Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Morse Webb Ltd, trading as Morse Webb Architects (“Morse Webb”, “we”, “us” or “our”), respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, disclose and protect personal information when you visit our website, contact our practice, enquire about our services, engage us for architectural or related professional services, or otherwise interact with us.

We are a UK-based architectural practice and an RIBA Chartered Practice. In providing our services, we may work with clients, prospective clients, consultants, contractors, suppliers, planning authorities and other parties involved in the design, planning and delivery of building projects.

We process personal information in accordance with applicable UK data protection legislation, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 and applicable electronic communications and privacy legislation.

Please read this Policy carefully to understand how we handle your personal information and the rights available to you.

2. Who We Are

The organisation responsible for determining how and why your personal information is processed is:

Morse Webb Ltd (Morse Webb Architects)
The Byre, Lantern Courtyard
The Street, Bramley
Hampshire, RG26 5DE
United Kingdom

Telephone: 01256 587 888
Email: studio@morsewebb.co.uk
Website: www.morsewebb.co.uk

For questions about this Privacy Policy or how we use your personal information, please contact us using the details above.

For the purposes of applicable data protection legislation, Morse Webb Ltd acts as the data controller where it determines the purposes and means of processing personal information.

3. What personal information we collect

The personal information we collect will depend on how you interact with us and the services we provide.

3.1 Information you provide directly

We may collect the following information when you contact us, submit an enquiry, request a proposal or engage our services:

Your name and job title.
Your email address, telephone number and postal address.
Your organisation's name and business contact details.
Details of your enquiry, project requirements and communications with us.
Information included in correspondence, emails, telephone calls and meetings.
Information necessary to prepare fee proposals, appointments, contracts, invoices and other project documentation.
Information you voluntarily provide through forms or other communication channels.

3.2 Information relating to architectural projects

When providing architectural, design, masterplanning, project management or related professional services, we may process information about clients, property owners, project stakeholders and other individuals involved in a project.

This may include:

Property addresses, site details and project information.
Plans, drawings, surveys, photographs and other project documents.
Information relating to planning applications, building regulations and statutory approvals.
Names and contact details of consultants, contractors, suppliers, advisers and other project participants.
Project correspondence, meeting notes, instructions and records of decisions.
Information relevant to health and safety, site access, project coordination or the fulfilment of our professional and legal obligations.

We will seek to limit personal information to what is reasonably necessary for the relevant project or professional purpose.

3.3 Information obtained from other sources

Where necessary for our business or professional services, we may receive personal information from clients, project consultants, contractors, suppliers, professional advisers, planning authorities, publicly available registers or other legitimate sources.

For example, a client or project consultant may provide us with your contact details because you are involved in a proposed development or construction project.

Where required by law, we will provide appropriate privacy information when obtaining personal information from sources other than the individual concerned.

4. How and why we use your personal information

We use personal information only where we have a lawful basis for doing so and for purposes that are relevant to our business and professional activities.

The purposes for which we may process your information include:

4.1 Responding to enquiries

We use your contact details and enquiry information to respond to questions, discuss potential projects, arrange meetings and provide information about our services.

Lawful basis: Taking steps at your request before entering into a contract, or our legitimate interests in responding to business enquiries.

4.2 Providing architectural and professional services

We use relevant information to develop designs, prepare drawings and project documentation, coordinate consultants, manage project communications, support planning and regulatory processes, and fulfil our contractual and professional responsibilities.

Lawful basis: Performance of a contract, taking steps at your request before entering into a contract, compliance with legal obligations, or legitimate interests where appropriate.

4.3 Managing business relationships

We process contact details and business correspondence to manage relationships with clients, consultants, contractors, suppliers and other professional contacts.

Lawful basis: Performance of a contract, compliance with legal obligations or our legitimate interests in operating and managing our business.

4.4 Administration and financial records

We may process personal information to prepare fee proposals, issue invoices, process payments, maintain accounts, manage supplier relationships and comply with tax, accounting and record-keeping requirements.

Lawful basis: Performance of a contract, compliance with legal obligations and, where appropriate, our legitimate interests in managing our business.

4.5 Website operation and security

We may use technical information to operate, maintain, secure and improve our website, prevent misuse and investigate technical problems.

Lawful basis: Our legitimate interests in maintaining a secure and functional website, subject to applicable legal requirements.

4.6 Marketing and communications

We may use relevant business contact information to send information about our practice, services, projects or professional activities where permitted by applicable law.

Where consent is required, we will obtain it before sending relevant communications. You can ask us to stop sending marketing communications at any time.

Lawful basis: Consent or legitimate interests, as appropriate to the circumstances and subject to applicable electronic marketing rules.

4.7 Legal claims and professional obligations

We may process personal information to establish, exercise or defend legal claims, maintain appropriate professional records, comply with regulatory requirements or respond to lawful requests from public authorities.

Lawful basis: Compliance with legal obligations, our legitimate interests or the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims, as applicable.

5. Our lawful bases for processing

Under UK data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for processing personal information.

Depending on the circumstances, we rely on one or more of the following:

Contract: Processing necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you.
Legal obligation: Processing necessary to comply with a legal requirement.
Legitimate interests: Processing necessary for our legitimate business or professional interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms.
Consent: Processing based on your freely given, specific and informed permission, which you can withdraw at any time.
Legal claims: Where applicable, processing necessary in connection with the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims.

Where we rely on legitimate interests, these may include responding to enquiries, maintaining professional relationships, administering projects, protecting our business and ensuring the security of our systems.

We will not use consent as our lawful basis where another basis is more appropriate. If we need to use your personal information for a new purpose that is not compatible with the original purpose, we will provide any additional information required by law.

6. When we share personal information

We do not sell your personal information.

We may share relevant personal information with third parties where reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this Policy, including:

6.1 Project consultants and professional advisers

We may share information with architects, engineers, surveyors, planning consultants, quantity surveyors, health and safety advisers, legal advisers and other professional consultants involved in a project.

6.2 Clients, contractors and suppliers

Where necessary for a project, we may share relevant information with clients, contractors, subcontractors, suppliers and other project stakeholders to coordinate design work, communicate instructions, manage project delivery and fulfil contractual responsibilities.

6.3 Public authorities and regulatory bodies

We may disclose information to planning authorities, building control bodies, courts, regulators, law enforcement agencies or other public authorities where necessary for a project, required by law or otherwise lawfully justified.

6.4 Service providers

We may use third-party providers to support our business operations, including website hosting, email, IT support, cloud storage, document management, accounting, security and other business systems.

These providers may process personal information on our behalf and are expected to handle it in accordance with applicable data protection requirements and appropriate contractual safeguards.

6.5 Professional and insurance-related purposes

Where necessary, we may share information with our insurers, professional indemnity insurers, brokers, auditors or other professional advisers in connection with our business, risk management or legal obligations.

6.6 Business transfers

If our business is involved in a merger, restructuring, sale or transfer of assets, personal information may be disclosed to relevant parties where necessary and lawful, with appropriate safeguards.

We only share personal information that is relevant and proportionate to the purpose of the disclosure. Where a third party acts as an independent data controller, that organisation may have its own privacy obligations and policy.

7. International transfers of personal information

We aim to use appropriate arrangements to protect personal information.

Some of our service providers or the systems they use may store or process information outside the United Kingdom. If personal information is transferred internationally, we will ensure that the transfer complies with applicable data protection law.

Depending on the circumstances, this may involve transferring information to a country recognised as providing an adequate level of protection, using an approved transfer mechanism or relying on another lawful transfer condition.

Further information about relevant international transfers and the safeguards used can be requested using our contact details.

8. How long we keep personal information

We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including satisfying legal, accounting, contractual, regulatory and professional requirements.

Retention periods will depend on the nature of the information and the circumstances in which it is processed.

In general:

Enquiries and prospective clients: We retain information for as long as necessary to respond to an enquiry, manage follow-up communications and maintain appropriate business records.
Client and project records: We retain relevant records for the duration of a project and for an appropriate period afterwards, taking account of contractual requirements, professional obligations, potential disputes and applicable limitation periods.
Financial and accounting records: We retain these for the periods required by applicable tax and accounting legislation.
Website and technical records: We retain these for a period appropriate to their security, operational or analytical purpose.
Marketing records: We retain marketing information until it is no longer required or you object or withdraw consent, as applicable. We may retain limited suppression information to ensure that we respect your request not to receive further marketing.

We periodically review the information we hold and securely delete or anonymise it when it is no longer required, unless we are legally entitled or required to retain it.

9. How we protect personal information

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

Depending on the information and the risks involved, these measures may include access controls, password protection, secure systems, appropriate staff procedures, confidentiality obligations and the use of reputable service providers.

We limit access to personal information to individuals who need it for legitimate business or professional purposes.

However, no method of transmitting or storing information electronically is completely secure. Although we take appropriate precautions, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

10. Your data protection rights

Under applicable data protection law, you may have the following rights in relation to your personal information:

Right of access: To request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
Right to rectification: To request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information.
Right to erasure: To request deletion of your personal information in certain circumstances.
Right to restriction: To request that we restrict the processing of your information in certain circumstances.
Right to data portability: To request certain information in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format, where the legal conditions apply.
Right to object: To object to processing based on our legitimate interests in certain circumstances.
Rights relating to consent: Where we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time. Withdrawal does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.
Rights relating to automated decision-making: To benefit from applicable safeguards where decisions are made solely by automated processing and have legal or similarly significant effects on you.

These rights are subject to legal conditions and exceptions. For example, we may need to retain certain information to comply with legal obligations or establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

Your right to object to direct marketing: You have an absolute right to object to the processing of your personal information for direct marketing purposes. If you object, we will stop processing your information for that purpose.

To exercise any of your rights, please contact us at studio@morsewebb.co.uk. We may need to verify your identity before responding.

We will respond within the period required by applicable law. Requests are normally handled free of charge, although the law permits charges or refusal in certain limited circumstances.

11. Complaints

If you have a concern about how we have handled your personal information, please contact us in the first instance. We will consider your concerns and seek to address them appropriately.

You also have the right to complain to the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the independent regulator responsible for data protection.

Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)
Website: https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/
Telephone: 0303 123 1113
Postal address: Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.

You may contact the ICO if you believe that our processing of your personal information infringes applicable data protection law.

12. Children's privacy

Our website and professional services are primarily intended for adults, businesses, property owners, clients and professional project stakeholders. We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children through our website for the purpose of marketing to them.

In the course of architectural projects, we may incidentally process information relating to children where this is necessary and lawful, for example where a project concerns a school or another building used by children. In such cases, we will seek to limit the information processed and apply appropriate safeguards.

If you believe that a child has provided us with personal information inappropriately, please contact us so that we can review the circumstances and take appropriate action.

13. Third-party websites and services

Our website may contain links to external websites, professional organisations, social media platforms or third-party services.

If you follow a link to another website, your use of that website will be governed by its own privacy policy and terms. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of websites that we do not operate.

We recommend reviewing the relevant privacy information before providing personal information to any third-party website or service.

14. Automated decision-making

We do not intend to make decisions about individuals using solely automated processing, including profiling, where those decisions produce legal effects or similarly significant effects, as part of the ordinary operation of our website or architectural services.

If this changes, we will provide any additional information and safeguards required by applicable law before introducing such processing.

15. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our business, website, services, technology or legal obligations.

Any revised version will be published on our website, together with an updated revision date.

We encourage you to review this Policy periodically to remain informed about how we handle personal information.

16. Contact us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, wish to exercise your data protection rights or would like further information about our handling of personal information, please contact:

Morse Webb Ltd – Morse Webb Architects

The Byre, Lantern Courtyard
The Street, Bramley
Hampshire, RG26 5DE
United Kingdom

Email: studio@morsewebb.co.uk
Telephone: 01256 587 888
Website: https://www.morsewebb.co.uk

We will deal with your request in accordance with applicable data protection legislation.