Privacy Policy

Q Shelter is committed to protecting the privacy of your personal information. This statement explains how Q Shelter manages the personal information that we collect, use and disclose and how to contact us if you have any further queries about our management of your personal information. This privacy policy does not cover personal information collected or held by Q Shelter about its employees.

Q Shelter is required by the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act) to comply with the Australian Privacy Principles (APP) (subject to the other provisions of the Privacy Act). The APPs regulate the manner in which personal information is handled throughout its life cycle, from collection to use and disclosure, storage, accessibility and disposal. Q Shelter is also required to comply with the Spam Act 2003 (Cth) (Spam Act).

Please read the following privacy policy statement (Privacy Policy) to understand how we collect, use, disclose, store, handle and protect your personal information.

In this Privacy Policy, ‘personal information’ has the meaning set out in the Privacy Act. In general terms, personal information is information (whether fact or opinion) about an individual who is identified or reasonably identifiable from that information or other information combined with that information.

Collection of personal information by Q Shelter

Q Shelter collects personal information that is reasonably necessary or directly related to its functions or activities including membership, events, delivery of capacity building products and services and advocacy.  To the extent required by the Privacy Act:

  • Q Shelter will not collect personal information about you unless that information is necessary for one or more of our functions or activities; and
  • Q Shelter will collect personal information only by lawful and fair means and not in an unreasonably intrusive manner.

The specific types of information Q Shelter may collect and hold includes, but is not exclusive to, the following:

  • Personal information, which may include:
    • Name
    • Contact Details
    • Organisation Details
    • Email, Postal and Physical Addresses
    • Position Title
    • Services provided by an organisation
    • Financial information required to process a membership application or payment for a Q Shelter event, training, product or other service;
    • Health information, such as health conditions, treatments and health services currently being provided to you.
    • Family information, such as next of kin, immediate family, and close support persons.
  • If you require our services relating to the Service Integration Group network, we may also collect other information, including potentially sensitive personal information, that may help us to provide our services to you, including the presence of financial difficulties; legal issues; problematic gambling; domestic and family violence; sexual violence; hoarding behaviours and squalor; employment and training difficulties; a lack of family and/or community support; involvement from Child Safety; formal guardianship or trustee arrangements; transition from custodial arrangements, foster care, or child safety; and the experience of discrimination; and
  • If you have contacted Q Shelter to make a complaint, provide feedback, submit an enquiry, request a call-back – your name, mailing or street address, email address, and telephone number(s).

We will collect sensitive information about you, including those described above.

We do collect personal information of individuals under the age of 18 (a minor) only to the extent required to deliver our services for their benefit. You should refrain from providing any such information that is beyond the necessary scope of our services and if you do provide us with such information of a minor we will remove it from our servers and systems.

We may also collect technical information and general analytics, such as web browser type and browsing preferences, Internet service provider, referring/exit pages, date/time stamps, IP address, time zone and geolocation data, some of which is collected automatically, arising from your use of our website and/or platforms (if any), as well as information about your usage of our website and/or platforms (if any) when browsing.

How does Q Shelter collect personal information?

Q Shelter will collect your personal information directly from where it is reasonable and practicable to do so.  When Q Shelter collects personal information directly from you, we will take reasonable steps at or before the time of collection to ensure you are aware of certain key matters, such as the purpose for which we are collecting the information, the organisations (or types of organisations) to which we would normally disclose information of that kind, the fact that you are able to access the information and how to contact us (for example, where personal information is collected on a form, we will generally include a link to this statement).

Where Q Shelter collects information about you from a third party or other source, we will still take reasonable steps to ensure that you are made aware of the details set out above.

We may collect personal information about you from other groups within the Service Integration Group network and from the Department of Housing.

Whilst we will always maintain robust privacy practices, however the privacy practices of third parties, including our funding bodies and other members of the Service Integration Group network, are their own responsibility so you should review their relevant privacy policy to satisfy yourself as to how they protect and handle your personal information.

We also use the following technologies to collect technical information and general analytics:

  • cookies, which are data files that are placed on your device and often include an anonymous unique identifier;
  • log files, which track actions occurring on our website; and
  • web beacons, tags, and pixels, which are electronic files used to record information about how you browse our website.

You may disable your web browser from accepting cookies and other tracking technologies used to collect technical information and general analytics  when browsing our website.  If you do so, you can still access our website, but it may impact your user experience.

How does Q Shelter use personal information?

Q Shelter collects personal information for a range of purposes, including to:

  • Process applications for membership and membership renewals
  • Manage memberships of Q Shelter
  • Process applications for enrolment in training, conferences, events or other services offered by Q Shelter
  • Process subscriptions to the Q Shelter ‘Housing Matters’ e-newsletter
  • Record and maintain membership details and profile information
  • Provide information on Q Shelter services and benefits available
  • Notify stakeholders about Q Shelter events
  • Ensure compliance with Q Shelter’s constitution
  • Facilitate the provision of services in relation to the Service Integration Group network

From time to time, Q Shelter surveys its members and non-member participants on a range of issues such as marketing surveys regarding candidates’ experience with Q Shelter’s customer service, quality of on-line manuals or training and events. If you do not wish to participate in these surveys, please let us know (our contact details are provided at the end of this Privacy Policy).

If you are a prospective member and you give us your consent, we may also use your personal information to provide you with information about Q Shelter and our current and future membership benefits.  You can let us know at any time if you no longer wish to be contacted for this purpose.  Your consent will remain current until you advise us otherwise.

Disclosure of personal information by Q Shelter

We may disclose your personal information to third parties in connection with the purposes described above (see the “How does Q Shelter use your personal information?” section).

This may include disclosing your personal information to the following types of third parties:

  • the Department of Housing and other government departments or agencies;
  • the Service Integration Group network;
  • our professional advisers (such as lawyers, accountants or auditors) and insurers;
  • our employees, contractors and third party service providers who assist us in performing our functions and activities;
  • third parties to whom you have authorised us to disclose your information; and
  • any other person as required or permitted by law.

If we disclose your personal information to third parties we will use reasonable commercial efforts to ensure that such third parties only use your personal information as reasonably required for the purpose of disclosure and in a manner consistent with applicable laws, for example (where commercially practical) by including suitable privacy and confidentiality clauses in our agreement with a third party service provider to which we disclose your personal information.

If Q Shelter uses or discloses your personal information for a purpose (secondary purpose) other than the main reason for which it was originally collected (primary purpose), to the extent required by the Privacy Act, we will ensure that:

  • The secondary purpose is related to the primary purpose of collection (and directly related in the case of sensitive information), and you would reasonably expect that Q Shelter would use or disclose your information in that way
  • You have consented to the use or disclosure of your personal information for the secondary purpose:
    • The use or disclosure is required or authorised by or under law, or
    • The use or disclosure is otherwise permitted by the Privacy Act (for example, as a necessary part of an investigation of suspected unlawful activity).

Can you choose not to disclose your personal information to Q Shelter?

You do not have to identify yourself or provide any personal information if you contact us. You can also notify us that you wish to deal with us using a pseudonym.

However, if we cannot collect personal information about you or if you use a pseudonym, we may not be able to provide you with the information or assistance you require.  For example, we will not be able to send you information you have requested if you have not provided us with a valid email address or telephone number; and we will not be able to provide you with housing and other services if relevant personal information is not provided to us.

How might we contact you?

We may contact you in a variety of ways, including by post, email or telephone calls.

Spam

We will not send you any commercial electronic messages such as emails unless this is permitted by the Spam Act (for example, if we have your express or inferred consent to do so).  Any commercial electronic message that we send will identify Q Shelter as the sender and will include our contact details. The message will also provide an unsubscribe facility. If you do not wish to receive commercial electronic message from us, please let us know.

How does Q Shelter store personal information?

We store your personal information in paper-based files and/or other electronic record keeping methods in secure databases.  Personal information may be collected in paper-based documents and converted to electronic form for use or storage (with the original paper-based documents either archived or securely destroyed).  We do combine or link personal information we hold about you with other personal information about you from third party sources.

Particularly for electronic data stores and due to the fact that the internet is inherently insecure, we cannot guarantee the security of transmission of personal information disclosed to us online.  Accordingly, you transmit your personal information to us online at your own risk and are encouraged to exercise care in sending personal information via the internet.  Please notify us immediately if you know or reasonably suspect that your personal information has been subject to any data breach, breach of security or other unauthorised activity.

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, we exclude all liability (including in negligence) for the consequences of any unauthorised access to, modification of, disclosure of, misuse of or loss or corruption of any personal information.  Nothing in this Privacy Policy restricts, excludes or modifies or purports to restrict, exclude or modify any statutory consumer rights under any applicable law, including the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth), or any liability which cannot be excluded due to the operation of applicable laws.

Does personal information leave Australia?

Your information may be transferred to our service providers located outside of Australia, including but not limited to MailChimp and SurveyMonkey in the United States. Except where an exception applies under the Privacy Act or other relevant legislation, we will take commercially reasonable steps to ensure that overseas recipients to whom we disclose personal information do not breach the Privacy Act and the Australian Privacy Principles in relation to such personal information.

Accuracy of Personal Information and Security

The accuracy and security of personal information is important to Q Shelter and we will take reasonable steps to:

  • Make sure that the personal information that we collect, use and disclose is accurate, complete and up to date
  • Protect the personal information that we hold from misuse and loss and from unauthorised access, modification or disclosure
  • Destroy or permanently de-identify personal information that is no longer needed for any purpose that is permitted by the Privacy Act.

How long does Q Shelter store personal information?

Generally, we will retain your personal information for the period necessary for the purposes for which your personal information was collected (as outlined in this Privacy Policy) unless a longer retention period is required by law or if it is reasonably necessary for us to comply with our legal obligations, resolve a dispute or maintain security.

Access and correction of your personal information

Q Shelter will provide you with access to your personal information that we hold about you and will take reasonable steps to amend any personal information that is incorrect or allow you to do so. Where we agree that the information needs to be corrected, we will update it. If we do not agree, you can request that we make a record of your correction request with the relevant information.

This information may be requested by contacting Q Shelter and we will make your information available to you within 30 days of the receipt of the request.

Privacy Complaints

Please contact us if you have any concerns or complaints about the manner in which your personal information has been collected or handled by Q Shelter.  Every effort will be made to resolve a complaint around privacy quickly and effectively as soon as Q Shelter has been made aware of that complaint.

If you have raised a complaint with us and you are unsatisfied with the outcome or have further concerns about the way we handle your personal information, under the Privacy Act, you may complain to the Information Commissioner at the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, whose contact details are set out below:

Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
GPO Box 5218
Sydney NSW 2001
Phone: 1300 363 992
Online: www.oaic.gov.au
Email:   

Contact

If you have a query, concern or complaint about the manner in which your personal information has been collected or handled by us or would like to request access to or correction of the personal information we hold about you, please contact us using the details provided below:

Q Shelter
515 Wickham Terrace, Spring Hill Qld 4000
PO Box 214, Spring Hill Qld 4000

Email:
Telephone: (07) 3831 5900

Changes to this Policy

We may change or update this Privacy Policy from time to time to keep up-to-date with legal requirements and the way we operate our business.  An up-to-date version of this Privacy Policy is available at any time on our website. You are responsible for reviewing this Privacy Policy periodically and informing yourself of any changes. We suggest that you check back regularly. If we make significant changes to our Privacy Policy, we will seek to inform you by notice on our website or by email.

 

Last updated: October 2024