Privacy Policy

The Parish collects personal information by registration and with the consent of individuals. Information is provided directly by individuals or their spouse / parents/ guardians to the Parish. The primary purpose for the collection of personal information is to enable contact for pastoral, liturgical and administrative purposes between the Parish clergy, ministry leaders and officials and parishioners. 

• The Anglican Parish of Manuka is committed to complying with the Privacy Act 1988(Cth), and the Privacy (Enhancing Privacy Protection) Act 2012(Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (“APPs”).
• All personal information held by the Parish that is within the meaning of “personal information” under the Privacy Act, will be treated in accordance with the APPs.
• Purpose of the Policy – To protect the privacy of all personal data held by the Parish. 
• Australian Privacy Principles : The full text of the APPs can be found at https://www.oaic.gov.au/individuals/privacy-fact-sheets/general/privacy-fact-sheet-17-australian-privacy-principles.  
  • Personal Information Collected by the Parish includes: 
    • Name and date of birth
    • Spouse / child(ren) names and dates of birth
    • Home and postal address / place of hospital admission, respite care
    • Email and phone contact details
    • Sacramental history
  • Personal informationis used for pastoral, administrative and liturgical purposes by the Parish clergy, parish office administrator, parish officials (wardens and parish councillors) and parish leaders (music directors, group / activity leaders, Licensed Lay Ministers). Personal information may also be recorded in parish registers (baptism, confirmation, admission to communion, marriage, burial). 
  • Protocols for Collection and Use of Information: 
    • Information is to be collected by voluntary registration only. 
    • Parish officers and group leaders should use the current parish approved consent acknowledgement and reference to this policy in gathering information. 
    • Parish officers and group leaders should receive a copy of this policy in their induction process. 
    • Access to this policy is to be made available at the Parish Centre and on the Parish website. 
  • Storage: Information collected by the Parish is to be stored in secure offices (Parish office and Rector’s study) and softcopy data stored in password protected computers. Group / activity leaders should only collect and store information relevant for the administration of their groups and are not to use this information for purposes other than which it was provided. It is to be kept in secure files and not provided to third parties without legal authority. 
  • Disclosure of Personal Information:Personal information may be shared with Diocesan entities for sacramental and liturgical purposes (eg. Reporting names of confirmation candidates to the bishop’s office) as well as for administrative and pastoral purposes. It may also be shared with other Anglican entities, domestically and internationally (eg. A request for proof of baptism) and on request of the parishioner concerned also provided to third party organisations (eg. Provided to mission organisations for tax deductible receipts). Appropriate notification of this policy should be provided at the time of collecting information. 
  • Overseas Disclosure:Personal information is unlikely to be disclosed to overseas entities however this may arise for sacramental purposes (eg. providing certification of baptism / confirmation to a church / school etc overseas) in which instance the disclosure is usually at the request of the individual. 

  Collection and Management of Sensitive Information

  Sensitive information is only collected by consent. Sensitive information is required from individuals by the Parish for various purposes. Pastoral and liturgical ministry (eg. confirmation, reception, marriage) may require the collection of sensitive information for the completion of legal documents and for administrative purposes (eg. entering information into registers). Sensitive information is required for vetting of parish officials, staff, volunteers and ministry leaders and from contractors. 

  • The forms of sensitive information collected may include:
    • Police checks and Working With Vulnerable People check (ACT) / Working With Children Checks (NSW) for staff, volunteers and contractors as appropriate
    • Religious information: baptism, confirmation, and ordination information for individuals seeking admission to sacraments or to fulfil official or volunteer roles in the parish. 
    • Marital status information 
    • Ministry questionnaire information
    • Marriage preparation questionnaires and reports
    • Licences and qualifications (ministry leaders, parish officials, contractors for building services, maintenance and services)
    • Pastoral records (contemporaneous notes made by the clergy / ministry leader of pastoral conversations)
    • Records for WHS and insurance purposes: eg. incident reports. 
  •  Sensitive information may be obtained by and provided to the following Parish personnel:
    • the Rector and parish clergy
    • the parish office administrator 
    • the Churchwardens 
    • Members of the Parish Council. 
  • Sensitive information may be shared by the Parish with the Diocese and its entities and insurers as required for purposes of licensing, approval and administration. It may also be shared with other agencies as required by law.    
  • Storage of sensitive information:
    Sensitive information that has been collected is to be stored as follows:
    •  hardcopy files in a secure filing cabinet in a secure office
    • electronic databases and softcopy files stored and backed up with encryption on computers.

  Access to Personal Information

  • Individuals have a right to access or to request correction of personal information held by the Parish except for confidential pastoral records and some marriage preparation reports which we are not authorised to pass on). Individuals wishing to gain access or request correction of personal information should contact the Parish Office in the first instance.