Privacy Policy
Presbytery of Sydney
Responsibilities and Functions of the Presbytery of Sydney
The Presbytery of Sydney has responsibility for such pastoral and administrative oversight as is necessary to the life of the Uniting Church within the bounds of the Sydney Presbytery and to stimulate and encourage the congregations within the bounds of Sydney Presbytery in their strengthening and assistance of one another and their participation in the wider aspects of the work of the Church. In furtherance of and in addition to these responsibilities the Presbytery gives attention to the following matters:
(a) The pastoral and administrative oversight of all ministers and pastoral charges within the bounds of the Sydney Presbytery and encouraging ministers to receive regular professional supervision.
(b) Consultations on the life and witness of congregations within the bounds of the Sydney Presbytery in accordance with Regulation 3.4.5.
(c) The promotion and conduct throughout the Sydney Presbytery of such activities as will encourage and instruct the people generally towards a better understanding and a fuller participation in the whole range of Christian witness and service.
(d) The selection, pastoral care and oversight of candidates for the specified ministries of the Church and providing continuing training for such ministries.
(e) Promoting the wider aspects of the work of the Church.
(f) Arranging for the contribution by congregations of funds for the purposes of the Sydney Presbytery, the Synod and the Assembly and other approved purposes.
(g) Receiving and dealing with applications to acquire property or to sell, mortgage, exchange, lease, renovate and substantially repair properties of the Church within the Sydney Presbytery
and such other matters as may be described in the Regulations.
Policy
This Policy has been adopted by the Presbytery of Sydney in order to comply with the requirements of the Privacy Amendment (Private Sector) Act No 155 of 2000. The Policy should be read together with the National Privacy Principles (NPP’s) set out in this Privacy Act. A copy of the NPP’s is attached
1. Sydney Presbytery will comply with the NPPs. If there is an inconsistency between this policy and the NPPs, then the NPPs will prevail.
2. Subject to paragraph 3, Sydney Presbytery will only use personal information for the primary purpose for which it is collected. Individuals will be informed of the purpose for which the information is being collected. These purposes will relate to the spiritual, pastoral, social educational and administrative functions of Sydney Presbytery to enable the provision of the services and activities included above.
3. Primarily the Sydney Presbytery collects personal information for the benefit of the congregations, the members and adherents of those congregations, the development of the life and witness of the Church as a whole in accordance with its Christian purposes and for the benefit of the Community. Additionally the Sydney Presbytery has an important function of maintaining personal information for the purpose of analysing the role of the Sydney Presbytery and the Uniting Church in society and recording family histories of its congregations, ministers and other officers and of the members and adherents of those congregations. This information may be disclosed to scholars studying the Church and to relatives of Church members provided that the use of the information is of a general nature and does not identify individual persons.
4. Sydney Presbytery will only use personal information about an individual for a secondary purpose if that individual has consented or the use is otherwise permitted by the NPPs.
5. Sydney Presbytery will take reasonable steps to keep personal information secure and will, subject to the NPPs, comply with a request from a person to access, correct or remove their information.
6. Sydney Presbytery will appoint the Sydney Presbytery Secretary as its Privacy Officer. This Privacy Officer will provide advice on the storage and security of information and the procedures to permit individuals to access and/or correct the personal information collected by Sydney Presbytery about them. The Privacy Officer will receive and deal with any complaint that Sydney Presbytery has not complied with this policy or the NPPs.
7. Personal information collected by Sydney Presbytery may be sensitive information for the purpose of the NPPs (eg information about a person’s religious beliefs). As a non-profit organisation, Sydney Presbytery is permitted to collect sensitive information without a person’s express consent. However, Sydney Presbytery will endeavour to seek consent from a person if sensitive information is sought for something other than the primary functions of Sydney Presbytery described in paragraph 2.
Sydney Presbytery’s operating procedures will comply with this policy and the NPPs.
Please address any enquiries in relation to this policy to:
Privacy Officer
Sydney Presbytery
P O Box 268
PETERSHAM NSW 2049
