1. Background
1.1 CHERT is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO), approved by the Charity Commission in June 2022. The objects and purpose of the Trust are as follows:
- To advance education for the public benefit about the history of the struggle for LGBT+ rights, including but not limited to the origins and history of the Campaign for Homosexual Equality and by contributing to the safe preservation of LGBT+ archives.
- To promote equality and diversity by encouraging a deeper understanding of the causes and progress of changes in public acceptance of LGBT+ rights.
2. CHERT documents
2.1 The Secretary shall assign CHERT numbers to all agendas, minutes, policies and other Board papers.
2.2 The Secretary shall keep electronic and paper copies of the latest version of all CHERT numbered documents, showing date of most recent update.
2.3 The Treasurer shall keep copies of all documents needed to compile the annual accounts and to satisfy the auditors.
2.4 All documents shall be kept confidential within the Board unless otherwise agreed, but should be deposited with an appropriate archive [1] when no longer current.
2.5 Trustees responsible for online resources [2] shall keep passwords confidential, but shall always ensure that at least one other Trustee is able to access them in case of emergency.
3. Personal data
3.1 The Secretary shall maintain two copies, on different computers, of the database of CHERT Associate members / CHE members and other contacts, containing their names, addresses, status, etc.[3]
3.2 The Secretary shall remove records from the database on request of the person concerned, and shall ensure that all older versions of the database are deleted.
3.3 The Secretary shall maintain an online database of members and others who wish to receive information by email, containing their names, email addresses, status, and whatever other information may be considered necessary. [4]
3.4 People on the online database shall be able to remove themselves from it at any time.
3.5 All documents relating to individual Associate members shall be kept confidential and/or destroyed. [5]
Notes
[1] Normally the Bishopsgate Institute. Possibly also the Hall-Carpenter Archive or elsewhere.
[2] Online resources could include the CHERT, CHE and Amiable Warriors websites and associated email addresses, the bank accounts, the PayPal account, the CHE and CHERT Twitter accounts.
[3] The membership database uses Microsoft Access. Previously held details of bank accounts, payments, etc. have been deleted.
[4] The online database uses Mailchimp.
[5] Some bank statements include the names of members paying by standing order. These statements will need to be kept. Other bank statements do not identify individual standing orders; these are listed on separate sheets, which should be kept for a time and then destroyed.
Revision of the Policy
This policy was debated and agreed at a meeting of the Board of the Trust on 10 October 2022. Along with the Trust’s other policies it will be reviewed annually. Feedback on the process, and suggestions for improving it, will always be welcome.