Effective Date: 27 May 2025

Orphan Appeal (“we,” “our,” or “us”) is committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and safeguard your personal information when you visit our website https://orphan-appeal.co.uk and when you make donations through our platform.

1. Information We Collect

We may collect and process the following data about you:

  • Personal Identification Information: Name, email address, postal address, and phone number.
  • Donation Information: Donation amounts, frequency, Gift Aid status, and any messages you include with your donation.
  • Technical Data: IP address, browser type and version, time zone setting, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform, and other technology on the devices you use to access our website.
  • Usage Data: Information about how you use our website, products, and services.

2. How We Collect Your Information

We collect information in the following ways:

  • Direct Interactions: When you fill in forms on our website, make a donation, claim Gift Aid, or correspond with us by email, phone, or otherwise.
  • Automated Technologies: As you interact with our website, we may automatically collect technical data about your equipment, browsing actions, and patterns.
  • Third Parties: We may receive personal data about you from third parties, such as payment processors (Stripe/PayPal) or analytics providers like Google.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

  • Process and manage your donations.
  • Claim Gift Aid on your donations (if applicable).
  • Send you receipts, acknowledgments, and thank-you messages.
  • Charity Marketing & Updates: If you have supported us by making a donation, we may use the email address provided to send you updates on our work, future appeals, and impact reports.

    Note: We will strictly limit this marketing to Orphan Appeal communications only. We will never sell, trade, or share your email address with other charities or commercial companies for their marketing purposes. You can opt out of these emails at any time by clicking the “unsubscribe” link in the footer of our emails.
  • Comply with legal and regulatory obligations.

4. Legal Basis for Processing

Our legal bases for processing your personal data include:

  • Consent: Where you have given clear consent for us to process your personal data for a specific purpose (e.g., signing up for a newsletter without donating).
  • Legitimate Interests: Where processing is necessary for our legitimate interests (such as fundraising to support our charitable cause and keeping our donors informed), provided your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests.
  • Legal Obligation: Where processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation (e.g., processing Gift Aid records for HMRC).

5. Donation Processing & Gift Aid

We use GiveWP, a WordPress donation plugin, to facilitate donations on our website. GiveWP integrates with third-party payment processors to handle payment transactions.

  • Payment Information: We do not store your credit or debit card details on our servers. All payment information is processed securely by Stripe and PayPal, in accordance with their privacy policies:
  • Gift Aid: If you elect to add Gift Aid to your donation, we are legally required to share your name, address, and donation details with HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) to reclaim the tax on your donation.

6. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We may share your data with:

  • Service Providers: Third parties who provide services on our behalf, such as IT support, email delivery services (e.g., for sending our newsletters), and payment processing.
  • Regulatory Bodies: Authorities such as HMRC (for Gift Aid) or the Charity Commission when required to comply with legal obligations.

7. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorized or unlawful processing and against accidental loss, destruction, or damage.

8. Data Retention

We retain your personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes we collected it for. For example, if you Gift Aid your donation, we are legally required to keep a record of your donation and details for six years to comply with HMRC tax rules.

9. Your Data Protection Rights

Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), you have rights including:

  • Access: You have the right to request copies of your personal data.
  • Rectification: You have the right to request correction of any information you believe is inaccurate.
  • Erasure: You have the right to request that we erase your personal data, under certain conditions.
  • Objection to Processing: You have the right to object to our processing of your personal data (specifically regarding direct marketing).

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at the details provided below.

If you feel that your data has not been handled correctly, or you are unhappy with our response to any requests you have made to us regarding the use of your personal data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) in the UK.

10. Cookies

Our website uses cookies to enhance your browsing experience. For detailed information on the cookies we use and the purposes for which we use them, please refer to our Cookie Policy.

11. Third-Party Links

Our website may contain links to other websites. This Privacy Policy applies only to our website, so if you click on a link to another website, you should read their privacy policy.

12. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated revision date.

13. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:

Orphan Appeal
44 Upper Dartrey Walk
Worlds End Estate
London, SW10 0NW
Email: info@orphan-appeal.co.uk
Landline: 020 8091 1829