Validation and periodic programme review: Internal and collaborative privacy notice

External Panel Members, External Advisors, Employer Panel Representative and Student Panel Members

The Academic Registry team is part of Liverpool John Moores University. See further information on the institution.

Liverpool John Moores University is the Data Controller.

Our Data Protection Officer can be contacted at DPO@ljmu.ac.uk.

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

For information about how the wider university uses personal data please see the Privacy notice section of our website.

Information we are collecting

We collect a range of personal data in relation to your appointment as an external panel member, external advisor, employer panel representative or student panel member.

This includes your personal and contact details, such as your:

  • title
  • full name
  • work address (not applicable for student panel members)
  • telephone number
  • email address

We also collect your home address and bank account details, including sort code, in order to process payment of fees and expenses.

We may collect identification and travel information, including passport details and any additional information required to arrange international travel or visas. This will only apply to overseas validation or review activity and will depend on the requirements of the country in which the activity takes place.

We are required to collect right to work information to confirm your eligibility to work in the UK. This includes passport details or other appropriate documentation, and applies to all paid panel members, including students. Where you hold a current UK passport, this check may be carried out electronically and a secure record of the check will be retained. Where this is not possible, you will be asked to present original documents to a member of university staff before the start of your engagement. This may take place in person or, where necessary, via secure post. Documentation will only be held for as long as needed to complete the verification process and will then be returned securely, with a record of the outcome retained electronically.

For external panel members and external advisors, we collect professional information such as:

  • your areas of teaching or research
  • managerial responsibilities
  • education and employment history

This information is used to assess your suitability for appointment and is typically provided through your curriculum vitae and nomination documentation.

For student panel members, some personal data, such as contact details and programme of study, may be obtained from existing university records.

For employer panel representatives, to administer your participation in validation or periodic programme review activity and to ensure appropriate employer representation on panels we collect:

  • personal and organisational details
  • job title
  • organisation name
  • work email address
  • contact number

The university is committed to promoting equality and diversity. To support this, you may be invited to provide equality and diversity information on a voluntary and anonymous basis. This may include information about your:

  • disability status
  • ethnic background
  • nationality
  • sex
  • gender identity
  • religion
  • marital status
  • sexual orientation
  • caring responsibilities

Source of the personal data

We collect personal information directly from you, including through your curriculum vitae (for external panel members and external advisors), fee and expense claim forms, and the provision of identification documents such as a copy of your passport. You may also choose to provide information by completing the university’s equality and diversity survey, which is optional and anonymous.

In some cases, personal data may also be provided indirectly. For example, an LJMU programme team representative may submit a nomination form on your behalf (for external panel members and external advisors), which includes information about your suitability for the role. Where required, Academic Registry may also ask you to complete additional forms, for example to support visa or travel arrangements, which will be sent to you directly.

Why we are collecting your data and the legal basis for this

We process personal data in accordance with the principles of the GDPR and only where there is a valid lawful basis to do so.

We process your personal data to manage your appointment as an external panel member, external advisor or student panel member. This includes confirming your suitability for the role, making arrangements for validation or review activity, and processing payment of fees and expenses.

All processing is carried out in accordance with UK GDPR and is based on one or more lawful grounds. In most cases, your personal data is processed under Article 6(1)(b), where it is necessary for the performance of a contract with you, and Article 6(1)(e), where it is necessary for the university to carry out its functions as a public authority. This includes administering your appointment and participation in validation and review activity, as well as meeting associated financial and regulatory requirements.

Who has access to this data

Your personal data will be used only by relevant LJMU staff where it is necessary for them to carry out their designated role.

Examples of relevant staff may include:

  • nominating programme team and Director of School’s office, who may access nomination forms, Curriculum Vitae, proof of right to work documentation and contact details
  • Academic Registry staff, who may access information required for nomination and administration of the process, including contact details and bank information for fee and expense claims
  • Head of Academic Quality and Standards, who may access nomination information and also contact details and bank information when authorising fee and expense claims
  • Finance Department staff, who will access bank details and contact information to process payment of fees and expenses

Your personal data may also be shared with external organisations where necessary. This may include:

  • collaborative partner institutions, where you are appointed to take part in a validation or review event or as an external advisor for a collaborative award (excluding your home address and bank details)
  • Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Bodies (PSRBs), where required for accreditation purposes
  • third-party travel providers, where necessary to arrange travel for overseas validation or review activity
  • relevant authorities, where the university is required to share information by law

How the university protects your data

We are committed to keeping your personal data safe in line with data protection legislation and the university’s information security and data protection policies.

A copy of your completed nomination form, accompanying curriculum vitae and proof of identity documentation is stored on a SharePoint site with access restricted to authorised staff within Academic Registry. Fee and expense claim forms are held securely by the Finance Department.

We also record limited information within the university’s WebHub business intelligence system to support the administration and oversight of validation and periodic programme review activity. This includes, for external panel members and external advisors, your first name, surname, employing institution, current post and email address. For student panel members, this is limited to your first name and surname. For employer panel representatives, we record your first name and surname.

How long the university keeps your data

We will retain your personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including to meet legal, accounting and reporting requirements. Personal data is retained in line with the university’s Records Retention Schedule.

In most cases, personal data relating to validation and periodic programme review activity will be retained until completion of the programme’s subsequent periodic review, plus one year (normally a total period of six years). Fee and expense claims, and the information they contain, will be retained by the Finance Department for six years in line with its retention schedule for financial records. Academic Registry will retain a redacted version of fee and expense claim forms to support any queries, in line with the Records Retention Schedule.

If you are not approved to act as an external validation or review panel member, external advisor or student panel member, your application will be securely deleted within one month of the decision not to appoint you.

Equality and diversity data is collected anonymously and will be held until it is replaced by data collected in the following year. Aggregated data will be retained for the year of reporting and for a further five years.

Your rights

As a data subject, you have a number of rights. You can:

  • access and obtain a copy of your data on request - this could be in a portable electronic format
  • request that the university changes incorrect or incomplete data if you think that it is inaccurate or out of date
  • request that the university delete or stop processing your data, for example where the data is no longer necessary or legally required for the purposes of processing.

If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact the Data Protection Officer at DPO@ljmu.ac.uk.

If you do not provide data

If you choose not to provide the information required, we may not be able to appoint you as an external panel member, external advisor, student panel member or employer panel representative, or to make arrangements for your participation in validation or review activity. In some cases, this may also prevent the university from processing payments or reimbursing expenses.

Transfers of data outside the UK

We normally keep your personal data within the UK. In some cases, however, we may need to transfer it to another country - for example, to deliver a contract with you or to work with a partner organisation such as a university based overseas.

Whenever this happens, we make sure your information stays protected. This could be through a UK “adequacy regulation” (which confirms that the other country’s data protection laws are up to UK standards) or by putting strong safeguards in place.

These safeguards might include:

  • model contractual clauses
  • formal data sharing or processing agreements
  • binding corporate rules

In short, even if your data travels abroad, it will continue to be treated with the same care and respect as it would under UK law.

Automated decision-making

We do not use computers to make decisions about you based solely on your personal data. Any decisions that affect you will always be made by a human, ensuring that you are treated fairly.

How to complain to the university

You have a right to complain to the university if you think it has not properly responded to your request for personal information or feel it has not handled your personal data responsibly.

If you are not satisfied with how your request for information or how your personal data has been handled, you should set out your complaint in writing to:

Maria Burquest
University Secretary and General Counsel
Legal and Governance Services
2nd Floor Exchange Station
Tithebarn Street
Liverpool
L2 2QP

or by email via DPO@ljmu.ac.uk.

How to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office

You have the right to complain to The Information Commissioner if you believe that our processing of your personal data does not meet our data protection obligations. The Information Commissioner can be contacted using the following details:

  • Post: Information Commissioners Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK95AF
  • Telephone: 0303 123 1113
  • Email: contact can be made by accessing IOC website