Privacy Statement

BACKGROUND:

This statement relates to our privacy practices in connection with this Website. The Child and Family Agency is not responsible for the content or privacy practices of other websites. Any external links to other websites are clearly identifiable as such.

The Child and Family Agency (Tusla) understands that your privacy is important to you and that you care about how your personal data is used and shared online. We respect and value the privacy of everyone who visits this website, www.cypsc.ie (“our site”) and will only collect and use personal data in ways that are described here, and in a manner that is consistent with our obligations and your rights under the law.

Please read this Privacy Statement carefully and ensure that you understand it. Your acceptance of our Privacy Statement is deemed to occur upon your first use of our site. If you do not accept and agree with this Privacy Policy, you must stop using Our Site immediately.

Definitions and Interpretation

In this Policy, the following terms shall have the following meanings: 

“Account”

Means an account required to access and/or use certain areas and features of Our Site;

“Cookie”

Means a small text file placed on your computer or device by our site when you visit certain parts of our site and/or when you use certain features of our site. Details of the Cookies used by Our Site are set out in section 12, below;

“Cookie Law”

Means the relevant parts of the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003;

“personal data”

Means any and all data that relates to an identifiable person who can be directly or indirectly identified from that data. In this case, it means personal data that you give to us via our site. This definition shall, where applicable, incorporate the definitions provided in the Data Protection Acts of Ireland OR EU Regulation 2016/679 – the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”); and

“We/Us/Our”

Means The Child and Family Agency (Tusla), a body corporate established under the Child and Family Agency Act 2013 whose headquarters are located at Brunel Building, Heuston South Quarter, Dublin 8.

1. Information About Us

1.1 Our site is owned and operated by the Child and Family Agency, Tusla), a body corporate established under the Child and Family Agency Act 2013 whose headquarters are located at Brunel Building, Heuston South Quarter, Dublin 8.

1.2 Our Data Protection Officer can be contacted by email at datacontroller@tusla.ie or by telephone on +353 1 771 8500, or by post at Brunel Building, Heuston South Quarter, Dublin 8.

2. What Does This Privacy Statement Cover?

This Privacy Statement applies only to your use of our sites. Our site may contain links to other websites. Please note that we are not the data controller and have no control over how your data is collected, stored, or used by other websites and we advise you to check the privacy statements and policies of any such websites before providing any data to them.

3. Your Rights

3.1 As a data subject, you have the following rights under the GDPR, which this privacy statement and our use of personal data have been designed to uphold:

3.1.1 The right to be informed about our collection and use of personal data;

3.1.2 The right of access to the personal data we hold about you (see section 10);

3.1.3 The right to rectification if any personal data We hold about you is inaccurate or incomplete (please contact us using the details in section 12);

3.1.4 The right to be forgotten – i.e. the right to ask us to delete any personal data we hold about you;

3.1.5 The right to restrict (i.e. prevent) the processing of your personal data;

3.1.6 The right to data portability (obtaining a copy of your personal data to re-use with another service or organisation);

3.1.7 The right to object to us using your personal data for particular purposes; and

3.1.8 Rights with respect to automated decision making and profiling.

3.2 If you have any cause for complaint about our use of your personal data, please contact us using the details provided in section 12. If we are unable to help, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Irish supervisory authority, the Data Protection Commission.

3.3 For further information about your rights, please contact the Data Protection Commission or your local Citizens Advice Bureau.

4. What Data Do We Collect?

Depending upon your use of our site, we may collect some or all of the following personal and non-personal data (please also see section 11 on our use of Cookies and similar technologies):

4.1 Name;

4.2 Contact information such as email addresses and telephone numbers;

4.3 Demographic information such as post code, preferences, and interests;

4.4 IP address

4.5 Web browser type and version;

4.6 Operating system;

4.7 A list of URLs starting with a referring site, your activity on our site, and the site you exit to;

5. How Do We Use Your Data?

5.1 All personal data is processed and stored securely, for no longer than is necessary in light of the reason(s) for which it was first collected. We will comply with our obligations and safeguard your rights under the Irish Data Protection Acts and GDPR at all times. For more details on security see section 6, below.

Our use of your personal data will always have a lawful basis, either because it is necessary for our performance of a contract with you, because you have consented to our use of your personal data, because it is in our legitimate interests or in the public interest. Specifically, we may use your data for the following purposes:

5.1.1 Providing and managing your access to our site;

5.1.2 Personalising and tailoring your experience on our site;

5.1.3 Supplying our services to you;

5.1.4 Personalising and tailoring our services for you;

5.1.5 Replying to emails from you;

5.1.6 Supplying you with emails that you have opted into (you may unsubscribe or opt-out at any time by contacting the Child and Family Agency (Tusla));

5.1.7 Research purposes;

5.2 We will not send you any unsolicited marketing or spam and will take all reasonable steps to ensure that we fully protect your rights and comply with our obligations under the Irish Data Protection Acts and GDPR and the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003.

5.3 Third parties whose content appears on our site may use third party Cookies, as detailed below in section 11. Please refer to section 11 for more information on controlling Cookies. Please note that we do not control the activities of such third parties, nor the data they collect and use and advise you to check the privacy statements and policies of any such third parties.

5.4 You have the right to withdraw your consent to us using your personal data at any time, and to request that we delete it.

5.5 We do not keep your personal data for any longer than is necessary in light of the reason(s) for which it was first collected. Data will therefore be retained for the period as set out in the Child and Family Agency GDPR Privacy Policy.

6. How and Where Do We Store Your Data?

6.1 Some or all of your data will be stored within the European Union. You are deemed to accept and agree to this by using our site and submitting information to us.

6.2 Data security is very important to us, and to protect your data we have taken suitable measures to safeguard and secure data collected through our site.

6.3 Steps we take to secure and protect your data include:

6.3.1 Data is stored on encrypted servers.

6.3.2 We limit access to those who can access data.

6.3.3 ICT security features are installed and in place to reduce the risk of data identify theft or hacking.

6.3.4 Your data is your own and we only will use it for the purpose stated/

7. Do We Share Your Data?

7.1 We may share your data with other public bodies and authorised third parties.

7.2 In certain circumstances, we may be legally required to share certain data held by us, which may include your personal data, for example, where we are involved in legal proceedings, where e.g. are complying with legal obligations, a court order, or a governmental authority.

7.3 We may compile statistics about the use of our site including data on traffic, usage patterns, user numbers, and other information. All such data will be anonymised and will not include any personally identifying data, or any anonymised data that can be combined with other data and used to identify you. We may from time to time share such data with authorised third parties or other Public Bodies. Data will only be shared and used within the bounds of the law.

7.4 The third party data processors used by us are located within the European Union.

8. How Can You Control Your Data?

8.1 In addition to your rights under the GDPR, set out in section 3, when you submit personal data via our site, you may be given options to restrict our use of your data.

9. Your Right to Withhold Information

9.1 You may access certain areas of our site without providing any data at all. However, to use all features and functions available on our site you may be required to submit or allow for the collection of certain data.

9.2 You may restrict our use of Cookies. For more information, see section 11.

10. How Can You Access Your Data?

You have the right to ask for a copy of any of your personal data held by us (where such data is held). Requests for records can be made by accessing our requests portal at Tusla Data Subject Records Request Portal

11. Cookie Policy

Our site may place and access certain first party Cookies on your computer or device. First party Cookies are those placed directly by us and are used only by us. We use Cookies to facilitate and improve your experience of our site and to provide and improve our services. We have carefully chosen these Cookies and have taken steps to ensure that your privacy and personal data is protected and respected at all times.

By using our site, you may also receive certain third party Cookies on your computer or device. Third party Cookies are those placed by websites, services, and/or parties other than us. These Cookies are not integral to the functioning of Our Site and your use and experience of Our Site will not be impaired by refusing consent to them.

To view our cookie policy - please click here  

12. Contacting Us

If you have any questions about our site or this privacy statement, please contact us by email at datacontroller@tusla.ie or by post at Brunel Building, Heuston South Quarter, and Dublin 8. Please ensure that your query is clear, particularly if it is a request for information about the data we hold about you (as under section 10, above).

13. Changes to Our Privacy Statement

We may change this Privacy Statement from time to time (for example, if the law changes). Any changes will be immediately posted on our site and you will be deemed to have accepted the terms of the Privacy Statement on your first use of our site following the alterations. We recommend that you check this page regularly to keep up-to-date.