Lochhill Agroecological Farm CIC

Last updated: November 2026

1. Who we are

Lochhill Agroecological Farm CIC is a community interest company based at Lochhill Farm, Crossmichael, Castle Douglas, Dumfries and Galloway, DG7 3BE.

Company registration number: SC838766.

We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information responsibly. This privacy policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, how we keep it safe and what rights you have over your personal data.

This policy applies to anyone using our website, contacting us, joining our community membership scheme, attending our events or workshops, or otherwise engaging with Lochhill Agroecological Farm.

2. What information we collect

We may collect and process the following types of personal information:

Information you provide directly

• Your name and contact details, including email address, telephone number and postal address.
• Information you provide when contacting us through our website or by email.
• Information provided when applying for membership, including membership category and payment details where applicable.
• Information relating to event and workshop bookings.
• Information you provide when enquiring about volunteering, working with us or becoming involved in farm activities.
• Any feedback, comments or other information you choose to share with us.
•  

Information collected through our website

When you visit our website, some technical information may be collected automatically, such as:

• Your IP address.
• Browser type and device information.
• Pages visited and how you interact with our website.
• Cookies and similar technologies, depending on your cookie preferences.
  
   

3. How we use your information

We collect and use personal information for the following purposes:

• To respond to enquiries and communicate with you.
• To administer our community membership scheme and keep members informed about relevant activities.
• To manage event and workshop bookings and communicate practical information to participants.
• To organise volunteering opportunities and other community activities.
• To send newsletters and updates about Lochhill Farm, our projects, events and activities, where you have chosen to receive them.
• To develop and improve our website, services and community activities.
• To meet our legal, financial and administrative responsibilities.

We will only use your personal information for purposes that are relevant to our work and consistent with this policy.

4. Our lawful basis for processing information

Under UK data protection law, we must have a lawful reason for collecting and using personal information.

Depending on the circumstances, we rely on the following lawful bases:

• Consent: Where you have actively agreed to receive marketing communications or to the use of certain non-essential cookies.
• Contract: Where we need to process your information to manage your membership, event booking or another agreement with you.
• Legitimate interests: Where processing is necessary for the effective running and development of our community farm, responding to enquiries, maintaining relationships and communicating about our activities. We will ensure these interests do not override your rights and freedoms.
• Legal obligation: Where we need to retain or process information to meet legal, financial, accounting or regulatory requirements.

You can withdraw consent at any time where we rely on consent as our lawful basis.

 

5. Newsletters and marketing communications

If you sign up to receive our newsletter or other updates, we may use your email address to send you information about:

• Farm news and developments.
• Upcoming events, workshops and activities.
• Membership opportunities.
• Volunteering and community involvement.
• Projects, campaigns and fundraising activities.

We use a third-party email service to manage newsletter subscriptions and communications.

You can unsubscribe at any time by using the unsubscribe link included in our emails or by contacting us directly.

We will not sell your contact details or use them to send unrelated marketing communications.

 

6. Sharing your information

We respect your privacy and do not sell, rent or trade your personal information.

We may share relevant information with trusted third-party service providers where necessary to operate our website and activities. These may include:

• Website hosting and website management providers.
• Online form providers, including Jotform.
• Newsletter and email communication providers, including Sender.net.
• Event booking or payment service providers, where applicable.
• Website services such as embedded maps and translation tools.

These providers may process personal information on our behalf to deliver their services. We expect them to handle information securely and in accordance with applicable data protection requirements.

We may also share information where required by law or where necessary to protect our legal rights.

We do not share membership information with other members without an appropriate reason and lawful basis.

7. How long we keep your information

We only keep personal information for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, or where we are legally required to retain it.

Our general approach is:

• General enquiries: Kept for as long as necessary to respond and deal with the enquiry, normally no longer than 12 months.
• Membership information: Kept for the duration of your membership and for a reasonable period afterwards to meet administrative, legal and accounting requirements.
• Event and workshop bookings: Kept for as long as necessary to administer the activity and deal with any follow-up requirements.
• Newsletter subscriptions: Kept until you unsubscribe or withdraw your consent.
• Financial and accounting records: Kept for the periods required by relevant legislation.

Information that is no longer needed will be securely deleted or anonymised.

8. Cookies and website services

Our website uses cookies and may use other technologies to help it function and improve your experience.

Some cookies are essential for the website to operate. Other cookies or third-party services may collect information about your activity when you use particular features.

Our website also uses third-party services for features such as embedded maps and website translation. These services may collect information about your activity when you choose to use them.

Where required, we will ask for your consent before using non-essential cookies or similar technologies.

You can manage your cookie preferences through the cookie settings on our website. You can also adjust your browser settings to manage or block cookies.

Please note that disabling certain cookies or services may affect how some parts of the website function.

9. Keeping your information secure

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration or disclosure.

Access to personal information is restricted to those who need it to carry out their responsibilities for Lochhill Agroecological Farm.

While we take care to protect your information, no method of transmitting or storing data electronically can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

10. Your data protection rights

Under UK data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal information.

These include the right to:

• Access: Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
• Rectification: Ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
• Erasure: Ask us to delete your personal information in certain circumstances.
• Restriction: Ask us to restrict how we use your information in certain circumstances.
• Object: Object to certain types of processing, including processing based on legitimate interests and direct marketing.
• Data portability: Request a copy of certain information in a commonly used electronic format, where applicable.
• Withdraw consent: Withdraw your consent at any time where we rely on consent to process your information.

These rights are subject to certain conditions and exemptions under data protection law.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details below.

11. Third-party websites

Our website may contain links to other websites or services operated by third parties.

If you follow these links, you will leave the Lochhill Agroecological Farm website. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of external websites, and we recommend that you read their privacy policies before providing any personal information.

12. Changes to this privacy policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time to reflect changes in our activities, website services or legal requirements.

Any updates will be published on this page, with the date of the latest revision shown at the top.

13. Contact us

If you have any questions about this privacy policy, how we use your personal information, or wish to exercise your data protection rights, please contact us:

Lochhill Agroecological Farm CIC

Lochhill Farm
Crossmichael
Castle Douglas
Dumfries and Galloway
DG7 3BE

Email: lochhillfarm@proton.me

Website: https://www.lochhillagroecological.farm/

You also have the right to raise a concern with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's independent data protection regulator.

Website: https://ico.org.uk/ Telephone: 0303 123 1113