Data Protection and Privacy Policy

Here we explain how we process the data received about you when you make inquiries about Babel Academy of English programmes or services, use our website or otherwise engage with us. We describe what data is collected, the purpose it is collected for and how it is processed. 

We collect information solely in order to facilitate the operation of our school and related services, enhance the quality of our programmes, offer marketing and promotional offers related to our educational programmes and services.

Data Collected

We use the following information to respond to your inquiries and provide you with information about our courses, programmes, services, school events and promotional offers. We may also contact you in relation to open events and other related information or programmes that may be of interest to you via the email address and/or contact number you provide.

  • When you make an inquiry, book a programme or service, or work for us, we may collect the following personal data (only where relevant, and with your consent): Name, address, phone number, e-mail, gender, date of birth, nationality, passport number and visa information, PPS, educational/medical/dietary requirements, employment history, records of qualifications, examination results, bank details, school photos and videos, emergency contact details, and for host families, basic household information.

    The information above is given voluntarily by you. You represent to us that you have obtained consent from your emergency contacts to provide us their information for this purpose.

  • Interactions with us: we record details of interactions by-email and/or hard copy correspondence.
    In most cases the data is given directly by you through inquiries, application forms, contracts and other forms of interaction. 

There are certain times when information is provided to us by third parties on your behalf, for example:

  • Agents: Students may avail of these services to apply for our programmes. They will provide us with details such as your name, address, gender, date of birth, nationality, contact details. This information is provided electronically.

  • Employers: When recruiting staff we may receive your personal data from current or previous employers providing references and/or verifying work related details. If you have enrolled in our courses through your employer, we may share your data and course attendance and test results with your employer.

Photography/Videos

Babel Academy of English may take photos and videos during the programme and use them for promotional purposes. Photos and videos may be used on our website, promotional materials (flyers, posters and brochures) or/and on our social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok). You have the right to ask Babel Academy of English to delete any published photos/videos. Students also accept that Babel Academy of English can freely use photos and videos that the student has published online with the hashtag #babeldublin #babellife #babelacademyofenglish 

Data Retention and Protection

We need to process data to provide you with our service and to enable us to operate the school. We also require data to fulfil our role as an employer. In all cases there must be an appropriate legal basis for the processing of such data.
We may process your data where we have your explicit consent. For example, we will seek your consent to engage in direct marketing. You can withdraw consent at any time.

Data is retained to meet statutory and regulatory obligations, to manage our business, and to defend any potential legal action. Both digital and hard copy data are stored securely and only used by Babel Academy staff for the purposes of running our school and related services. We retain your data throughout your engagement with us as either client or employee. When this engagement is terminated, we retain historical data securely on our database system for up to 5 years for the purpose of internal quality assurance assessments and reporting on business developments, unless you ask us not to. You may request at any time to erase your data from our records. 

Data Protection Rights

Under the law you have various rights with some exemptions in how data can be processed. They are rights to:
Access - The right to request a copy of your personal data which Babel Academy holds about you
Correction - The right to request that Babel Academy corrects any personal data if it is found to be inaccurate or out of date
Erase Data - The right to request your personal data is erased where it is no longer necessary for Babel Academy to retain such data
Withdraw Consent - The right to withdraw your consent to data processing at any time
Data Portability - The right to request that the data controller provides the data subject with his/her personal data and where possible, to transmit that data directly to another data controller
Restrict Processing - The right, where there is a dispute in relation to the accuracy or processing of your personal data, to request a restriction is placed on further processing
Object to Processing - The right to object to the processing of personal data, where applicable, unless required for legitimate or legal reasons
Lodge a Complaint - The right to lodge a complaint with the Data Protection Commissioner. Further details about data protection, your rights and how to lodge a complaint can be found on the ODPC website, www.dataprotection.ie

Sharing Data

Your personal data will be treated in the strictest confidence and will only be shared with relevant Babel Academy staff, to meet its legal requirements or, where applicable, with host families or with trusted partner organisations providing services such as social programme activities, medical care, insurance cover, visa application support, bank account opening, or immigration services. We will only share your data with other third parties with your express consent.

Some examples of when we need to share data:

If you book host family accommodation with us, we will need to share details with the host family such as your name, nationality, gender, age/date of birth, and any dietary requirements to facilitate your placement.

Regulators may require us to share your data, for example, when a student requires a visa to study in Ireland, we are obliged to share their personal details with GNIB. 

We never sell or lease your data to a third party.

Sharing Data though Online Learning Platforms

If you choose to engage with Online Learning Platforms accessed through our website and to participate in your learning programme, including Gymglish, Zoom and Moodle, your log in data such as name and email address is shared with these third parties. The terms and agreements of these third parties are available below:

Gymlish - Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

Moodle - Privacy Information

Zoom - Privacy Policy

Cookie Policy

We use cookies to record session information, specifically to track aggregate user statistics. No personally identifiable information is stored in cookies used on this site. 

Aggregate user statistics are collected via cookies placed by Facebook Pixel (Facebook privacy policy), Hotjar (Hotjar privacy policy), Squarespace (Squarespace privacy policy) and Google Forms. Babel Academy also avails of a Whatsapp widget for customer interaction (Whatsapp privacy policy). 

Our Social Media widgets, Facebook, Instagram (Instagram privacy policy) and Youtube (Youtube privacy policy), allow you to view content hosted on external platforms directly from the pages of this website and interact with them. This type of service might still collect web traffic data for the pages where the service is installed, even when users do not use it.

The information we collect is used to improve the content of our web pages and the general user experience of our customers. We do not share any statistics or user information with third parties.

To request further information or to make a complaint:

2nd Floor, Astor Hall, 4-6 Eden Quay, Dublin 1 (D01 N5W8)
Phone: +35315477665
Email: info@babelacademy.ie
Or
Office of the Data Protection Commissioner, Dublin Office, 21 Fitzwilliam Square, Dublin 2
Phone: +353578684800 / +353761104800
Email: info@dataprotection.ie

Health and Safety Policy

Babel Academy of English is fully committed to the safety, health and welfare of our staff, our students and any other third-party person interacting with us. As a demonstration of our commitment, we have prepared a Safety Statement to ensure all parties are aware of our policies, procedures, and risk management approach.

Babel Academy of English is required by the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, Section 20, to have a Safety Statement detailing how we manage health and safety in all our operations. This document describes the arrangements we have in place to ensure the safety of all persons connected with the school in relation to:

Accident & Incident Reporting

Fire Safety Management

First-Aid

Display Screen Equipment

Adverse Weather

Harassment/Bullying

Electrical Safety

Hazard Reporting

Driving for Work

Slips, Trips and Falls Management

Contractor Management

Manual Handling

Health & Wellbeing

Smoke-Free Workplace

New and Expectant Mothers

Stress Management

Lone Working

Drugs, Intoxicants and Substance Abuse

Violence and Aggression in the Workplace

Training

Hazardous Substances

Waste Management

Disability Access

Work Experience Personnel

Radon Protection

Welfare Provision

Housekeeping

COVID 19 Risk Management

The fundamental aim of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 is the prevention of accidents and illnesses in the workplace and the promotion of health-related working practices, so we aim to achieve and maintain the highest possible standard regarding Safety Health & Welfare at Work.

Please contact roisin@babelacademy.ie for a copy of our Health and Safety Statement or relevant policy.

See our Terms & Conditions.