The DESNZ Public Attitudes Tracker
This notice explains who is processing your data, who we share it with and what your legal rights are. It is made under Articles 13 and/or 14 of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR).

Your data
We will process the following personal data:
Name, Address, Email address, Gender, Age, Tenure, Household Composition, Working Status, Income, Financial Hardship, Opinions and any other data you voluntarily provide as part of the survey.

We will process the following special category data:
Ethnicity and Health data.

Purpose
The purpose(s) for which we are processing your personal data is to carry out the DESNZ Public Attitudes Tracker survey and produce Official Statistics derived from the results of the survey. The results of the survey will help to inform government policies.

Legal basis of processing
The legal basis for processing your personal data under Article 6 of the UK GDPR is public task. When Verian conducts surveys, their invitations/platforms and questionnaires clearly identify them and explain the purpose(s) of their contact and if applicable, the purpose for collecting your personal data. You may decline to answer any questions or withdraw from participation in a survey at any time. If you have any questions regarding this then please contact patsurvey@veriangroup.com.

When Verian have contacted you on behalf of DESNZ by email or by post, they have done so for the following purposes:

Case	Purpose	Data collected/ processed	Legal Basis
Inviting you to participate in surveys	To provide the opportunity for a representative sample of individuals to participate in surveys	Postal address, email address	Verian has a legitimate interest to contact a representative sample of individuals to invite them to participate in surveys.
Surveys	To understand your views about certain products and services or to understand your behaviour in different situations. To administer participation incentives. To validate answers you gave in a recent survey we conducted.	Name, Address, Email address, Gender, Age, Tenure, Household Composition, Working Status, Income, Financial Hardship, Ethnicity, Health, Opinions and any other data you voluntarily provide as part of the survey.	Public task to produce official statistics and inform government policy.
Fraud Protection	Protection of business interests against fraudulent behaviour	IP address, browser and device specifications, postal address, email address	Verian has a legitimate interest in protecting their business against fraud or other prohibited behaviour.
Survey Participation Uniqueness	Prevention of multiple entries in surveys by the same individuals	IP address, browser and device specifications	Verian has a legitimate interest in preventing multiple entries by the same individual.
Managing survey opt-outs	When the individual has requested to not be contacted again, we hold their details to enable this.	Name, email address, postal address, telephone number	Verian has a legitimate interest in retaining the information in order to fulfil the individual’s request.

All research for this project is being carried out in compliance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) / Data Protection Act (DPA) 2018. For further information, and any subsequent legislation, which may be amended from time to time, see the Information Commissioner’s Office website. Verian also follows the MRS and ESOMAR professional Codes of Conduct.

Processing of special categories of data
The DESNZ Public Attitudes Tracker survey includes questions on ethnicity and health, which are special categories of data under the UK GDPR. The legal basis for processing your special category data is it is necessary for statistical purposes in accordance with Article 89(1), and it is in the public interest as the survey results will help to monitor government policies and inform future policy decisions.

Who is the Data Controller?
The data controller for your personal data is the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero (DESNZ), formerly the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). You can contact the DESNZ Data Protection Officer at:
Data Protection Officer, Department for Energy Security & Net Zero, 1 Victoria Street, London, SW1H 0ET
Email: dataprotection@energysecurity.gov.uk
If you are unhappy with the way we have handled your personal data, please write to the department’s Data Protection Officer in the first instance using the contact details above.

Who is the data processor?
We use a third-party processor, Verian. Verian will process all personal data given by you during the completion of the survey in accordance with our instructions. This will include your personal opinions on topics included in the survey as well as information relating to your personal characteristics and circumstances e.g. age, gender, ethnicity etc.

We have a contract in place with Verian. This means that they cannot do anything with your personal data unless we have instructed them to do it. Verian will not share your personal data with any organisation apart from DESNZ, except where we authorise them, unless it is required by law. If you have any queries about Verian’s use of your personal data, you can contact Verian’s Data Protection Officer by emailing UK-Compliance@veriangroup.com or writing to Compliance Officer, Verian
4 Millbank, Westminster, London, SW1P 3JA.

Retention
Your personal data will be kept by Verian for no longer than 12 months after use, meaning the data will be deleted within 12 months of the study’s conclusion unless otherwise required to do so by law. Personal data that is no longer required will be deleted. As part of Verian’s Company Business Continuity plan and as required by ISO 27001, ISO 9001, ISO 20252 certifications where held, and in certain instances the law, Verian’s electronic systems are backed up and archived. These archives are retained for a defined period of time in a strictly controlled environment. Once expired, the data is securely deleted.

Automated Decision Making
Your personal data will not be subject to automated decision making.

Your Rights
You have the following rights in relation to your personal data:

International transfers
Your personal data may also be collected, stored and transferred by Merit for research-related purposes, to process incentives both within and outside the UK and the EEA. They are contractually bound to keep any information they collect and disclose to us or, we collect and disclose to them, confidential and must protect it with security standards and practices that are equivalent to our own. Personal data collected by Verian will also be processed both within and occasionally outside the UK and EEA. If your personal data has been transferred to, stored, or otherwise processed in a territory outside the UK and the EEA and that territory has not been recognised as providing an adequate level of protection of personal data; we will put in place an appropriate legal safeguard. For example, standard contractual clauses approved by the European Commission and other relevant authorities, working with parties that have implemented binding corporate rules or other intra-group processes, obtaining your consent to transfer personal data where the transfer is necessary for the performance of a contract between Verian or where a contract was entered into on your behalf, or where the transfer is necessary to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

Complaints
If you consider that your personal data has been misused or mishandled, you may make a complaint to the Information Commissioner, who is an UK independent regulator. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF

Telephone: 0303 123 1113
https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/
Any complaint to the Information Commissioner is without prejudice to your right to seek redress through the courts.

Updates
If this privacy notice changes in any way, we will place an updated here www.patsurvey.co.uk. Regularly reviewing this page ensures you are always aware of what information we collect, how we use it, and under what circumstances we will share with other parties. The ‘last updated’ date at the bottom of this page will also change.

If these changes affect how your personal data is processed, we will take reasonable steps to let you know. This Privacy Notice may be updated occasionally to reflect changes in our information practices or relevant laws.

Confidentiality, security and industry requirements
We have appropriate technological and organisational measures in place to protect your personal data and take all reasonable steps to ensure your personal data is processed securely. All information you provide us is stored in secure servers and environments. Unfortunately, no data transmission can be guaranteed to be 100% secure. As a result, while we strive to protect your personal data, we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us or from our online products or services, and you do so at your own risk. Once we receive your transmission, we will take reasonable steps to ensure our systems are secure. Verian combine your survey responses with the responses of all others who participate and report those combined responses to DESNZ, formerly BEIS, who commissioned the survey.

Last updated: 25/10/2024