In line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), this privacy notice explains how your personal data will be processed, used, and protected during your participation in this research. The Institute for Employment Studies (IES) are conducting this research on behalf of Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust (GSTT) and Guy’s and St Thomas’ Charity (GSTC).
What is the purpose of this research?
IES has been commissioned to evaluate the Showing We Care About You (“SWCAY”) staff health, wellbeing and benefits programme. The evaluation aims to improve understanding of how SWCAY is supporting staff wellbeing and where there may be opportunities to strengthen the programme further. It will explore staff experiences of SWCAY, barriers and enablers to participation, who is and is not accessing the programme, and the outcomes associated with engagement. It will explore the barriers to accessing programme activities, the effectiveness of activities, and how the activities contribute to change. The evaluation will pay particular attention to understanding the unique experiences of groups who are less likely to engage with the SWCAY programme. The research will take place across two waves and engage with staff through interviews and group discussions.
- Wave 1 (October – November 2026) will involve interviews and group discussions with staff to understand how much people know about the Showing We Care About You programme, how easy or difficult it is to access, what helps or prevents staff from using it, and whether communication about the programme is reaching different groups of staff. This wave will particularly help us understand the experiences of staff who may be less likely to use the programme or who may face barriers to taking part.
- Wave 2 (February – March 2027) will involve interviews and group discussions with staff who have engaged with the programme. This wave will explore why staff accessed the programme, their experience of the support activities, whether they feel it has made a difference, and how it may have contributed to positive outcomes for themselves, the team or the organisation.
These findings will support GSTT and GSTC to consider the overall impact of the SWCAY programme and also the impact of specific elements of the programme alongside current investment. They will be used to support and influence onward SWCAY programme design, development and funding decisions, ensuring that staff voice and experience of the programme to date are an integral part of strategic design and charity grant application. They will also support GSTT and GSTC in making informed decisions regarding future Charity grant applications, in commissioning health and wellbeing interventions, and sharing best practice across the NHS, the UK and internationally.
Taking part in this research is entirely voluntary. Choosing not to participate will have no impact on your employment, access to services, or relationship with GSTT. IES will seek your consent to participate in research activities.
What is the legal basis for processing my data?
GSTT is the data controller for this project, and IES is the data processor;
For this evaluation, the legal basis for processing data is ‘legitimate interest’, Article 6(1)(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation. GSTT has determined that processing personal data is necessary to carry out this evaluation and that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect participants’ rights and freedoms.
GSTT has carried out a legitimate interest assessment, which concludes that we have a legitimate interest in processing the personal data to conduct the evaluation, the processing identified is necessary in order to meet this purpose, and there are minimal impacts of the processing on the individuals involved (which we will take steps to ensure).
Who will have access to my personal data?
GSTT has provided IES with your name and job role for the purpose of contacting you to schedule an interview or group discussion. Invitations to attend interviews will be sent by the IES research team. IES research team members will only have access to your raw interview responses collected during the interviews. If you agree to take part in an interview, we will collect data relevant to your role and involvement in SWCAY.
Communication and delivery staff:
Your verbal responses during the interview: These will include your experience and knowledge of the SWCAY programme and context; your involvement in resourcing or providing activities for the SWCAY programme and your understanding of the outcomes and impacts from these activities and how these are monitored.
Staff who have little or no engagement with SWCAY:
Your verbal responses during the interview: These will include your awareness and understanding of the SWCAY programme; any reasons for limited or non-participation; your perceptions of staff health and wellbeing support within the organisation; and any factors that influence engagement with staff wellbeing initiatives.
Staff who have engaged with SWCAY activities:
Your verbal responses during the interview: These will include your experiences of participating in SWCAY activities or using SWCAY-funded services; your views on the accessibility, relevance and value of these offers, changes you have made since participating, any perceived outcomes or impacts for you, your team, or the wider organisation; and any suggestions for improvement.
All staff participating:
- Basic work information: Such as your role, responsibilities, department, and length of time working at GSTT.
- We will not specifically ask participants about their health, disability, or other special category personal data. However, participants may choose to disclose such information during the interview. Where special category personal data is disclosed, IES will process this information only where necessary for research and evaluation purposes. Such processing will be undertaken in accordance with Article 9(2)(j) UK GDPR (research purposes), together with the safeguards set out in Article 89(1) UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. Any special category data will be handled confidentially, stored securely, and anonymised before analysis and reporting.
How will my data be used?
- Interviews will be recorded with your explicit consent, gained before the interview, and notes will be taken using Microsoft Teams automated transcription.
- Access to recordings and transcripts will be restricted to authorised members of the IES research team. Recordings and transcripts will be stored securely and deleted in line with the retention period set out below.
- Your interview notes will be anonymised and combined with those of other participants. Data will be analysed to identify common themes, patterns and insights relating to of SWCAY and workforce wellbeing support.
- Once information has been fully anonymised, it will no longer be personal data under UK GDPR.
- Findings will be reported in an aggregated form, and individuals will not be identified in reports or presentations. GSTT will only receive anonymised and aggregated findings. Individuals will not be named, nor will any information be included that could reveal their identity.
- IES will store all data securely in the UK, on password-protected systems in accordance with data protection legislation.
How long will my data be kept?
Contact details, recordings, transcripts and identifiable interview notes will be securely deleted from IES systems no later than three months after the end of the project, which is currently scheduled to be no later than August 2027. This means the expected deletion date is November 2027, subject to confirmation of the final project end date. IES will retain anonymised analyses and research findings indefinitely for our records. GSTT will retain anonymised reports and frameworks indefinitely for organisational learning and future framework development.
What are my rights?
Under UK GDPR, you have rights as an individual, even after you have given the information and consented to its use for research purposes. You have the right:
- to ask us for access to information about you that we hold
- to have your personal data rectified, if it is inaccurate or incomplete
- to request the deletion or removal of personal data where there is no compelling reason for its continued processing
- to restrict our processing of your personal data (i.e. permitting its storage but no further processing)
- to object to processing your personal data for scientific/historical research and statistics
- to not be subject to decisions based purely on automated processing where it produces a legal or similarly significant effect on you
You may request the withdrawal of your personal data up to two weeks after your interview by contacting Megan Edwards, Project Manager at IES, with the subject line ‘Withdraw my data’. After this time, it will be anonymised and incorporated into aggregated analysis. Once data has been anonymised and combined with data from other participants, it may no longer be possible to identify and remove your contribution. To exercise your withdrawal rights or ask questions about participation, please contact the IES project manager using the details below.
You can read more about the rights granted to you under UK GDPR here: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/uk-gdpr-guidance-and-resources/individual-rights/
Who can I contact with a query about how my data will be used?
If you have any questions about how your data will be used, please contact:
Guy’s and St Thomas’ OHSWB Data Protection Officer, Dr Ali Hashtroudi [email protected]
You can contact the IES Project Manager, Megan Edwards, with any questions about the research at [email protected]
Who can I contact with a complaint?
You have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK’s independent authority for upholding information rights: www.ico.org.uk