Who we are

References in this policy to “Kitty Angels”, “we”, “us” and “our” mean the Kitty Angels franchise business and, where applicable, your local Kitty Angels franchisee delivering the service in your area.

Customer data: why we process it

We collect and process personal data relating to you in order to fulfil our contractual obligations to you in the provision of our cat sitting services, and to respond to your enquiries before a booking is made. We are committed to being transparent about how we collect and use that data and to meeting our data protection obligations.

The types of information we collect includes:

• Your name, address, postcode and contact details, including email address and telephone number
• Your partner’s name and contact details (if applicable)
• Details of the security at your home, including the presence and location of an intruder alarm, if applicable
• How you heard about Kitty Angels
• Details of your cat(s), including any medical or dietary needs
• Which veterinary surgery you are registered with
• Emergency contact information
• Preferred contact method
• Dates that you will be in need of our services
• Any other information which may assist us in providing a personal service to meet your requirements

We may collect this information in a variety of ways, for example through:

• The initial enquiry, including our website contact and enquiry forms
• The customer consultation
• Any subsequent correspondence between you and us

Job applicant data: why we process it

If you apply to join us as a cat sitter, including via our “Join Our Team” page, we collect and process your personal data in order to assess your suitability, get in touch with you about opportunities, and, where relevant, pass your details to the local franchisee recruiting in your area.

The types of information we collect from applicants includes:

• Your name, postcode, email address and telephone number
• Your preferred area(s) of work
• Details of your relevant experience with cats and/or in a professional caring role
• Your general availability, including whether you can work during peak periods such as summer holidays, Easter, Christmas, weekends and school breaks
• Whether you hold a valid driving licence
• Whether you already hold a DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check or are willing to undergo one
• How you heard about Kitty Angels
• Any other information you choose to share with us in your application

Where an application progresses, we may also process criminal offence data as part of a DBS check. We only do this where necessary to assess suitability for a caring role that involves entering customers’ homes, and we handle this data with additional care, restricting access to those directly involved in the recruitment decision.

Special Categories of Personal Data

We do not routinely collect Special Categories of Personal Data (data revealing racial or ethnic origin, religious beliefs, health data, sexual orientation, etc.). Where we do come into receipt of such data, for example a note about a health condition relevant to a home visit, it is processed only for the purpose of tailoring our service to your needs.

Access to Data

Access to your data is limited to those within the Kitty Angels organisation who need it to deliver our service or assess your application, including the local franchisee for your area where relevant.

Third Parties

We do not sell your data. We only share it with third parties where we are required to do so for legal reasons, insurance claims, DBS checking services (for applicants), or in relation to the sale or transfer of all or part of our business, if applicable.

Protection of data

We take the protection of data seriously and have internal policies and controls in place to safeguard your data from loss, accidental destruction, misuse or disclosure. Data is only accessible by personnel who need it to perform their duties, and we have the following policies and controls in place:

• A Data Protection Policy
• Lockable files, accessible only by authorised directors
• Password-protected access to electronic files, limited to relevant personnel
• Password-protected laptops and mobile phones, and encrypted mobile communication systems
• System segregation
• We do not routinely transfer your data outside the UK; where information is stored with a service provider based outside the UK, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place
• We do not engage third parties to process personal data on our behalf; all data is processed in-house

Retention of Data

We hold customer personal data for three years following your most recent booking. If you make no bookings with us for three years, we will delete your data from our electronic files and securely dispose of any paper files containing your data.

Where your job application is unsuccessful, or you decide not to proceed, we retain your details for 12 months in case a suitable opportunity arises, after which they are securely deleted. If you would prefer we delete your application sooner, just let us know.

Your Rights

Under the UK GDPR, as a data subject you can:

• Access and obtain a copy of your data on request
• Require us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Require us to delete or restrict processing of your data, for example where it is no longer necessary for the purpose it was collected
• Object to the processing of your data
• Request that we transfer your data to another service provider or organisation
• (There are also rights concerning automated decision-making and profiling, neither of which we use)

Should you wish to exercise any of the above rights, please contact us.

If you believe we have not complied with your data protection rights, you have the right to complain to the UK’s supervisory authority, the Information Commissioner’s Office: https://ico.org.uk/

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time, for example to reflect changes in the law or in how we collect data. The latest version will always be available on this page.