Confidentiality Policy and Data Protection

The Princess Royal Training Awards are administered by the City & Guilds Foundation. The City & Guilds Foundation is the working name of The City and Guilds of London Institute. The team that works on the Awards are employees of The City and Guilds of London Institute (the Princess Royal Training Awards team) and a group of self-employed external assessors. The team and assessors may also draw on people from our wider network to aid the assessors during the online virtual visit who are known as ambassadors. Ambassadors help the assessor take notes and ask questions during the online meeting ‘virtual visit’ and may be City & Guilds Foundation employees, Honorary Members, Fellows, Councillors or Trustees of The City and Guilds of London Institute or alumni from the Princess Royal Training Awards and Membership Awards.

Scope and Duration

These obligations apply to all confidential information obtained during or in connection with the Awards assessment process. All obligations within this policy shall remain in force for five years following the conclusion of the relevant assessment, or indefinitely where the information constitutes a trade secret or sensitive personal data.

Confidential Information

For the purposes of this policy, confidential information includes but is not limited to: business strategies and plans, financial data, employee and personnel information, training methodologies and materials, internal processes and procedures, and any other information shared by applicant organisations during the assessment process. Information which is already in the public domain, is trivial in nature, or cannot reasonably be considered confidential is excluded from this definition.

Obligations

The team, ambassadors and assessors shall:

• Keep secret and not disclose any confidential information obtained by reason of the Awards assessment to any third party without the prior written consent of the Awards manager (or Chief Assessor for assessors).
• Take appropriate technical and organisational measures against unauthorised or unlawful processing of Personal Data and against accidental loss, destruction, damage, or unauthorised access to Personal Data.
• Promptly comply with any request requiring them to amend, transfer, or delete Personal Data in accordance with applicable data protection legislation, including the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.
• Not retain Personal Data beyond what is necessary for the purposes of the assessment, and delete or return all Personal Data upon conclusion of their involvement in the process.
• Promptly inform the chief assessor if Personal Data is lost, destroyed, damaged, corrupted, or becomes unusable, or if any unauthorised access or disclosure is suspected.
• Upon conclusion of their involvement, return or securely destroy all confidential materials, including documents, notes, and any recordings made during virtual visits, and confirm in writing to the Awards manager (or Chief Assessor for assessors) that this has been done.
• Handle all electronic communications and digital materials — including video recordings, shared documents, and virtual meeting platforms — securely and in accordance with any guidance issued by the Princess Royal Training Awards team.
• Declare to the Awards manager (or Chief Assessor for assessors) any actual or potential conflict of interest prior to commencing any assessment, including any prior or existing relationship with an applicant organisation. The Awards manager’s decision regarding any conflict shall be final.
• Undertake to make no reference in any advertising or other promotional material to this confidentiality agreement or their involvement in the Awards without the prior written consent of the Awards manager (or Chief Assessor for assessors).

Permitted Disclosures

Nothing in this policy prevents disclosure of confidential information where required by law, regulation, or court order. Where legally permitted to do so, the individual must notify the Awards manager (or Chief Assessor for assessors) as soon as practicable before making any such disclosure.

Consequences of Breach

Any breach of this policy may result in immediate removal from the Awards programme. The City & Guilds Foundation reserves the right to pursue any further legal remedies available to it in the event of a breach. Individuals are reminded that certain breaches may also constitute a violation of data protection legislation, which carries its own statutory consequences.