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Research impact privacy notice

Introduction

This privacy notice is for those providing Nottingham Trent University (NTU) with evidence of the impact that its research has had. NTU routinely collect qualitative and quantitative evidence to demonstrate how its research has resulted in a change, effect on, or benefit to the economy, society, culture, the environment, health, public policy or services, or quality of life.

Where we need to use your personal data to obtain impact evidence or the evidence includes your personal data, this privacy notice sets out the ways in which NTU processes that data. We recommend you review this privacy notice carefully, so you fully understand the uses of your personal data before providing any impact evidence or statements.

NTU is a Data Controller for personal data as defined by the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) (i.e., NTU determines the purposes and the means of processing your personal data). We are registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), registration number Z7109967.

NTU understands the importance of ensuring your data privacy rights - this privacy notice is to let you know how we use impact evidence, and any relevant personal data, that you might provide to us.

How and when are impact evidence and personal data collected?

We will collect impact evidence and/or personal data about you from NTU researchers, and from you directly where you have provided information. In some cases, your personal data may come from publicly available sources.

What evidence and data are collected and why?

Impact evidence and personal data may be used for a variety of purposes, which may include one or more of the following:

  • Any third-party research assessment, such as the Research Excellence Framework (REF) or the Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF);
  • As part of an impact case study or other impact evaluation exercise;
  • For publication on public media linked to either the researcher or NTU, including press releases, NTU website, and NTU social media;
  • To support future funding applications; and/or,
  • For internal appraisals and promotions.
  • NTU will collect personal data for the purposes of obtaining and providing evidence of impact deriving from research undertaken at NTU which may include: your name, job title, email address, contact details, organisational affiliation, and nature of your interaction with NTU. This may include testimonial letters, emails, and/or feedback forms following events. There may be specific instances where NTU research has had impacts of a sensitive nature.In these instances, we will ensure evidence and data generation, collection, and storage is handled appropriately, with consent of relevant partners and stakeholders.

Our legal basis for using your personal data

Under the UK GDPR, NTU must have a legal justification (“legal basis”) for processing data relating to you – for the purpose of research impact, this is Public Task. This is to enable NTU to carry out its role as a research establishment including assessing the quality and impact of the research it conducts.

Sharing information about you

NTU will collect and use the information that you have provided to us in the following ways:

Within NTU:

Your data will be shared with NTU colleagues who need to view it as part of their role. This includes, but is not limited to, staff working in Research, Professional Services (which includes Human Resources and Finance), within the Research Operations (RO), Knowledge Exchange (KE), and Research and Strategic Partnership Development (RSPD) teams and will be available to relevant committees. Non-confidential impact evidence may be further shared for marketing purposes.

With third parties:

There may be a range of third parties with whom impact evidence and personal data may be shared with. This may include, but is not limited to, organisations responsible for managing national research and knowledge exchange assessment exercises, such as Research England (RE) and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI); funding bodies; and independent peer reviewers.

Any personal data submitted by NTU to these organisations will be collected, stored, and processed in accordance with their relevant data protection legislation and NTU will ensure that anyone who has access to your data will respect its confidentiality and will only process it in accordance with instructions issued for the purposes specified.

Please speak to your academic partner for further information about how the impact evidence and personal data you have provided will be used and collected.

Publishing information about your part in our submission

Impact evidence and data may be published and made publicly available. Factual data, impact evidence, and textual information, in which you may be referenced, may be published for one or more purposes. These include, but are not limited to, REF impact case studies published by UKRI or for publications on public media linked to either the researchers or NTU. Your name and job title may be included in this textual information. Other personal details will normally be removed. Please speak to your academic partner for further information about where impact evidence and data may be published.

How long do we keep impact evidence and personal data?

Data is retained for as long as it is required to perform the above purpose, or for as long as is required by law. At the end of that retention period, your data will either be deleted completely or anonymised, for example by aggregation with other data so that it can be used in a non-identifiable way for statistical analysis and business planning.

How do we keep your data secure?

NTU takes information security extremely seriously and has implemented appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data. Access to information is restricted on a need-to-know basis and security arrangements are regularly reviewed to ensure their continued suitability. Your rights Under Articles 15 to 23 of the UK GDPR individuals have a right of access in relation to data held about by NTU; these rights include:

  • to obtain a copy of your personal data;
  • to rectify inaccuracies, and where appropriate, the right to have incomplete data completed;
  • to have your personal data erased in limited circumstances (it will not apply where the personal data is needed for the purposes of an overriding public interest);
  • to restrict the use of your personal data. This is a limited right which will apply in specific circumstances and for a limited period (e.g. where a complaint has been received, until that complaint has been resolved);
  • to object to use of your data by us in limited circumstances including use for any direct marketing, and to require us to stop such marketing.

Whilst NTU will undertake all relevant steps to adhere to the above listed rights, those rights may be limited whereby your details have been shared with a third party (for the above named purposes), or used in publications.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please contact us at: DPO@ntu.ac.uk.

If you have any concerns about the collection of impact evidence and data, please contact: researchoperations@ntu.ac.uk.

Questions or concerns

The NTU Data Protection Officer can be contacted at DPO@ntu.ac.uk. The Data Controller is NTU, whose address is Nottingham Trent University, Shakespeare Street, Nottingham, NG1 4FQ.

If you believe that your data is not being processed in accordance with data protection law, you can contact the Information Commissioner’s Office to make a complaint by the following means:

This Privacy Notice

From time to time, we may make changes to this Privacy Notice because the way in which we are processing your personal information may need to change. All alterations will be posted on this page and will apply from the time we post them. Where we have a valid email address for you, we will periodically email you to inform you of any substantial changes and/or to send you a link to our current privacy statement.

This statement was last updated in May 2023.