Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Charis Charity Organization ("we", "us", "our") is a registered humanitarian organisation operating in Nigeria and the United Kingdom. We are registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission of Nigeria under Registration Number 195863, incorporated on 31st December 2022.

Our website is located at https://charis-mts.org and our primary contact email is makethemsmile10@gmail.com

2. What Information We Collect

Information you give us directly:

• Your name and email address when you fill in our contact form
• Your name, email and message when you request to dedicate an outreach
• Your name and email when you sign up to volunteer
• Your name and email when you subscribe to our newsletter
• Bank transfer details are handled directly by your bank — we do not collect or store payment card information

Information collected automatically:

• Basic website analytics — pages visited, time spent on site (via GitHub Pages)
• Your approximate location (country/region level only)
• Device type and browser used to visit our site

Photographs and images:

• Photos of outreach activities shared on our website are taken with the knowledge and consent of those involved
• We take all reasonable steps to respect the dignity and privacy of beneficiaries
• If you appear in any of our photos and wish to be removed, please contact us immediately

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect only for the following purposes:

• To respond to your enquiries and contact form submissions
• To process and acknowledge outreach dedication requests
• To send you volunteer information and opportunities
• To send newsletter updates about our outreach activities (only if you subscribed)
• To improve our website and understand how visitors use it
• To comply with legal obligations in Nigeria and the United Kingdom

4. Who We Share Your Data With

We use a small number of trusted third-party services to operate our website:

• Formspree — processes contact form submissions and sends them to our email. Their privacy policy is at formspree.io/legal/privacy-policy
• Mailchimp — manages our newsletter subscriptions. Their privacy policy is at mailchimp.com/legal/privacy
• GitHub Pages — hosts our website. Their privacy policy is at docs.github.com/en/site-policy/privacy-policies
• Behold.so — displays our Instagram feed. Their privacy policy is at behold.so/privacy
• Google Fonts — provides our website fonts. Their privacy policy is at policies.google.com/privacy

All third-party services we use are reputable providers with strong data protection practices. We do not share your personal data with any other parties.

5. How Long We Keep Your Data

• Contact form submissions — kept in our email inbox for up to 2 years, then deleted
• Newsletter subscriptions — kept until you unsubscribe. You can unsubscribe at any time
• Volunteer sign-ups — kept for as long as you remain an active or prospective volunteer
• Outreach dedication requests — kept for our records for up to 3 years

6. How We Protect Your Data

• Our website uses HTTPS encryption — all data sent to and from our site is encrypted
• Our website is hosted on GitHub Pages — enterprise-grade secure hosting
• We do not store any payment card details — bank transfers are handled directly by your bank
• Access to our email and data systems is restricted to authorised team members only
• We regularly review our security practices to ensure your data remains protected

7. Your Rights

Depending on where you are located, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

For UK residents (GDPR):

• The right to access the personal data we hold about you
• The right to correct inaccurate personal data
• The right to request deletion of your personal data ("right to be forgotten")
• The right to object to how we use your data
• The right to data portability
• The right to withdraw consent at any time

For Nigeria residents (NDPR):

• The right to be informed about how your data is used
• The right to access your personal data
• The right to correct inaccurate data
• The right to delete your data
• The right to object to data processing

8. Cookies

Our website uses minimal cookies. We do not use advertising cookies or tracking cookies for commercial purposes. The cookies used are:

• Essential cookies — required for the website to function properly
• Analytics cookies — anonymous data to help us understand how visitors use our site
• Third-party cookies — from services like Behold.so (Instagram feed) and Google Fonts

By continuing to use our website, you consent to our use of these cookies. You can disable cookies in your browser settings at any time, though this may affect some website functionality.

9. International Data Transfers

As an organisation operating in both Nigeria and the United Kingdom, your data may be processed in either country. We ensure that all international transfers of personal data comply with applicable data protection laws including GDPR and NDPR.

10. Photography & Image Policy

Charis Charity Organization is committed to ethical photography standards in all our outreach activities:

• We seek verbal or written consent before photographing beneficiaries where possible
• We do not publish images that could cause harm, embarrassment or distress to individuals
• We respect the dignity of all persons featured in our photography
• Children's faces are not published on our website without parental consent
• Hospital and medical outreach photos are handled with extra sensitivity
• Anyone featured in our photos may request removal by contacting us

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. When we make significant changes, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.

12. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal data, please contact us: