Single Advice Fund: privacy notice

The Welsh Government has made approximately £12 million per year grant funding available to Advice Service providers during the period 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2028 as it is important that the people of Wales, especially those who are vulnerable, are served by a network of quality assured providers from the public, private and third sectors, who work seamlessly together to deliver free and impartial information and advice services.

The funded services are broadly delivering 2 primary aims: 

• Promote early access to information and advice amongst the most vulnerable households within local communities.
• Support the provision of specialist advice services (representation before Tribunals and Courts) across Wales.

This grant requires the processing of personal data on behalf of the Welsh Government. For the purposes of this grant, the Welsh Government is the data controller.

Advice service providers as data processers, will collect personal information directly from an individual with permission to act on their behalf to identify the most appropriate advice to provide. Advice service providers must only collect personal data when there is a specific, lawful reason to do so.

The personal information an advice service provider may collect from a client is listed below.

Personal 

• Name
• Home Address
• Business Address
• Postcode
• Email Addresses
• Telephone Numbers
• Date of Birth
• Driving Licence Number
• Passport / ID Card Number
• Photographs / images (which could be used to identify and individual)
• Unique identifying number e.g. store loyalty card, library card etc.

Sensitive

• Racial Ethnic Origins
• Political opinions
• Religious Beliefs
• Trade Union membership
• Physical / mental health or condition
• Sexual life
• Criminal and Court records (inc alleged offences)
• Educational records
• Biometric data e.g. DNA, finger-prints
• Personal financial information e.g. bank or credit card details
• Mother’s maiden name
• NI Number (or equivalent)
• Tax, benefits or pensions records
• Health or social service records e.g. Housing or Child Protection
• Employment records (inc. self-employment and voluntary work)

As data controller, the Welsh Government will not require any information from advice service providers which could be used to identify any individual accessing the advice service.

Information provided to the Welsh Government will show the ‘number’ of people that have been provided with advice and the nature of advice received only. This includes people with protected characteristics (using the services that Welsh Government fund) which is also routinely collected by the advice service providers in the course of their work and not specifically for this project.

In Welsh Government’s remit as data controller, anonymised information received regarding individuals accessing the advice services will be used for the following purposes:

• to monitor the progress of the projects
• to process grant funding claim forms
• statistical and research purposes
• to link with other Welsh Government policy areas
• publications (Infographic), data used will be anonymised when received from advice service providers
• anonymised case studies received will be shared with Welsh Government Ministers
• share with an evaluation company who may be contracted to undertake an evaluation of the project on behalf of the Welsh Government

In our remit as the data controller, the Welsh Government will receive personal data including name and email address for the project manager of the advice service which is associated with the successful awarding of the grant funding. The Welsh Government will use this information for the following:

• to award the grant funding 
• to liaise with the project manager for monitoring progress of the project
• to liaise with the project manager to process financial payments associated with the project

The Welsh Government as data controller, is aware that advice service providers as data processors, may also be required to pass details about an individual, to other advice service providers that are well placed to provide specialist advice or additional support to an individual. They will also be expected to pass details of project costs and evidence for audit purposes. Advice service providers’ policies on data protection and their management of sensitive data must comply with the requirements of the relevant data protection principles. 

Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) you have the right to: 

• access the personal data we are processing about you
• require us to rectify inaccuracies in that data
• object to processing (in certain circumstances) to withdraw your application before it has been processed and a decision has been made to award or refuse
• request your data to be ‘erased’ (in certain circumstances)
• lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) who is our independent regulator for data protection (contact details below)

The Welsh Government will keep data received for a maximum of 7 years after the end of the financial year to which it relates to as per audit requirements.  After this point your data will be anonymised and may be used in case studies and/or destroyed.

For further information about the information which the Welsh Government holds and its use, or if you wish to exercise your rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) please see contact details below:

Data Protection Officer

Welsh Government
Cathays Park
CARDIFF
CF10 3NQ

dataprotectionofficer@gov.wales

Information Commissioner’s Office

Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Telephone: 01625 545 745 or 0303 123 1113 

You can get further information regarding this grant scheme by contacting advicenetworks@gov.wales.

If we are going to use your data in a different way from that stated at the time of collection, you will be notified.