecting your information?

People from across the UK can join the Habitat Matters website to record and learn about habitat, the built environment and biodiversity they observe in day to day life. The site, habitat, features and biodiversity data submitted give us better understanding of how habitats and are important to support biodiversity, and monitor long term Biodiversity Net Gain principals. 

What personal data are we collecting?

You can visit the Habitat Matters website without identifying yourself or revealing any personal information. If you choose to submit records to us, your record will include personal data vital to quality control and the scientific record. To submit your records you will need to create a new account with Habitat Matters. If you also use the iRecord website or one of the iRecord apps, we recommend that you register here with the same email address as you have used on iRecord, so that your records can be linked up.

We will require and store the following personal information as part of the account creation and record submission process:

  • Full name

  • Email address

  • Job title (optional)

  • Company name (optional)

  • User name and a generated user ID code

  • Location and date of any records you submit

We may store the following information regarding your visit to the website:

  • IP address and a randomly generated Google Analytics ID to provide anonymised information regarding what pages are accessed and when

What are we processing your personal data for?

We process your personal data for the following purposes. In data protection terms we are using the lawful basis of ‘legitimate interests’ or ‘consent’ for this processing. We indicate the legal basis for collecting and using these data next to each use listed below.  Where consent is required you can opt into this consent. We may also be required to process personal data for compliance with legal obligations.

We use information we collect to:

  • enable you to operate a Habitat Matters account, including but not limited to creating an account, resetting your password and submitting records (Legitimate Interests)

  • link all your recorded data and sightings together, if you have other existing iRecord accounts using the same email address (Legitimate Interests)

  • create a scientific record including recorder identity for research, archival and statistical purposes. Your name and the observation location will be included as part of the scientific records in these datasets (Legitimate Interest) 

  • enable your record(s) to be checked and verified by experts now or in future, supporting a robust dataset for the national recording scheme. This may include facilitating staff or volunteers (County Recorders and Verifiers) to contact you by email regarding your record(s) (Legitimate Interests)

  • enable experts verifying your record(s) to take into account your known individual recording history, for example if you have previously had dialogue or training with them regarding a particular species this can be taken into account during verification assessment of new records of the same species (Legitimate Interests)

  • facilitate notification of your record(s)’s verification status from iRecord according to your ‘email digest’ options selected on registration (Legitimate Interests)

  • provide attribution and acknowledgement that a record was contributed by you, within the public domain (Legitimate Interest)

  • enable Habitat Matters and its partners to send you information from time to time relating to your use of the Habitat Matters website, such as records, results or changes to functionality or privacy notice (Legitimate Interests)

  • analyse the use of our website for optimising performance, design and function with Google Analytics if you consent to this (more information below) (Consent)

  • send you regular communications, such as our newsletter, electronically if you indicate that you are interested in receiving regular information about Habitat Matters or ACO Technologies (Consent)

  • send you information from related third parties that we feel may be of interest to you if you have provided informed consent (Consent)

How long will we keep your personal data?

  • Records you have submitted (including your name and location of the observation) will be retained indefinitely as part of the scientific record.

  • Your email address will be stored securely in a database for as long as you are signed up with the Habitat Matters website. You will be able to delete your Habitat Matters account or opt out of receiving emails from Habitat Matters or ACO Technologies Plc. Employees at any time in the future. If you no-longer wish to be registered with the site please contact contact@habitat-matters.com and we will facilitate removal of your account.

  • Your email address and correspondence with you will be maintained within staff email accounts for as long as required for the purposes of communication about particular records. Staff will be provided with GDPR training and required to process personal data only from a password-protected device with-up to-date anti-virus software.

  • If you opt in to receiving marketing communications, Habitat Matters and ACO Technologies Plc will maintain your contact details for the duration required to send you ongoing, regular news about recording and our conservational work. You can opt out of such communications at any time.

Where are we storing your information?

  • Your submitted records, including your name and the precise location of the site, habitat, feature and sighting/ observation:

    • will be stored on a secure UK-based server at BRC, part of UKCEH - records will be displayed to other users of the iRecord website (see Terms of Use for how location and sensitive species are treated)

    • may be stored by volunteer data processors, within their local databases, or by any data users who have accessed records data (see Sharing your data section below)

  • Your account information including your email address will be stored within a secure server at BRC, part of UKCEH. 

  • Your email address may be accessed and used within volunteer email accounts, from personal computers or mobile devices, for the purpose of record verification. Volunteers will be provided with GDPR training and required to process personal data only from a password-protected device with-up to-date anti-virus software.

  • Your email address may be stored by volunteer data processors within relevant local databases on personal computers as part of data sharing for the purpose of verification. Volunteers will be provided with GDPR training and required to process personal data only from a password-protected device with-up to-date anti-virus software (see Sharing your data section below). 

Google Analytics

We use Google Analytics on this website for aggregated, anonymised website traffic analysis. If you agree to the use of non-essential cookies a Google Analytics cookie will be swtiched on with a randomly generated ClientID in your browser. This ID is anonymised and contains no identifiable information like email or name. We also send Google your IP address. Read more about our use of cookies in the cookie notice.

We use Google Analytics to track aggregated website behaviour, such as what pages you visited, for how long etc. This information helps us to inform our website development regarding user experience and functionality.

If you would like to access what browsing information we have, or ask us to delete any Google Analytics data, please delete your _ga cookies, contact us at contact@habitat-matter.com, and/or you can install the Google Analytics Opt-Out Browser Add-On that Google make available.

You can change your agreement to Google Analytics use at any time from within your Account settings accessible from the home page.

Security

We are committed to ensuring that your information is secure. In order to prevent unauthorised access or disclosure we have put in place suitable physical, electronic and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information we collect online. We will store all your personal data on secure servers, personal computers and mobile devices. 

Your login account password will be stored by us in encrypted form. Data that is sent from your web browser to our web server, or from our web server to your web browser, will be protected using encryption technology (SSL). 
Website and database are subject to backup schedules.

Where you have chosen a password which enables you to access parts of the Habitat Matters website, you are responsible for keeping this password confidential and should ensure your password is not susceptible to being guessed.  We ask you not to share a password with anyone.  Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure.  Although we will do our best to protect your personal data, we cannot guarantee the security of your data transmitted to our site; any transmission is at your own risk.

Sharing your data

The science, conservation, policy, decision-making and education purposes of the national recording scheme are facilitated by the sharing of your records (which includes your name and the location of the observation) and the limited sharing of your email address, more details below.

Email address

We will share your email address only with those who need it for running the Habitat Matters website and supporting data validation and verification for the national recording scheme:

  • Habitat Matters, ACO Technologies Plc staff and contractors

  • third party joint data controller the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology and Biological Records Centre staff and contractors

  • volunteer data verifiers. Once you have submitted a record, expert volunteers (County Recorders and Verifiers) will have access to your email for the purposes of supporting verification of data to the national scheme. Your email will only be used to request additional information regarding submitted records, and for no other purpose.

If you have consented to receiving regular information about Habitat Matters and/ or ACO Technologies Plc activities, your contact details including email will be shared with staff administering these communications.

Unless required by law, your email address will not be made available to any other third parties unless we have obtained your permission to do so and will not be transferred outside of the EU. 

Site, habitat, features and biological records (including your name and the location)

Records that you submit, including your name and the precise location of recorded site, habitat, feature or sightings/ biodiversity observations, may be collated and disseminated manually or electronically, including via the internet or worldwide.

  • Your name forms an important part of each record and will be collated and disseminated with your records.

  • Location is an important component of a record and this is provided by you and determined from estimated national grid location from within the online map. You can control the resolution of the site location for your records that you submit up to 100 meters square when you register a site.

Your records are published within the iRecord website and displayed publicly. Note that public display of location to iRecord users is blurred to 1Km square and site name is hidden, regardless of entered location resolution. However the precise record location entered is shared with Verifiers and UKCEH staff and contractors and may be shared with other data users along with your recorder name and recorded site, habitat, feature or sightings/ biodiversity observational record details in accordance with this notice and the Terms of Use.

Records will be made available to Local Environmental Record Centres (https://www.alerc.org.uk/), other conservation organisations, scientific researchers and the public. 

Records may be submitted to the National Biodiversity Network (NBN) Atlas https://nbnatlas.org/ -  a collaborative project that aggregates biodiversity data from multiple sources and makes it available and usable online. It is the UK’s largest collection of freely available biodiversity data. From here data may be shared with the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) https://www.gbif.org/ - an international network and data infrastructure.

Your rights

Right of access: You may request details of the personal information that we hold about you and this is not subject to any fee or charge. Please contact us at contact@habitat-matters.com or write to Habitat Matters (ACO Technologies Plc), ACO Business Park, Hitchin Road, Shefford, Bedfordshire, UK, SG17 5TE and we will respond within one month.

Right to object to processing: You have the right to object to the processing of your personal data where we have relied on legitimate interest as the lawful basis for processing.

Rights regarding automated decision-making: You have the right to object to decisions being made about you (e.g. about your records’ verification status) solely on automated processing based on your personal data (e.g. name). This may occur sometimes when Verifiers take into account name, username or another account identifier to decide on how to verify records. Although usually this process takes into account multiple factors, primarily ecological.

Right to rectification, restriction of processing or erasure: You have the right to request that we restrict or stop processing, rectify or delete your personal data (with the exception of names from datasets that have already been published publicly, for example on the iRecord website, within published reports or within the NBN Atlas data).

You can request that your Habitat Matters website account is deleted at any time by contacting us contact@habitat-matters.com.
  
The accuracy of your information is important to us. If you change your email address or any of the other information we hold is inaccurate or out of date, please email us at contact@habitat-matters.com or write to Habitat Matters (ACO Technologies Plc), ACO Business Park, Hitchin Road, Shefford, Bedfordshire, UK, SG17 5TE. We will correct any information promptly.

Changes to consent to additional communications: If you have opted into additional communications from Habitat Matters and/ or ACO Technologies Plc, we will give you frequent opportunities to opt out of any activities that you might not be interested in. Feel free to tell us, at any time, if you do or do not wish to receive certain types of communications. You can exercise your right to prevent such processing by unsubscribing from within a communication or by deselecting this within your Account settings accessible from the home page. You can also exercise the right at any time by contacting us at contact@habitat-matters.com or write to Habitat Matters (ACO Technologies Plc), ACO Business Park, Hitchin Road, Shefford, Bedfordshire, UK, SG17 5TE.