Who we are

If Opera is dedicated to preserving the privacy of our customers. Information gathered and processed is done so in accordance with this privacy policy and in compliance with the relevant data protection Regulation and Laws. This privacy notice provides you with the information required regarding your rights and our obligations. It also explains how, why and when we will process your personal data.

If Opera is presented by Iford Arts Ltd, Registered charity no. 1091312, Company no. 4352244

Personal information we collect from you

If Opera processes your personal information to meet our legal, statutory, and contractual obligations and to provide you with our products and services. We will never collect unnecessary personal data from you or process your information in any way, other than as specified in this privacy notice. This policy ensures that we protect the rights of our audiences, members, volunteers, and supporters. The personal data that we collect from you will depend on your interaction with us, for example when you subscribe to our e-newsletter, enter one of our offers or competitions or complete one of our on-line forms (e.g. job application).

The purposes for processing your data are given below:

• Membership and Supporters

If you have registered for one of our schemes (Benefactor, Accompanists or Founders) or as a member (Gold, Silver or Under 35’s Opera Club) your name and contact details will be collected when you first join the group and will be used to contact you regarding your patronage, administration and activities. Other data may also subsequently be collected in relation to your patronage, including your payment history for ‘patronage fees’.

• Volunteers, contractors and employment applicants

If you have registered to be a volunteer, you are a contractor or have applied to work as an employee, your name and contact details will be collected when you take up a position, and will be used to contact you regarding group administration related to your role. Further information, including personal financial information and criminal records. Information may also be collected in specific circumstances where lawful and necessary (in order to process payment to the person or in order to carry out a DBS check).

• Booking

If you book tickets for our events via Bath Box Office, your name and contact details will be collected and will be used to contact you about your booking and to allow you to enter the event. Your name, contact details and other details may be collected at any time (including when booking tickets or at an event), with your consent, in order for Iford Arts and If Opera to communicate with you about, and promote activities.

Data retention

We only collect and use personal data for specific, explicit and legitimate purposes and will only use the data for those specified purposes. When collecting data Iford Arts and If Opera, will explain why the data is required and what it will be used for. Iford Arts and If Opera will not collect or store more data than the minimum, relevant information required for its intended purpose. We ensure data is accurate and up-to-date and your right of access and erasure is maintained.

Iford Arts and If Opera will keep records for no longer than necessary in order to meet the intended use for which it was gathered (unless there is a legal requirement to keep records). The storage and intended use of data will be reviewed in line with Iford Arts and If Opera data retention policy. When the intended use is no longer applicable (e.g. contact details for a member who has left the group), the data will be deleted within a reasonable period.

You can request to see or update the data Iford Arts and If Opera holds on you and confirm how it is being used. Requests should be made in writing to the Data Compliance Officer at debbieheyden@ifopera.com and will be complied with free of charge and within one month. Where requests are complex or numerous this may be extended to two months.

Security of your data

Iford Arts and If Opera will ensure that data held is kept secure. We maintain strict security standards and procedures with a view to preventing unauthorised access to your data by other parties, including our staff. We use leading technologies such as (but not limited to) data encryption, firewalls, and server authentication to protect the security of your data. We require all staff and any third parties we employ to provide support services, to observe our privacy standards and to allow us to audit them for compliance.

Marketing purposes

Iford Arts and If Opera will sometimes collect data for marketing purposes. This includes contacting you to promote performances, updating you about group news, fundraising and other group activities. Any time data is collected for this purpose, we will provide:

• A method for you to show your positive and active consent to receive these communications (e.g. a ‘tick box’)

• A clear and specific explanation of what the data will be used for (e.g. ‘Tick this box if you would like If Opera to send you email updates with details about our forthcoming events, fundraising activities and opportunities to get involved’)

• A method through which a recipient can withdraw their consent e.g. an ‘unsubscribe’ link in an email.

Data collected will only ever be used in the way described and consented to e.g. we will not use email data in order to market 3rd-party products unless this has been explicitly consented to.

Opt-out requests such as this will be processed within 14 days. Where we receive a request to stop using data we will comply unless we have a lawful reason to use the data for legitimate interests or contractual obligation. You can request for all data held on you to be deleted.

Competitions

We collect only those details that are necessary to enter you into the competition, for example name, address, contact details. These details are required to notify competition winners and fulfil their prizes. Please check the individual terms & conditions associated with each competition.

E-newsletters

We send out regular e-newsletter communications (at least once a month) to people who have opted in to receive these communications from us. Recipients can unsubscribe at any time by simply clicking the ‘unsubscribe’ link at the bottom of the email, or by contacting the Data Compliance Officer at debbieheyden@ifopera.com

Brochures

When ordering a brochure from us, we will collect your name and address.

Third-party services

We use third party services to deliver some of our site functions including Google, Mailchimp (which powers our e-newsletter) Bath Box Office (BBO) & Spektrix (BBO ticketing platform) X/Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Each of these services will have its own privacy policy to which you may refer if you are concerned.

Transfers outside the UK

Personal data in the UK is protected by the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) but some other countries may not necessarily have the same high standard of protection for your personal data. We use Mailchimp which stores data in USA; Mailchimp conforms to EU-US Privacy Shield.

Cookies

Our website uses cookies to distinguish you from other users of our website. This helps us to provide you with a good experience when you browse our website and also allows us to improve our site. By continuing to browse the site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Pseudonymous or anonymous data (including behavioural, technological and geographical/regional) on an individual may be collected via tracking ‘cookies’ when you access our website or interact with our emails, in order for us to monitor and improve our effectiveness on these channels.

A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we store on your browser or the hard drive of your computer if you agree. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer’s hard drive. If Opera uses the following cookies:

Strictly necessary cookies

These are cookies that are required for the operation of our website. They include, for example, cookies that enable you to log into secure areas of our website, use a shopping cart or make use of e-billing services.

Analytical/performance cookies

They allow us to recognise and count the number of visitors and to see how visitors move around our website when they are using it. This helps us to improve the way our website works, for example, by ensuring that users are finding what they are looking for easily.

Functionality cookies

These are used to recognise you when you return to our website. This enables us to personalise our content for you, greet you by name and remember your preferences (for example, your choice of language or region).

Targeting cookies

These cookies record your visit to our website, the pages you have visited and the links you have followed. We will use this information to make our website and the advertising displayed on it more relevant to your interests.

Contacting us or Lodging a complaint

We only process your personal information in compliance with this privacy notice and in accordance with the relevant data protection laws. If however you wish to raise a complaint regarding the processing of your personal data or are unsatisfied with how we have handled your information, please let us know by contacting our Data Compliance Officer:

Data Compliance Officer, Iford Arts & If Opera, 15 Market Street, Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire, BA15 1LL

Telephone: 01225 868124

Email: debbieheyden@ifopera.com

If you are still dissatisfied, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the supervisory authority: Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF

We keep our Privacy Policy under regular review to ensure it is up to date and accurate. This notice was last updated in November 2024.