Privacy policy

1. Scope of this policy

This policy applies to personal information collected through ofor.info, through our enquiry and workshop registration forms, by telephone and email, and on paper at our sessions. It applies to participants, resource users, volunteers, donors and organisational contacts.

It does not apply to third-party websites we link to. Where a partner venue handles registration for a session it hosts, that venue’s own privacy policy governs the information you give them, and we receive only the attendance list.

2. Information we collect

We collect only what a specific purpose requires. In practice this means:

• Contact details — name, email address and, where you provide one, a telephone number and organisation.
• Enquiry content — whatever you choose to write in a message or say on the phone.
• Registration details — the session you are attending, the language you prefer, and any accommodation you have asked for.
• Postal address — only when you ask us to mail printed materials.
• Evaluation responses — collected on paper at the end of a session, and anonymous unless you sign your name.
• Limited technical data — described in section 7 and in our cookie policy.

We do not collect financial account details through this website. Donations, where accepted, are processed by a third-party provider that does not pass card details to us.

3. Why we collect it

Personal information is used to answer your enquiry, register you for a session, arrange an accommodation you have requested, send materials you have asked for, and produce anonymous aggregate statistics for our annual review and for the funders who support our work.

We do not use personal information for advertising, we do not build individual profiles, and we do not use automated decision-making of any kind.

4. Consent

We collect personal information only with your knowledge and consent, except where the law requires or permits otherwise. Ticking the consent box on our enquiry form is an express consent to store and use your details for the purpose of answering you.

You may withdraw consent at any time by writing to privacy@ofor.info. Withdrawal may mean we cannot complete something you have asked for — for example, we cannot mail a resource package without an address — and we will tell you if that is the case.

5. Mailing lists

Sending an enquiry does not subscribe you to anything. Our seasonal bulletin requires a separate, explicit request, and every issue carries a one-click unsubscribe link that we honour within two business days.

We do not sell, rent, trade or otherwise disclose our contact lists to any third party, including partner organisations and funders.

6. Disclosure to third parties

We disclose personal information only in these circumstances:

• To a service provider acting on our behalf — for example our email host or print supplier — under a written agreement limiting them to that purpose.
• To a partner venue, where you have registered for a session it hosts and the attendance list must be shared for access or safety reasons.
• Where required by law, by a court order or by a lawful request from a public authority.
• Where disclosure is necessary to protect someone from imminent harm.

Information reported to funders is aggregate and anonymous: participant numbers, venue types and evaluation scores. Individual responses are never passed on.

7. Website analytics

We use a privacy-respecting analytics service to count page views and referring sources. It does not set advertising cookies, does not track visitors across other websites, and stores no information that identifies you personally.

Our web server keeps standard access logs containing a truncated IP address, browser type and requested page. Logs are used for security and troubleshooting and are deleted after thirty days. Full detail is in our cookie policy.

8. How long we keep information

Retention periods are set by purpose, not by convenience:

• General enquiries — 24 months from the last correspondence.
• Workshop registrations — 24 months after the session, for follow-up surveys and funder reporting.
• Resource mailing requests — 12 months, then the address is deleted.
• Volunteer records — for the duration of the volunteer relationship and 7 years afterwards.
• Donation records — as required by the Canada Revenue Agency for receipted gifts.

At the end of a retention period, electronic records are deleted and paper records are shredded.

9. Safeguards

Personal information is stored on servers located in Canada, protected by access controls, encryption in transit and encrypted backups. Access is limited to the staff members whose duties require it, and that list is reviewed twice a year.

Paper forms collected at sessions are transported in a closed folder, entered into our systems within five business days and then shredded. Staff and volunteers receive privacy training before handling any participant information.

10. Your rights

You may ask us to confirm whether we hold personal information about you, to give you a copy, to correct anything inaccurate, or to delete what we hold where no legal obligation requires us to keep it.

Write to privacy@ofor.info or to our postal address. We respond within thirty days. If we need more time we will tell you why before the thirty days are up. There is no charge for a reasonable request.

11. Complaints

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may escalate the matter in writing to our Privacy Officer at the address below, who will review it independently of the staff member who first handled it.

You also have the right to complain to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. We will cooperate fully with any resulting review.

12. Children

Our programs are designed for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under sixteen through this website.

Where a young person attends a session with a parent or guardian, only the adult’s contact details are recorded. If you believe we hold information about a child, write to us and we will delete it.

13. Changes to this policy

We review this policy annually and whenever our practices change. The review date at the top of the page always reflects the current version, and material changes are summarised in a note on this page for at least ninety days.

Where a change materially affects how we use information you have already given us, we will contact you directly and, where the law requires it, ask for renewed consent.

Questions about this document

Write to Ofor, 220 Laurier Avenue West, Suite 640, Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5Z9, telephone (613) 555-0184, or email info@ofor.info. We answer written enquiries within two business days and formal requests within the timelines set out above.