Policies

Marketing and Insight surveys and projects

Information you need to know

The Marketing Team is part of the University of Leicester, who are the Data Controller for your information. The Data Protection Officer can be contacted by email: dpo@leicester.ac.uk

This privacy notice explains how we use your personal information and your rights regarding that information.

What is ‘personal information’?

‘Personal information’ means any information which relates to or identifies you as an individual.

What information are we collecting?

The personal information we collect for surveys, prize draws and invitations to join focus groups could include:

  • your name
  • your email address
  • your postcode

In addition to this, the University may process some information about you that is classed as ‘sensitive’ or ‘special category’ personal data, and which requires additional protections, which may include:

  • personal data revealing your political opinions;
  • personal data revealing your racial or ethnic origin;
  • personal data revealing your religious or philosophical beliefs;
  • Information concerning a disability or your general health;
  • Information concerning your sexual orientation

Providing your data will always be optional. Survey responses will always be anonymised and will only be used for aggregated data analysis.

Why are we processing your data?

We use your data to support and inform future decision-making across the University and improve its services to its stakeholders. The reasons for collecting contact data will be:

  • To contact you for the purpose of a prize draw
  • And/or to invite you to join future marketing activity 

If special category data is collected, the reason for collecting this data will be specified. Generally, this type of data is used to ensure our survey responses are representative of our broad University stakeholders and communities and that we can support/ offer adequate provisions to them.

Why are we processing your data?

  • Your personal information will only be retained where we need to contact you again.
  • Your personal information will be separated from your responses and stored in secure University servers.
  • All data will be anonymised before being shared, either between other University teams or with 3rd party service providers.
  • Responses (including quotations) may be used anonymously.
  • Only where consent is explicitly gained, will identifying data, such as a name, be used alongside a quotation.

What is the University of Leicester’s legal basis for collecting the data?

The data will be used under the legal basis of consent. GDPR Article 6(1)(a). Special category data will be processed according to GDPR Article 9(2)(a): explicit consent.

Who will my personal data be shared with?

Your personal information will never be shared outside of the University without your knowledge and consent.

Qualtrics survey platform

  • Our surveys are hosted by the survey platform ‘Qualtrics’.
  • The University has confidentiality agreements with Qualtrics to keep your data secure.
  • Once a survey closes, personal data is transferred to University servers and erased from the survey platform.
  • All data is stored and processed in the EU, and no data is transferred outside of that region.

How long will the University of Leicester keep my data?

We will retain your data only for as long as we need it to meet our purposes, including any relating to legal, accounting, or reporting requirements
For prize draws, your personal information will be kept until 30 days after the prize draw and then erased.

If you have consented to us keeping your details to contact you in future, or to use your personal data for our marketing, the University will retain the personal data for up to 6 years, or until you withdraw permission for us to use it. 

What rights do I have regarding my data?

You have the right to access, correct, or delete your personal data, to object to or restrict how it is used, to request its transfer to another organisation, and to avoid decisions made solely by automated processes.

Some of the above rights are not absolute. If you want to exercise any of the rights described above, please contact the University’s Information Assurance Team via on the email at the end of this notice. 

We will do our best to respond quickly and within the timeframes set out by data protection law. To help us handle your request and improve our services, we may keep a record of our communications with you. 

Complaints to the University

If you are dissatisfied with the way the University have used your information, you should complain to the University’s Information Assurance Team via the email at the end of this notice.

Complaints to the ICO

If you are not satisfied with the way the University has handled your complaint, you also have the right to raise your concerns with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). The ICO is an independent authority which oversees how personal data is used. Guidance on how to contact the ICO can be found at www.ico.org.uk  

Changes to this privacy notice

This privacy notice was published in July 2026. If you have any questions about this privacy notice or if you would like to access any of your rights, please contact Information Assurance Services: ias@leicester.ac.uk 

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