GDPR and Privacy statement
This notice explains how the Dublin City Council Culture Company collects, stores and handles your personal data.
Introduction
This GDPR and Privacy statement explains how Dublin City Council Culture Company collects, stores and handles your personal data.
We are committed to respecting and protecting your privacy. We know that there is a lot of information here, but we want you to be fully informed about your rights. If you still have questions after reading this, please get in touch.
What is the Dublin City Council Culture Company?
Dublin City Council Culture Company runs cultural initiatives and buildings across the city with, and for, the people of Dublin.
We collaborate with people, communities, cultural organisations, businesses, and Dublin City Council to embed cultural experiences and increase cultural participation throughout Dublin.
Dublin City Council Culture Company is the data controller for the personal data we collect and process in connection with the programmes, services and facilities we operate, except where otherwise stated in this statement. These may include a tour at 14 Henrietta Street, a workshop through our Culture Connects @ Richmond Barracks programme, one of our Teatime Talks or an event at the Dublin Festival of History. You may submit your information to be included in our dataset of cultural infrastructure, the Cultural Audit and Map, or join one of our guided visits to the City’s cultural buildings through Culture Club.
Every time you buy a ticket, sign up to receive one of our newsletters or respond to one of our surveys, we are collecting, storing and processing your personal data.
For simplicity, when we say ‘we’ and ‘us’, we mean the Culture Company and all its programmes and facilities.
Why do we collect and process your data?
The law on data protection only allows us to process your data for specific reasons. This is what we do and the legal basis for doing it:
In specific situations, we can collect and process your data with your consent, for example when you tick a box to receive email newsletters. When we collect your personal data, we will always tell you which data we need and for which particular service.
In certain circumstances, we need your personal data to comply with our contractual obligations. For example, if you buy a ticket for an event outdoors, we will collect contact details through our ticketing system so we can deliver your ticket and contact you if we have to cancel or move the event due to bad weather.
Legal obligations may mean we have to collect and process your data, for example, we may be required to disclose information to An Garda Síochána or another competent authority where required or permitted by law.
In certain situations we may process your personal data where this is necessary for our legitimate interests in operating the Culture Company, provided that those interests do not override your rights and interests. For example, we may use information you have provided to administer an activity you are taking part in, including arranging where and when to meet or contacting you about changes to that activity.
We may also, where we have a lawful basis to contact you, tell you about another programme, workshop, event or activity that is relevant to something you have previously taken part in with us. For example, if you attend one of our workshops, we may let you know about a similar workshop taking place in future. You can ask us not to contact you in this way.
When and what sort of personal data do we collect?
When you participate in a programme, workshop, event or activity
We will collect your name, contact details and your access requirements, if any. If you are participating as part of a school, group or organisation, we will also collect its name and your role within it, if relevant.
For children and participants under 18 taking part in one of our activities, workshops or tours, we will collect your name along with that of your parent or primary carer or teacher with their permission for you to join in. For some of our workshops, these forms may also contain information we might need such as emergency contacts, designated pick-ups and other relevant information needed to support participation safely. These forms are accessed and held by relevant programme team members only. This additional and sensitive information is held for the duration of the workshop or activity only and is securely destroyed or deleted when it is no longer required. We will keep details of what you have participated in.
Where access requirements include health or disability-related information, we process this only where necessary to support your participation and inclusion, and where permitted under data protection law. We retain this information only for as long as it is needed for that purpose.
When you book a ticket for an event, tour or class
When you buy a ticket or book a tour, class or event, we will collect your name, email address, phone number and postcode, and, if you pay by card, the information needed to process your payment.
Card payments are processed through Ticketsolve. Where you provide payment card details to us by telephone, we use them only to enter the payment into Ticketsolve and do not retain the card details ourselves.
We will also collect details of what tickets you buy and any access requirements you may have.
Photography, video and audio recordings
We may take photographs, video recordings or audio recordings at some of our events, programmes, workshops and activities for documentation, evaluation, promotional, archival and reporting purposes.
Where appropriate, we will tell participants in advance that photography or filming is taking place. In some circumstances we may ask for your consent, for example where images are being taken of identifiable individuals for specific promotional purposes or where a separate image release form is being used.
Photographs or recordings may be used in printed publications, reports, funding reports, presentations, social media, newsletters, websites and other communications relating to the work of Dublin City Council Culture Company.
Each of our buildings displays signage confirming that on occasion there may be photography taking place. If you do not wish to be photographed or recorded during these periods, please speak to a member of staff at the event or contact us afterwards.
If you ask us to remove an image or recording of you, or to stop using it, we will consider your request and will remove it or stop using it where appropriate and practicable.
When you attend an activity in 14 Henrietta Street or Richmond Barracks
The buildings and facilities where Dublin City Council Culture Company works or delivers programmes are owned by Dublin City Council and may have CCTV in operation. These CCTV systems are operated by Dublin City Council, not Dublin City Council Culture Company.
CCTV footage may record your image if you visit those buildings or facilities. Dublin City Council is responsible for the operation of those CCTV systems, including the purposes for which CCTV is used, how long footage is kept, who can access it, and how requests about CCTV footage are handled.
Where relevant, CCTV signage will be displayed at the buildings or facilities where CCTV is in use. Further information about CCTV in Dublin City Council buildings is available from Dublin City Council or through the relevant CCTV notice or policy for the building.
When you sign up to receive information
We will collect your name and the contact details relevant to the type of communication you have asked for, for example your email address to get newsletters or your mobile phone number for WhatsApp for specific programme information.
When you visit our website
We want to process as little personal information as possible when you use our website. That's why we've chosen Fathom Analytics for our website analytics, which doesn't use cookies and is designed to support GDPR-compliant analytics.
Using this privacy-friendly website analytics software, your IP address is only briefly processed, and we have no way of identifying you from the information we receive. The purpose of using this software is to understand our website traffic in the most privacy-friendly way possible so that we can continue to improve our website and services. No personal data from Fathom Analytics is stored by us over time.
Our website will only record personal information about you if you choose to give it to us, for example when you:
provide information by filling in a form on our site.
subscribe to or register for services that require personal information to be given.
report a problem and give your contact details for us to respond.
When you visit our website, a small text file called a cookie may be stored on your device. This website uses cookies and similar technologies where they are needed for the website to work properly, to remember your cookie preferences, and to provide embedded content such as video and audio players. You can manage your cookie preferences at any time using the cookie banner or on our Cookie Notice page.
Strictly necessary cookies are required for the basic operation of this website, for example, to enable core functionality and remember cookie preferences. These cookies cannot be disabled through our cookie settings, although you may be able to block them in your browser.
Functional cookies are optional and help improve the functionality of the website by remembering your preferences and settings. You can choose whether to allow these cookies through our cookie settings.
Marketing cookies (YouTube): Pages on this website may include embedded YouTube videos. When you play or interact with an embedded YouTube video, YouTube may set cookies and similar technologies on your device for purposes such as video playback, advertising, personalisation and measuring usage. These cookies may be set by YouTube and its partners
When you engage with us on social media
If you engage with us on social media, we will use your username to help us respond to your feedback or questions.
How do we use your data?
Our job is to connect Dubliners to their city through making and taking part in cultural activities. One way to achieve that is to tell you about opportunities to get involved that you will find interesting and relevant. We use the personal data you give us to manage your booking, registration or participation, respond to your queries, support any access needs you tell us about, and keep you informed about the specific activity or service you have asked about.
We will only send you our newsletters where you have chosen to subscribe to them. You can unsubscribe at any time using the unsubscribe link included in each newsletter.
We may occasionally contact selected individuals or organisations directly to invite them to a specific event where the invitation is relevant to their professional, community or cultural role, and where we are permitted to do so under data protection and electronic communications law. If you receive an invitation from us, you can ask us not to send you further invitations at any time.
We may use anonymised or aggregated information to understand how people use our programmes, events and services, and to help us improve our work.
What if you don’t give us necessary data?
If you want to change how we use your data, you’ll find details in the ‘What are your rights?’ section below.
If you ask us not to contact you, we might not be able to provide some services you’ve asked for. For example, if you have asked us to tell you about the next Culture Club meeting, we won’t be able to do that if you have withdrawn consent for us to contact you.
How do we protect your data?
We will ensure that all personal data you give us is held securely and processed in accordance with applicable data protection law, including the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679, the Data Protection Act 2018 and, where relevant, the European Communities (Electronic Communications Networks and Services) (Privacy and Electronic Communications) Regulations 2011, as amended.
How long will we keep your data?
We will only keep your personal data for as long as is necessary for the purpose for which it was collected. How long we keep it will depend on the type of information, why we collected it, and any legal, contractual, administrative, funding, reporting or audit requirements that apply.
When personal data is no longer required, it will be securely deleted or anonymised. Anonymised information may be retained for statistical analysis, evaluation, reporting and planning where individuals can no longer be identified from it.
Who do we share your data with?
We often work with other cultural organisations to deliver programmes, activities and events. Where necessary, we may share the personal data required for a particular programme, activity or event with the relevant partner organisation, for example to arrange access to a venue or manage attendance.
Where a partner organisation wishes to use your personal data for its own purposes, it is responsible for ensuring that it has an appropriate lawful basis for doing so and for providing you with the relevant privacy information.
We may also be required to disclose your personal data to An Garda Síochána or other law enforcement, regulatory or government body, if they make a valid request.
Some of our service providers may process personal data outside the EEA. Where this happens, we rely on appropriate safeguards, such as an adequacy decision, the EU-US Data Privacy Framework, Standard Contractual Clauses, or other safeguards required by data protection law.
Where we use service providers to process personal data on our behalf, we require them to provide appropriate safeguards and to process the data only in accordance with our instructions and applicable data protection law. These service providers must implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure the security of your data.
What are your rights?
You have the following rights in relation to your personal data, in certain circumstances and subject to applicable exemptions:
The right to be informed about how we collect and use your personal data.
The right to access the personal data we hold about you.
The right to have inaccurate or incomplete personal data corrected.
The right to have your personal data deleted in certain circumstances.
The right to ask us to restrict the processing of your personal data in certain circumstances.
The right to receive certain personal data you have provided to us in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format, and, where applicable, to have it transferred to another organisation.
The right to object to certain processing of your personal data.
The right not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing, including profiling, where that decision has a legal or similarly significant effect on you.
Where we use your personal data with your consent, you can withdraw your consent at any time. We will then stop using your data for that purpose, unless we have another lawful reason to continue.
Where we use your personal data because we have a legitimate interest in doing so, you can ask us to stop if you have a reason related to your particular situation. We will stop unless we have a strong legal reason to continue.
You have the right to ask us to stop using your personal data for direct marketing at any time. You can do this by:
Click the unsubscribe link in any newsletter.
Leave a programme WhatsApp group or ask the relevant staff member to remove you.
Please note that you may continue to receive communications for a short period after changing your preferences while our systems are fully updated.
Getting a copy of the personal data we hold about you
To get a copy of the personal data we hold about you, write to our officer responsible for data protection at development@dublincitycouncilculturecompany.ie.
This is known as a Subject Access Request. We will respond to your request within one month, as required by data protection law. Where permitted by law, this period may be extended for complex or numerous requests, and we will let you know if this applies.
To protect the confidentiality of your information, we will ask you to verify your identity before proceeding with any request you make under this GDPR and Privacy statement. If you have authorised a third party to submit a request on your behalf, we will ask them to prove they have your permission to act.
Making a complaint to the regulator
If you believe your data protection rights have been infringed, you have the right to make a complaint to the Data Protection Commission.
You can contact the Data Protection Commission at:
Data Protection Commission, 6 Pembroke Row, Dublin 2, D02 X963.
By telephone on +353 1 765 0100 or 1800 437 737.
The Data Protection Commission recommends using their online contact form where possible.
Any questions remaining
We hope this information has been helpful. If you still have any questions, please contact our officer responsible for data protection at development@dublincitycouncilculturecompany.ie
Last reviewed: 1 September 2026