1. Introduction
Mental Health First Aid Ireland (“MHFAI”, “we”, “us”) is committed to protecting your personal information and respecting your privacy. This policy outlines how we collect, use, store, and safeguard personal data when you engage with our websites, apps, and services.
MHFAI is part of the St John of God Hospitaller Ministries group (“SJOG Group”), which includes affiliated ministries in Ireland, the UK, and overseas.
We encourage you to read this policy carefully to understand how your information is handled.
2. Who We Are
MHFAI is the only licensed provider of Mental Health First Aid training in Ireland. Our mission is to train individuals and organisations to recognise, understand, and respond to mental health difficulties using a practical, skills-based approach.
Our registered office is located at:
Mental Health First Aid Ireland
c/o St John of God University Hospital
Stillorgan, Co. Dublin, Ireland
3. How We Collect Information
We collect personal data when you:
- Visit or interact with our website or apps
- Enquire about or book one of our training programmes
- Sign up to receive communications from us
- Contact us directly by phone, email, or web form
- Submit feedback or complete surveys
We may also collect limited usage data through cookies and analytics tools to help us understand website traffic and improve user experience.
4. What Information We Collect
The information we collect may include:
- Name, email address, phone number, and other contact details
- Course booking information (e.g. attendance records, course preferences)
- Feedback or survey responses
- Technical data such as browser type, IP address, time on site, and navigation patterns (collected via cookies or analytics tools)
5. How We Use Your Information
We only collect and process your data where there is a lawful basis for doing so. These include:
- Consent: where you have provided clear permission (e.g. for marketing emails)
- Contract: where processing is necessary to fulfil a booking or request
- Legal obligation: where we are required to retain records for compliance purposes
- Legitimate interest: such as improving our services and ensuring website security
Your data may be used to:
- Register you for MHFAI training
- Send you course materials or updates
- Respond to your queries or feedback
- Improve our services, websites, and communications
- Comply with legal and regulatory obligations
We do not sell or rent your personal data to third parties.
6. Cookies and Website Analytics
We use cookies to ensure our website functions correctly and to analyse usage patterns. Some cookies are necessary for the operation of our site, while others (e.g. Google Analytics) help us improve user experience.
You can manage your cookie preferences when you first visit our website or at any time thereafter. For more information, please refer to our Cookie Policy.
7. How We Keep Your Data Secure
We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information, including:
- Secure servers and encrypted communications
- Access controls and staff training
- Regular reviews of our data protection policies and procedures
We are committed to handling your data in accordance with Irish law and international standards.
8. Sharing Your Information
Your data may be shared within the SJOG Group where necessary for administrative or technical support purposes, and always in line with applicable data protection laws.
We may also share data with trusted third-party service providers (e.g. cloud hosting, analytics platforms) under strict data processing agreements. These providers are contractually obligated to protect your information and may not use it for any other purpose.
If data is transferred outside the European Economic Area (EEA), we ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place.
9. Your Rights
Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you have the right to:
- Access your personal data
- Rectify incorrect or outdated data
- Erase your data in certain circumstances
- Restrict or object to processing
- Withdraw your consent (where applicable)
- Lodge a complaint with the Data Protection Commission
If you wish to exercise any of these rights or have a query regarding how your data is handled, please contact our Data Protection Officer:
Email: DPOHosp@sjog.ie
Post:
Data Protection Officer
St John of God University Hospital
Stillorgan, Co. Dublin, A94 FH92
10. How Long We Keep Your Data
We retain personal data only for as long as is necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, or to meet our legal, accounting, or reporting obligations.
Once your data is no longer required, it is securely deleted or anonymised.
11. Updates to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in legal or regulatory requirements or in our operations. The most recent version will always be published on our website.Last updated: 22/4/25
