Privacy Policy - Gardeners Hackney Marshes

This Privacy Policy explains how Gardeners Hackney Marshes collects, uses, stores, and protects personal data when providing gardening services to customers in the Hackney Marshes area. It applies to all Gardeners Hackney Marshes customers in the area, including private households, landlords, businesses, and other property owners who request or receive our services. We are committed to handling personal information in accordance with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

We only process personal data when there is a lawful reason to do so, and we aim to be clear, fair, and transparent about what information we collect and why. This policy is designed to explain your rights and our responsibilities in simple terms.

1. Information We Collect

We may collect and process the following categories of personal data depending on how you use our services:

Identity details such as your name and, where relevant, the name of your business or property manager.
Contact details such as telephone number, email address, and postal address.
Service details such as the type of gardening work requested, property access notes, preferred appointment times, and service instructions.
Billing and payment information such as invoice details and payment status.
Communication records such as messages, call notes, complaints, feedback, and booking confirmations.
Technical information where you interact with us online, including basic device or browser data if collected through digital systems.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless you choose to provide it and it is necessary for a specific request. Special category data may include information about health, religion, ethnicity, or similar sensitive data. If such information is ever received, it will be handled with additional safeguards and only where permitted by law.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To provide quotations, arrange visits, and carry out gardening services.
To manage bookings, scheduling, and customer service communications.
To send invoices, process payments, and maintain financial records.
To respond to questions, complaints, and service-related requests.
To maintain internal business records and improve our service quality.
To meet legal, tax, accounting, and insurance obligations.
To protect our business, staff, customers, and property from fraud or misuse.

We will only use your information in ways that are relevant and necessary for the services we provide. We do not sell personal data to third parties.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis before processing your personal information. Gardeners Hackney Marshes relies on the following lawful bases:

Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes preparing quotes, confirming appointments, providing gardening work, issuing invoices, and managing customer accounts.

Legal Obligation

We may process information where necessary to comply with legal obligations, including tax rules, accounting requirements, insurance matters, and record-keeping duties.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate interests and where your rights do not override those interests. This may include managing our business efficiently, preventing fraud, improving customer service, keeping service records, and maintaining secure operations. We always consider whether the processing is reasonable and proportionate.

Consent

In limited cases, we may rely on consent, for example where you ask us to keep certain optional information or agree to receive non-essential communications. If we rely on consent, you can withdraw it at any time.

4. Data Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties who support our operations. These organisations act as processors or independent controllers depending on the service they provide. We only share the minimum information needed for the task and require appropriate safeguards.

Examples of processors may include:

IT and cloud storage providers used to store and manage records securely.
Accounting and bookkeeping providers used for invoicing, tax, and financial administration.
Payment service providers used to process transactions.
Scheduling or communication tools used to organise bookings and customer correspondence.
Professional advisers such as insurers, legal advisers, or auditors where necessary.

We may also disclose personal data if required by law, regulation, court order, or to protect legal rights. Where a third party processes data on our behalf, they must only act according to our instructions and must protect the information appropriately.

5. International Transfers

Some processors may store or access data outside the United Kingdom. If this happens, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place, such as adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or equivalent legal mechanisms, to protect your personal information.

6. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including legal, accounting, and reporting requirements. Retention periods vary depending on the nature of the information:

Customer and service records are kept for the duration of the relationship and for a reasonable period afterwards.
Financial and tax records are retained for the period required by law.
Communication records may be kept for as long as needed to resolve disputes, manage service history, or maintain accurate business records.

When data is no longer needed, it is securely deleted, anonymised, or archived in a way that prevents unnecessary access. We do not retain information indefinitely without a clear purpose.

7. Data Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality obligations, and careful management of physical and digital records.

Although no method of transmission or storage is completely secure, we work hard to reduce risks and limit access to personal information to those who need it for legitimate business purposes.

8. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have important rights in relation to your personal information. These rights may apply depending on the circumstances and the legal basis for processing:

Right of access — you can ask for a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification — you can ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
Right to erasure — you can ask us to delete your data in certain situations.
Right to restriction — you can ask us to limit the way we use your data in certain circumstances.
Right to object — you can object to processing based on legitimate interests in certain cases.
Right to data portability — you can request a copy of certain data in a commonly used format where applicable.
Right to withdraw consent — where processing relies on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

You also have the right to raise concerns with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) if you believe your data protection rights have not been respected.

9. Children’s Data

Our services are intended for adult customers and property managers. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is provided incidentally and is necessary for a service request, such as access arrangements. If we become aware that we hold data collected inappropriately, we will take steps to delete it where appropriate.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal obligations, or data handling practices. Any updates will take effect when published. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically so they remain informed about how their data is handled.

11. Summary of Our Commitment

Gardeners Hackney Marshes respects your privacy and handles personal data responsibly. We collect only what we need, use it for clear and lawful purposes, keep it only as long as necessary, and share it only with trusted processors or where required by law. Your trust matters to us, and we aim to protect your information with care and transparency.