1. Introduction

Welcome to Hope Community Church and Hope for Recovery ("we," "our," or "us"). We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information with care and respect. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our websites (index.html and hopeforrecovery.html) or interact with our services.

We are a faith-based organization providing church services, recovery programs, and community support in Clydebank. Our mission is to offer hope, healing, and wholeness to all who seek it.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Personal Information You Provide

We may collect personal information that you voluntarily provide when you:

• Submit prayer requests through our online form
• Contact us through our contact forms
• Register for recovery programs or events
• Make donations through PayPal
• Sign up for prayer updates or newsletters
• Participate in our community cafe or foodbank

This information may include:

• Name and contact details (email, phone number, address)
• Prayer requests and personal circumstances
• Recovery program application information
• Donation information (processed securely through PayPal)

2.2 Automatically Collected Information

When you visit our websites, we may automatically collect:

• IP address and browser type
• Pages visited and time spent on our site
• Referring website information
• Device information

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• To provide spiritual and pastoral care: To pray for your requests and offer appropriate support
• To administer recovery programs: To facilitate your participation in Hope for Recovery programs
• To communicate with you: To respond to your inquiries and provide updates about church activities
• To process donations: To securely process financial contributions (handled by PayPal)
• To improve our services: To understand how our website and services are being used
• To comply with legal obligations: Where required by law

4. Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal information based on:

• Your consent: When you voluntarily provide information through our forms
• Legitimate interests: To provide pastoral care and community services
• Legal obligations: Where required by applicable laws
• Vital interests: In cases of emergency where someone's health or safety is at risk

5. Sharing Your Information

We value your privacy and do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information to third parties. We may share information in the following limited circumstances:

• With your consent: When you explicitly agree to share information
• With prayer teams: Prayer requests may be shared with our prayer team members who have committed to confidentiality
• With service providers: With trusted partners who assist our ministry (e.g., Formspree for contact forms, PayPal for donations)
• For legal reasons: When required by law or to protect rights, property, or safety
• Within our church community: With appropriate confidentiality for pastoral care purposes

6. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information. However, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

All prayer requests and sensitive information are treated with the utmost confidentiality and shared only with authorized team members who have committed to maintaining confidentiality.

7. Data Retention

We retain personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. Prayer requests are typically retained for one year unless otherwise requested.

8. Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have certain rights regarding your personal information:

• Access: Request access to your personal information
• Correction: Request correction of inaccurate information
• Deletion: Request deletion of your personal information
• Restriction: Request restriction of processing
• Objection: Object to processing of your information
• Data portability: Request transfer of your information
• Withdraw consent: Withdraw consent at any time

To exercise these rights, please contact us using the information below.

9. Third-Party Services

Our websites use the following third-party services:

• Formspree: For processing contact form submissions
• PayPal: For processing donations
• Google Fonts: For typography on our websites
• Tailwind CSS: For styling our websites

These services have their own privacy policies, and we encourage you to review them.

10. Children's Privacy

Our services are not directed to individuals under 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 16. If we become aware that a child under 16 has provided us with personal information, we will take steps to delete such information.

11. Cookies

We may use cookies and similar tracking technologies to enhance your experience on our website. You can instruct your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent.

12. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page and updating the "Last Updated" date.