Privacy Policy and Data Collection Notice
The Australian Privacy Principles are part of the Privacy Act 1988 and came into effect on 12 March 2014 to protect the privacy of individuals. You can find out more about these principles by calling the Office of the Privacy Commissioner on 1300 36 39 92 or through their website at www.oaic.gov.au.
We respect and uphold your right to privacy protection under the Australian Privacy Principles in regulating how we collect, use, disclose and hold your personal information. We will only collect personal information by lawful and fair means. Only authorised staff have access to your personal information and your information remains confidential and is only used for appropriate purposes in accordance with this policy.
Why we collect your personal information
Your personal information is only collected as is reasonably necessary for communication purposes.
We are very grateful to the people who provide financial support to allow us to continue our important work. When you give us personal information such as your name and address, we record it on our database and may use it to contact you in the future.
We may use your personal information to send you information about programs, special events and fundraising programs. Each time we send you this type of communication we will provide you with a simple way to 'opt out' of receiving communications in the future.
You can also let us know if you do not wish to receive any further communications, by contacting us at together@endstreetsleeping.org
We will not collect sensitive information about your health, racial or ethnic origin, political opinions or membership, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade association or union membership, sexual preferences or criminal record unless you have expressly consented to give us this information and it is reasonably necessary for our work. We will always collect such information in a non-intrusive, lawful and fair manner.
How we collect your personal information
Generally, personal information is collected directly from individuals, or through their appointed representatives or agents, either:
in person
by telephone, mail or e-mail
when you use our website (including by using cookies – please see the "Visiting Our Website" section below);
by participating in a community fundraising and/or information events;
when you contact us to provide a donation;
when you respond to our campaigns; and
when you provide your information to us online.
We may also collect your personal information in other ways, for example through the purchase of commercial lists and from publicly available sources such as the telephone directory. When we use this information for direct marketing, we will advise you of the source of the information if you ask us for it.
We may also keep records of our interactions with you including by telephone, email and online.
You may be photographed when you attend events. We will seek to obtain your consent prior to using an image of you on our website or for other functions wherever practical. Where we are unable to contact you to obtain your consent, we will not include your name or any other personal information with the photograph.
The kinds of personal information we collect and hold
We only collect personal information necessary for providing services and products and for our related work and functions.
The kinds of information we collect and hold about you include:
name, address, and contact details
financial information required to complete and reconcile financial transactions (e.g. credit card numbers, cheque numbers, BSB numbers, etc.)
information regarding skills, qualifications, and employment history
Where required or permitted by legislation or contract, we may also collect information for:
statistical reporting purposes
securing professional advice (e.g. from our auditors, lawyers, etc.)
assisting contractors, service providers, and other organisations working with or for us to manage and/or deliver services (e.g. mailing houses, credit card payment providers, etc)
collating complaints and complementary information
We may collect other personal information, as applicable to a program, service, or function.
The collection, use, and handling of all personal information will always comply with applicable privacy legislation and will take into account pertinent ethical considerations to the extent possible under the circumstances.
Collection of information during Connections Week
The End Street Sleeping Collaboration, is run on behalf of a coalition of organisations including homelessness, housing and health services, state and local government, by the End Street Sleeping Collaboration – a not for profit company limited by guarantee. The organisations involved are listed on the accompanying document.
The End Street Sleeping Collaboration is seeking to end street homelessness using the Functional Zero approach. This approach is about knowing every person sleeping rough in Sydney and other cities in NSW by name and coordinating local resources to meet their needs. In the first phases, Act to End Street Sleeping initiative will focus on street homelessness in the inner city and aims to expand to other regions and forms of homelessness in NSW in later phases.
During Connections Week we (the End Street Sleeping collaboration) will speak to individuals about their housing and support needs. We take protecting the information collected very seriously. We do not sell, share or disclose information to anyone outside the End Street Sleeping Collaboration without permission, unless we believe there is a serious or imminent risk to the individuals safety or the safety of another person, or where required by law.
All of the information collected during interviews will be collected and stored securely by us on an electronic database . We will maintain the security and confidentiality of information at all times, as required under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles and all other applicable privacy laws. If individuals decide later on that they would like a copy of their information, or would like it amended or removed from the database, they can request this at any time.
The collective findings from the survey which do not identify anyone individually will also be used to inform government, non-government agencies, research and the community about the needs and experiences of people experiencing homelessness and to change the system that leads people into homelessness.
We may also collect personal information (including sensitive information and health information) from the Authorised Partner Agencies and Services to progress individuals access to housing, health and welfare services.
If you would like to access, update or remove information collected from you during Connections Week please contact us on 1300 967 062 or email privacy@endstreetsleeping.org.
Modifying your information
How to access, correct or update your personal information
You are entitled to access the personal information about you held by us. If you would like to access the information that we hold about you, you can contact us at 1300 967 062 or email privacy@endstreetsleeping.org and we will endeavour to give you access to that information within a reasonable time. All requests to access personal information must be provided in writing. We require proof of identity before granting access to any personal information. Individuals who have engaged with us via the use of a pseudonym are also required to establish to our satisfaction that they are the ‘owner’ of the pseudonym to whom the personal information relates.
If you believe that the information that we hold about you is incorrect or not up-to-date, and you want to correct information we hold about you, you can write to us. We will:
amend or remove personal information if it is possible and reasonable for us to do so or
provide a written reason, if the record cannot be altered or removed and
at you request, place a note on file of your objection and of the basis of that objection
If we do not provide you with access to your personal information, we will provide you with reasons for denying access.
Disclosing your personal information
We will not provide your personal information to any other individuals or organisations without your prior consent, except where required by law to do so or for purposes for which you would reasonably expect us to disclose your information e.g. where information is provided on a confidential basis to our sub-contractors who provide services related to a function or activity. These may include consultants involved in the marketing and administration of the function or activity; payment processing companies; IT providers; database management; printing and mailing.
We are very thankful to people who are willing to share their personal stories of their experience with others through media stories and in our newsletters. We will only use your personal information for publicity purposes or as stories in newsletters with your express written permission.
Where you provide your email address to us we will only use it for the purpose provided, unless you have consented to us using it for additional purposes. We will not pass it on to any other person or organisation unless we have disclosed this to you.
We will not use personal information for Direct Marketing purposes unless:
the individual has consented or would reasonably expect us to do so after providing their personal information
we are acting as a contracted service provider under a government contract and the Direct Marketing fulfils an obligation under the contract.
At any time, an individual may ‘opt-out’ of receiving Direct Marketing communications by:
using the Unsubscribe link / facility provided, or by
contacting us at privacy@endstreetsleeping.org
How we keep your personal information secure
If you provide us with information via a form on our website, it is stored securely in our databases and only accessed by staff authorised. We use a range of hardware and software security measures to protect your information and ensure that only authorised staff are granted access.
Visiting our website
Our website may use cookies to track site visits and navigation. If you are concerned about the use of these cookies, your browser can be configured to notify you when you receive a cookie, and provide you with the opportunity to accept or reject it. You may refuse all cookies and choose to disable cookies at any time; however some functions may become unavailable. Our online credit card processing company may also use cookies for identification and anti-fraud purposes.
We also use social media buttons and/or plugins on its websites that allow you to connect with your social network in various ways. For these to work, social media websites including LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, will set cookies through our website which may be used to enhance your profile on their website or contribute to the data they hold for various purposes outlined in their respective privacy policies. We encourage you to read the privacy policies of these companies.
Our website may contain links to other sites of interest. We do not control, and are not responsible for, the content or privacy practices of those websites. Please check the privacy policies of third party website operators before you provide your personal information to them. We will not be liable for any actions of third parties, including third party website operators.
Our website security
Forwarding credit card numbers or other sensitive information via email or facsimile is not safe. We recommend that you do not send information to us in either format.
Our website is secured using SSL technology to encrypt data between your browser and the website. If you are entering any payment or credit/debit card information on the internet, you should confirm that the page is secured (padlock symbol in your browser) before entering any information. We make every effort possible to make your donations and transactions within our website as secure and safe as possible for you.
You should be aware that there are inherent risks associated with the transmission of information via the Internet. If you are submitting personal details, credit/debit card numbers or other information over the Internet, please be aware that, while all reasonable efforts are made to secure information transmitted to this website, there is a possibility that information you submit could be observed by a third party while in transit. By using this website you acknowledge that you do not hold us liable for any security breaches, viruses, or other malicious software that may infect your computer or any loss of data, revenue or otherwise that may occur.
From time to time we may need to contact clients and donors directly to update or confirm their personal or credit/debit card details.
If we contact you to update your personal details, or to rectify a problem with a credit/debit card donation or payment, we will provide you with sufficient information from our existing data base (including where appropriate the last four digits of your credit card) for you to be comfortable that the caller is our representative.
Any contact you receive requesting any combination of a full credit/debit card number, an expiry date and CVV number, should be considered a hoax and you should disregard it and report the contact to www.scamwatch.gov.au or contact the End Street Sleeping Collaboration Team at privacy@endstreetsleeping.org .
The Spam Act 2003
The Spam Act prohibits the sending of unsolicited emails, SMS and MMS messages for commercial purposes from or within Australia or to people in Australia and bans the supply and use of software designed to harvest email addresses. While charities do have some exemptions from this Act, we are guided by the Australian eMarketing Code of Practice. We will always provide you with an opt-out mechanism as part of all electronic communications.
Changes to our Privacy & Data Collection Policy
We may, without notice, amend or modify its Privacy Policy by posting the amended Privacy Policy to the our website. We encourage you to check our websites regularly for any updates to our Privacy Policy.
Complaints about our privacy practices
If you are concerned that we may have breached the Australian Privacy Principles or this privacy policy, please contact the Secretariat.
We respond to complaints by investigating the issue, deciding on any action that are required and responding to the individual within twenty (20) business days of lodgement (or sooner if practicable). Further information is contained within the Feedback and Complaints Procedure.
For further information:
The Secretariat
Phone: 1300 967 062
Email: privacy@endstreetsleeping.org
Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
Address: GPO Box 5218, Sydney NSW 2001
Call: 1300 363 992
Email: enquiries@oaic.gov.au
Last Updated: December 2022