PRIVACY POLICY

FMC – Privacy Policy

The Faculty of Medical Coaches (“FMC”) takes the privacy and security of your personal information very seriously and is committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected. Any personal data collected by FMC will be processed in accordance with this privacy policy.

This privacy policy outlines how FMC processes personal data (i.e., information that can be used to identify an individual) collected by us during our lawful activities, in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation, and any subsequent legislation (‘Data Protection laws’).

This policy has been put in place to protect your rights under the Data Protection laws, and it is important that you understand what we will do with your data and are happy with this. If you wish to discuss any matter relating to how your data is used, please email us at info@medcoaches.uk or write to us at Faculty of Medical Coaches, c/o NHS Elect, Hogarth House, 136 High Holborn, London, WC1V 6PX, marking your communication for the attention of the Data Protection Officer. We may require, in certain instances, that your request for information be submitted in writing.

References to the processing of information include the collection, use, storage and protection of data.

FMC is a membership organisation whose members are Associates of  NHS Elect.  FMC is the ‘data controller’ within the meaning of the Data Protection laws for this policy, except as stated otherwise. This policy applies to FMC’s associates, members, and anyone else who processes data on our behalf from time to time.

Why do we process your data?

Organisations are permitted to process data if they have a legal basis for doing so. FMC processes data on the basis that:

  • Express and informed consent has been given by the person whose data is being processed; and/or

  • FMC has a legitimate interest in processing data; and/or

  • It is necessary to discuss a contract or agreement which the person has entered into or because the person has asked for something to be done so they can enter into a contract or agreement; and/or

  • There is a legal obligation on FMC to process data.

We may also process data that has been shared with us by another Data Controller, such as a commissioning NHS organisation. In such cases, FMC may be considered a Data Processor within the meaning of the Data Protection laws, but will still process data in a manner that protects its privacy and security, and in accordance with the stipulations regarding its use made by the Data Controller. Where this is the case, FMC relies on the party sharing data with us to ensure that all requisite permissions, consents or other legal bases for sharing the data have been obtained or complied with.

Where FMC is relying solely on consent as the basis for processing data, we are required to obtain your explicit consent, and you can modify or withdraw this consent at any time by notifying us in writing. However, this may affect the extent to which FMC can provide services to or interact with you in future.

FMC reserves the right to modify this policy at any time, and any such changes will be published on our website. Notwithstanding any changes to this policy, we will continue to process your data in accordance with your rights and our legal obligations.

What data do we collect?

We collect the data necessary for FMC to pursue its objectives, including but not limited to the delivery of coaching services and training in coaching skills.   Data collected and processed may include, but not be limited to:

  • Names and contact information such as telephone numbers, email and postal addresses and, on occasion, other personal data such as photographs or dietary or medical information necessary for the welfare of individuals

  • Client records, including, where necessary, bank or payment details, to process payments from you

  • Information about coaches, coaching clients or course attendees necessary for us to fulfil our contractual obligations or to comply with other relevant legislation or regulations relating to employment, safeguarding (including Disclosure & Barring Service checks), or other matters

  • Any other information that is relevant and necessary for FMC to carry out its activities and fulfil its legal obligations.

What we do with the data we process

FMC uses the data collected to maintain accurate internal records of our engagement with coaches, clients, commissioning organisations and others. These records support our activities, which are conducted in accordance with our objectives.  Data may be processed and viewed by the relevant members of FMC in the course of FMC’s activities (all of whom work by this privacy policy) and will be retained only for as long as is reasonable and permissible in law.

You, as the data subject, may request deletion of your data at any time in writing, subject to any overriding legal requirement for its retention, such as, for example, safeguarding purposes.

Your rights to your data

You may request details of personal information which we hold about you. Any such request must be submitted in writing, and we reserve the right to verify the identity of individuals making such requests before responding. We will respond to your request within 30 days. A small fee may be payable if an information request is particularly onerous.

You may choose to restrict the collection or use of your personal information, including how we contact you; however, this may limit the way FMC interacts with you. You may, at any time, change your mind about what information we hold about you, or if we continue to hold it at all, subject to any legal obligation on FMC to retain data.

You are responsible for the accuracy of the data you have provided to FMC. If you believe that any information we hold about you is incorrect or incomplete, please write to us as soon as possible. We will promptly correct any information that is found to be incorrect.

We may use your personal information to send you information about FMC and matters relating to FMC’s activities, which we think may be of interest to you. We will only share data with trusted third parties where necessary for us to securely back-up data, to communicate with you (such as mailing companies for postal communications or through email campaigns or newsletters), to run events or other activities or as stated above, and only once we are satisfied that any such use of data will accord with our privacy policy. We will not sell or share your personal information with any other businesses or marketing companies without your explicit consent.

You can obtain further information about Data Protection and privacy laws by visiting the Information Commissioner’s website at: https://ico.org.uk/your-data-matters

Security

We are committed to ensuring that your information is secure. To prevent unauthorised access or disclosure, we have implemented suitable physical, electronic, and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the data we process. Persons processing data on behalf of FMC do so by this policy and on the basis that FMC is satisfied that they can and will adhere to our high standards for data protection and security.

The transmission of information over the internet is inherently insecure, and we cannot guarantee the security of data sent over the internet. You are responsible for keeping the password you use for accessing our website (if applicable) confidential; we will not ask you for your password (except when you log in to our website).

Web Browsing and Cookies

A cookie is a small file which asks permission to be placed on your computer’s hard drive. Once you agree, the file is added and the cookie helps analyse web traffic or lets you know when you visit a particular site. Cookies allow web applications to respond to you as an individual. The web application can tailor its operations to your needs and preferences by gathering and remembering information about your likes and dislikes.

We may use traffic log cookies to identify which pages are being used. This helps us analyse data about web page traffic and improve our website to tailor it to customer needs. We only use this information for statistical analysis purposes, and then the data is removed from the system.

Overall, cookies can help us provide you with a better website by enabling us to monitor which pages you find useful and which you do not. A cookie in no way gives us access to your computer or any information about you, other than the data you choose to share with us.

You can choose to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser settings to decline cookies if you prefer. This may prevent you from fully utilising the website. We have a more detailed description of how our website handles cookies available on request.

Links to other websites

Our website may contain links to other websites of interest. However, once you have used these links to leave our site, please note that we do not have any control over the other website. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for the protection and privacy of any information you provide while visiting such sites, and this privacy policy does not govern such sites. You should exercise caution and look at the privacy policy applicable to the website in question.

 This policy was last reviewed on 17 July 2025.