The Society of Antiquaries of Scotland is committed to protecting your personal data.

The Society of Antiquaries of Scotland is registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) as a Data Controller under the Data Protection Act (ref Z1108226) and EU GDPR (see below). To deliver the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland’s core functions as a membership based charity (SC010440) registered in Scotland with the Office of Scottish Charity Regulation (OSCR) the Society must collect personal data and process it in various ways, such as, but not limited to, processing subscriptions, maintaining a database of members’ (Fellows’) information and preferences for delivering services to those Fellows, passing personal data on to third parties who undertake our mailings, claiming Gift Aid, fundraising, providing for the election of new Fellows and Council members as well as facilitating communication between Fellows.  Because the Society is a global organisation with Fellows outside the European Economic Area (EEA) we may from time to time pass your personal data to other countries. At all times, the Society will respect data protection law and will ensure your personal data is protected and is used only for Society purposes.

The Society holds personal data (on paper, or computer or other media) on Fellows of the Society and non-Fellows (for example employees, grants and awards applicants and holders, meeting and conference delegates, customers and services suppliers) including contact details and preferences, names, address, telephone number and email address. We ensure this personal information is stored and processed in accordance with legal requirements and best practice. Other personal data may be captured when using our web presence, please see our website Terms and Conditions.

The Society holds this data only as long as is legally required (for staff employment and pension provision for example) or required for the purpose for which it is initially captured. However, Fellows should be aware that the list of Fellows elected to the Society is published in the Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and the report on the Anniversary Meeting or Annual General Meeting of the Society and thus held in perpetuity as a record of the Society.

Legitimate Interest

The Society will also process data under the lawful basis of legitimate interests. Examples of where we will rely on legitimate interests include:

• Using personal information when monitoring use of our website or apps for technical purposes.
• Using personal information to administer, review, and maintain internal records of the individuals we work with, including supporters, volunteers, and researchers.
• Where you have registered with us for a third-party seminar or lecture (e.g. an event not organised by the Society of Antiquaries), sharing your personal information with the event organiser so they can administer the event.
• Recording and securely storing information about donations made to the Society, including donor details, to meet our legal and financial obligations, administer Gift Aid claims where applicable, and ensure good governance. Donation records are retained for up to seven years in line with financial regulations.
• Analysis and profiling of our supporters or potential supporters (please refer to the section below).
• Sending fundraising and marketing material that may be of interest to you including digital mailing.
• Updating your address using third-party sources if you have moved.

We rely on legitimate interests only when we determine that any potential impact on you, whether positive or negative, is minimal — for example, with respect to privacy concerns. Your rights under data protection legislation are not superseded by our interests, or those of others, in using your information in this manner.

Building Profiles of Supporters and Potential Supporters

As a charity, the Society of Antiquaries occasionally launches fundraising campaigns to support special projects, so it’s important that our efforts are as effective as possible. By developing a better understanding of our members and supporters through research using publicly available sources we can tailor our fundraising events and communications to those most likely to be interested. This helps us use our resources more efficiently and cost-effectively, while reducing the likelihood of sending irrelevant information.

We use information we already hold, alongside publicly available data, to assess someone’s potential as a significant donor. This may include collecting additional details about their employment, philanthropic activity, and an estimate of their giving capacity, based on visible assets, previous charitable giving, and their connection to the Society.

We may also gather information about potential donors who have not previously been in contact with us but who may be interested in supporting our work.

To build a fuller picture of a person’s interests and potential support, we combine data provided directly to us with information from reputable public sources. These may include charity and corporate websites, annual reports, Companies House, the electoral register, and public social media profiles. We only use sources where individuals would reasonably expect their information to be publicly accessible. We avoid using any data that we believe has been obtained unlawfully or unethically and do not rely on information that is not already in the public domain.

To ensure we mitigate any risks in our data processing for fundraising purposes, we carry out a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) and this is available on request.

 Opting Out

You can opt out of receiving fundraising or marketing communications from us at any time by contacting us directly or using the unsubscribe link provided in our emails.

Removal of Personal Data

Should you wish the Society to remove your personal data please do not hesitate to contact us at fellowship@socantscot.org. We will ask what data (specific or all) you wish to have removed, confirm with you what we can legally remove and then delete that information from our membership database within 6 weeks of your initial request.

Complaints

If you have any concerns or wish to make a complaint about how we handle your personal data, you have the right to do so. Complaints can be raised directly with us at director@socantscot.org  We will acknowledge all complaints within 30 days and respond without undue delay.

Legislation

Further information on data protection legislation is available from the Information Commissioner’s Office at: www.ico.org.uk

The UK Data Protection Act 2018 and the Data Protection and Digital Information Act 2025 (DPDIA / DUAA) require organisations to handle personal data in accordance with key principles. These state that personal data must:

• Be processed fairly, lawfully, and transparently
• Be collected for specified, explicit, and legitimate purposes
• Be adequate, relevant, and limited to what is necessary
• Be accurate and kept up to date
• Not be retained for longer than necessary
• Be processed in a manner that ensures appropriate security
• Respect the rights of data subjects
• Not be transferred outside the UK or European Economic Area unless adequate safeguards are in place

These principles help ensure that individuals’ personal data is handled responsibly and with respect for privacy.

In order to reflect any legislative changes and/or feedback we may change our Data Protection Policy, Privacy Notice and/or website Terms and Conditions from time-to-time. Future revisions to either document will be posted on the Society’s website as soon as practicable and Fellows’ attention drawn to the changes.