Privacy and cookie policy

Privacy and cookies

The success of the PIRC depends on it being a secure organisation while maintaining its openness of approach.

Any personal data collected through this website will be processed in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation 2018. In line with this Act, PIRC is committed to protecting your privacy and only using any data you give us for its intended purpose and in accordance with the Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2006, as amended by the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012.  

Find our Data Protection Policy here.

We do not capture and store any personal information about individuals who access this website except where you voluntarily choose to provide your details via the online Complaint Handling Review application form or job application form. We publish information on how we process your personal information, including what we do with it, how long we intend to keep it, and on what legal basis, in our privacy notices available here.

We will use the information you have provided only for the purposes of processing your enquiry. 

PIRC will not pass on information to third parties except where it is necessary in the proper performance of its functions under the Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2006, as amended by the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012.

Types of information collected by PIRC

When you visit this site you may provide two types of information:

  • Personal information you choose to provide that is collected on an individual basis: applications for a Complaint Handling Review, feedback, questions and enquiries (via email) and applications for job vacancies.
  • Information, not of a personal nature, that is collected automatically on an aggregate basis as you and others browse the site. 

Aggregate information tells us how popular different parts of the site are with visitors. This helps us to develop and improve the site and is not used in any way that could identify individual users.

Information provided by users will only be held for as long as is necessary to allow us to respond properly to applications, queries and suggestions.

Any personal data you provide in completing an online form will be used only for that purpose and will be processed in accordance with the Data Protection Act.

Cookies

When we provide services, we want to make them easy, useful and reliable. Where services are delivered on the internet, this sometimes involves placing small amounts of information on your device, for example your computer or mobile phone. These include small files known as cookies. They cannot be used to identify you personally.

These pieces of information are used to improve services by, for example:

  • Enabling a service to recognise your device so that you don't have to give the same information several times during one task
  • Recognising that you may already have given a username and password so you that don't need to do it for every web page requested
  • Measuring how many people are using services, so they can be made easier to use and have enough capacity to be fast

Google Analytics sets cookies to help us accurately estimate the number of visitors to the website and volumes of usage. This helps us to ensure that our web service is fast and available when you want it. For further details on the cookies set by Google Analytics, please refer to the Google Code website.

Controlling your cookie settings

We recommend that you allow the cookies from this website as they help us to provide a better service and make the website easier to use.

If you do not want to receive cookies from this website, select cookie settings under the privacy settings in your browser options, then add the PIRC domain to the list of websites from which you do not want to accept cookies.

Under settings you can also delete individual cookies or any cookies that your browser has stored.

To find out more about cookies, including how to see what cookies have been set and how to manage and delete them, visit www.allaboutcookies.org.

To opt out of being tracked by Google Analytics across all websites visit the Google Analytics Opt Out Browser Add on Download page.

Please be aware that if you set your browser to refuse all cookies, some functionality on various websites, including the PIRC website, may not work.

Access to your information

You have the right to request your own personal information under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) as amended by the Data Protection Act 2018.

A request for your personal information is called a Subject Access Request.

This allows you to get a copy of the personal information we hold about you and to check that we are lawfully processing it.

If you wish to see the records of any correspondence you have sent to the PIRC, or if you have a query or complaint about this privacy statement or about the site, please contact us.

Email communication

All email communications received by the PIRC are subject to monitoring. They may be recorded and retained.

In addition, should your email be infected with a computer virus it will be deleted and its receipt will not be acknowledged. If your email is a freedom of information request and you do not receive an acknowledgement in two working days, we recommend that you try to contact us using an alternative means of communication.

By continuing to use this site it is assumed that you understand and agree to the contents of this statement.