Privacy Statement

The Youth Enterprise Trust ('YET') is a public benevolent institution. The Trust provides scholarships to disadvantaged youths aged between 16-25 years that allow them to participate in wilderness courses throughout Queensland. The Trust also provides a follow-up programme involving community projects, farm work and vocational opportunities. These activities are conducted at 'Saddler Springs', 'Woodstock' and 'Kurrajong'.

At YET your privacy is important to us. For that reason, we have developed a Privacy Policy in keeping with the National Privacy Principles (NPPs) as developed by the Federal Privacy Commissioner.

This statement outlines our policies about how we manage personal information1 in Australia. This statement relates to the Youth Enterprise Trust and its corporate trustee, Youth Enterprise Limited ACN 050 491 739 ('YEL').

This policy is current as at April 2002. From time to time we may find it necessary to change this Privacy Policy to reflex changes in the law or our activities. The latest version of our Privacy Policy will be available on our website at www.yet.net.au.

YET's Privacy Policy contains the following information:

Handling of Personal Information

We will be open about how we handle personal information. We will do this by:

  • advising generally, at the time when the information is gathered, as to the purposes for which the personal information will be used, and to whom the personal information may be disclosed;
  • providing a more detailed explanation of our Privacy Policy upon request;
  • providing you access to your personal information upon request; and
  • making alterations to your personal information, at your request, where necessary to correct inaccuracies or changed circumstances.

You have the right to access personal information that we hold about you under the National Privacy Principles.

Details of how to make a request for access are set out at the end of this Privacy Policy. Please note that we may need to charge you a small fee to cover any costs which we may incur to respond to your request for access, such as photocopying costs or facsimile charges.

How and why do we collect personal information?

We collect personal information for the purposes of providing scholarships to youths and assisting disadvantaged youths, and for progress reports on the participants once they have finished the programme.

Personal information is mainly collected through the Application form, although information can be collected from third parties, and from referee's reports. Wherever possible, however, personal information is collected from the individual concerned and, in the case of third parties, is collected with the individual's permission. So that an individual is always aware of the information collected by YET, an individual is required to countersign any statement made by a third party.

We collect different personal information for different reasons, such as:

  • names, addresses, dates of birth, parent/guardian details, contact details, emergency contact details, health details, medical information, employment status and reference details from potential applicants. This information is collected and disclosed with the permission and knowledge of the applicants, and is used to chose the successful applicants for the scholarships and arrange appropriate assistance;
  • names, addresses and other contact details from potential sponsors and donors. This information is collected for the purpose of obtaining funding and donations from corporate organisations and members of the public, and is used to market the services of the Trust and fund its activities;
  • sensitive information2 is collected with the applicant's permission for the purpose of providing a safe environment for staff and participants on the wilderness courses. We collect this information from the individual, or from third parties such as medical practitioners;
  • information about persons who apply to us for employment. As there is no current or former relationship between the job applicant and YET, this information is not exempt from the National Privacy Principles; and
  • information about current and former employees. This type of information will in most cases be exempt from the National Privacy Principles. We do not use this information for any purpose other than with respect to the employer/employee relationship.

To whom do we disclose personal information?

We do not sell or disclose any of the information collected by YET to any other person or corporation for the purposes of direct marketing. Where parties consent, this information may be used by YET for the distribution of newsletters and invitations for fundraisers.

Personal information that we hold may be exchanged between YET and YEL and other companies or individuals who assist in providing services or who perform functions on our behalf. This disclosure is permitted by the Privacy Act.

Sensitive information will only be used and disclosed for the purpose for which it was provided or a directly related secondary purpose, unless you agree otherwise, or where certain other limited circumstances apply (eg. where required by law).

Personal information is disclosed as follows:

As Applicant

  • to the CEO and other decision-makers with respect to the offering of places or a scholarship in a programme;
  • to third parties to cross-reference information;

As Participant

  • summarised briefly to the programme staff for the purposes of safety, risk management and the planning of the programme;

As Graduates

  • communicating with Graduates;
  • programme reviews; and
  • presenting to Graduates.

Management and storage of personal information

We take active steps to protect the security of personal information. Accordingly, we:

  • expect our staff to comply with certain standards of behaviour when dealing with personal information;
  • instruct all our staff about the need to protect your privacy and we will regard breaches of the National Privacy Principles as serious matters;
  • return all mail or email of applicants not offered a place on a programme; and
  • keep paper base records in a locked cabinet, and our electronic records are kept in a secure system with password protection and restricted assess.

We may keep personal information for up to 7 years after the completion of a transaction for legal reasons. After that time, depending upon the circumstances and the type of information, we will either remove all personal identification, destroy the personal information or otherwise deal with the information so that privacy is maintained in accordance with the Privacy Act.

Participant's contact details though remain on the YET database as a record of their participation. This is necessary as participants often re-connect after a number of years.

How do we make sure that information is accurate, complete and up-to-date?

We try to ensure that any personal information that we hold is accurate, complete and up-to-date. Wherever possible, YET will collect any personal information from that person only.

When we become aware that the information is inaccurate, incomplete or out-of-date we will correct that information or, if necessary, delete it from our records.

If YET collects personal information about an individual from a third party, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that the individual is or has been made aware of the information, except where making an individual aware of that information would pose a serious threat to their life or health.

Contact us about Privacy Issues

If you wish to:

  • Obtain more information about our Privacy Policy;
  • Obtain access to personal information that we hold about you; or
  • Make a complaint,

then you may contact our Privacy Officer.

Our contact details are:

Youth Enterprise Trust
PO Box 46
TAMBORINE VILLAGE QLD 4270

Telephone: (07) 5543 6899
Facsimile: (07) 5543 6944
Email: enquiries@yet.net.au

If you make a complaint to our privacy officer, but are not satisfied with the response that you receive, you can contact the Commonwealth Privacy Commissioners Hotline on 1300 363 992.

Please note: By providing us with personal information, you consent to the collection, use and disclosure of your personal information as contemplated by this privacy policy statement.

'Personal information' is information or an opinion (including information or an opinion on a database) whether true or not, and whether recorded in material form or not, about an individual whose identity is apparent, or can be reasonably ascertained from the information or opinion.

'Sensitive information' means information or an opinion about an individual's: racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, membership of a political association, religious beliefs or affiliation, philosophical beliefs, membership of a professional or trade association, membership of a trade union, sexual preferences or practices, or criminal record, that is also personal information, or health information about an individual.