Privacy Policy

Townsville Zim Community

Effective Date: 12 December 2025
Last Updated: 12 December 2025

1. INTRODUCTION

The Townsville Zim Community ("we," "us," or "our") is committed to protecting the privacy and security of your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website https://www.townsvillezimcommunity.com (the "Website") and engage with our community services.

We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal information in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) contained in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).

Please read this Privacy Policy carefully. By using our Website or providing us with your personal information, you consent to the practices described in this policy.

2. INFORMATION WE COLLECT

2.1 Personal Information You Provide to Us

We collect personal information that you voluntarily provide to us when you:

Register your family with the Townsville Zim Community
RSVP to events or activities
Submit forms on our Website
Contact us via email, phone, or contact forms
Subscribe to our newsletters or updates
Make donations to our community
Join committees or volunteer

The types of personal information we may collect include:

For Adults:

Full name
Email address
Phone number
Residential suburb/postcode
Preferred communication methods

For Family Members (including children):

First names
Dates of birth
Gender
Relationship to primary contact
Employment/education status (e.g., preschool, primary school, high school, university, working, retired)

For Event Participation:

Dietary requirements or allergies
Emergency contact information
Medical conditions relevant to event safety

For Donations:

Payment information (processed securely through third-party payment processors)
Donation amount and date
Tax receipt details

2.2 Information Automatically Collected

When you visit our Website, we may automatically collect certain information about your device and browsing actions, including:

Technical Information: IP address, browser type, operating system, device type
Usage Information: Pages visited, time spent on pages, links clicked, referring website
Cookies and Tracking Technologies: Information collected through cookies and similar technologies (see Section 8)

2.3 Information from Third Parties

We may receive information about you from third-party platforms if you:

Interact with us on social media (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp)
Use third-party authentication services (if we implement login features)

3. HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION

We use the personal information we collect for the following purposes:

3.1 Community Services and Event Planning

Demographic analysis: To understand the age distribution, family sizes, and interests within our community
Event planning: To organise age-appropriate activities (children's sports days, youth programmes, adult networking events)
Targeted communications: To send you information about events and activities relevant to your family's interests and ages
Event management: To manage RSVPs, dietary requirements, and attendance at community events

3.2 Communication

To send you newsletters, event invitations, and community updates
To respond to your enquiries and provide customer support
To send administrative information such as event confirmations
To communicate important community announcements

3.3 Safety and Compliance

To ensure the safety of participants at events (through emergency contact information and medical details)
To comply with legal obligations
To prevent fraud or misuse of our services

3.4 Improvement and Development

To analyse Website usage and improve user experience
To understand community needs and preferences
To develop new programmes and services

3.5 Financial Management

To process donations and issue tax receipts
To manage membership fees (if applicable)
To maintain financial records for transparency and reporting

4. LEGAL BASIS FOR PROCESSING (Australian Privacy Principles)

We collect and process your personal information in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles. Our legal basis includes:

Consent: You have given explicit consent for us to process your personal information for specific purposes
Legitimate Interests: Processing is necessary for our legitimate interests in operating a community organisation, provided these interests are not overridden by your privacy rights
Legal Obligations: Processing is necessary to comply with Australian law

5. HOW WE SHARE YOUR INFORMATION

5.1 Within Our Organisation

Your personal information may be accessed by:

Committee members: For community management and event planning purposes
Event coordinators: For specific event organisation
Authorised volunteers: Only when necessary for their specific roles

All individuals with access to personal information are required to maintain confidentiality.

5.2 Third-Party Service Providers

We may share your information with trusted third-party service providers who assist us in operating our Website and conducting our activities, including:

Website hosting providers (Wix.com)
Email service providers (for newsletters and communications)
Payment processors (for donation processing)
Cloud storage providers (for data backup)

These third parties are contractually obligated to use your information only for the purposes we specify and to protect your information.

5.3 De-identified Data

We may publicly share de-identified and aggregated data for community transparency, such as:

Total number of registered families
Age distribution statistics (e.g., "89 teenagers aged 13-17")
General demographic information

Important: We will NEVER publicly share individual names, contact details, or any information that could identify specific families or individuals.

5.4 Legal Requirements

We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities (e.g., court orders, subpoenas).

5.5 Community Directory (Opt-In Only)

If we create a members-only directory in the future, inclusion will be strictly opt-in, and you will have full control over what information (if any) you wish to share with other members.

6. DATA SECURITY

6.1 Security Measures

We implement appropriate technical and organisational security measures to protect your personal information against unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction, including:

Secure encrypted connections (HTTPS/SSL)
Password-protected databases
Restricted access to personal information (only authorised personnel)
Regular security audits and updates
Secure backup procedures

6.2 Data Retention

We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law.

General retention periods:

Active members: Data retained while you remain an active community member
Inactive members: Data may be deleted or archived after 2 years of inactivity (with prior notice)
Financial records: Retained for 7 years as required by Australian tax law
Event records: Retained for 1 year after the event

You may request deletion of your information at any time (see Section 10).

6.3 International Data Transfers

Our Website is hosted by Wix.com, which may store data on servers located outside Australia. We ensure that any international data transfers comply with Australian privacy law and that appropriate safeguards are in place.

7. CHILDREN'S PRIVACY

We recognise the importance of protecting children's privacy. Our family registration forms collect information about children (first names, dates of birth, gender, education status) only with parental/guardian consent.

Key protections for children's information:

We collect only the minimum information necessary for event planning
Children's full names are never published publicly
Parents/guardians have the right to review, update, or delete their children's information
We do not knowingly allow children under 18 to register independently without parental consent

If you believe we have inadvertently collected information from a child without proper parental consent, please contact us immediately at [contact email].

8. COOKIES AND TRACKING TECHNOLOGIES

8.1 What Are Cookies?

Cookies are small text files placed on your device when you visit our Website. They help us improve your browsing experience and understand how visitors use our Website.

8.2 Types of Cookies We Use

Essential Cookies: Necessary for the Website to function properly (e.g., maintaining your session)
Analytics Cookies: Help us understand how visitors interact with our Website (e.g., Google Analytics)
Functional Cookies: Remember your preferences and settings
Marketing Cookies: Track your visit across websites (if we use advertising, which we currently do not)

8.3 Your Cookie Choices

You can control cookies through your browser settings. However, disabling certain cookies may affect the functionality of our Website.

To learn more about cookies and how to manage them, visit: www.aboutcookies.org

9. THIRD-PARTY LINKS

Our Website may contain links to third-party websites, including:

Social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram)
Payment processors
Event registration platforms
Partner organisation websites

We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these third-party sites. We encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing any personal information.

10. YOUR PRIVACY RIGHTS

Under Australian privacy law, you have the following rights regarding your personal information:

10.1 Right to Access

You have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you. We will provide you with a copy of your information in a commonly used format.

10.2 Right to Correction

You have the right to request correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal information. You can update your family information at any time through our Website or by contacting us.

10.3 Right to Deletion

You have the right to request deletion of your personal information, subject to certain exceptions (e.g., legal record-keeping obligations).

10.4 Right to Object

You have the right to object to certain processing of your personal information, including:

Marketing communications (opt-out links provided in all emails)
Automated decision-making (if applicable)

10.5 Right to Restrict Processing

You may request that we restrict the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances.

10.6 Right to Data Portability

You have the right to receive your personal information in a structured, commonly used format and to transfer it to another organisation.

10.7 Right to Withdraw Consent

Where we process your information based on consent, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time.

10.8 How to Exercise Your Rights

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details in Section 13. We will respond to your request within 30 days.

11. MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS

11.1 Opt-In

We will only send you marketing communications (newsletters, event invitations, community updates) if you have:

Opted in during registration, or
Explicitly subscribed to our communications

11.2 Opt-Out

You can opt out of marketing communications at any time by:

Clicking the "unsubscribe" link in any email
Updating your communication preferences on our Website
Contacting us directly at [email address]

Please note: Even if you opt out of marketing communications, we may still send you essential administrative messages (e.g., event confirmations if you've registered, important community safety announcements).

12. CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors.

When we make changes:

We will update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this policy
For significant changes, we will notify you via email or a prominent notice on our Website
Your continued use of our Website after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your information.

13. CONTACT US

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us:

Townsville Zim Community

Email: info@townsvillezimcommunity.com
Phone: 0413579982
Website: https://www.townsvillezimcommunity.com

Privacy Complaints

If you believe we have breached the Australian Privacy Principles, you have the right to make a complaint. Please contact us using the details above, and we will:

Acknowledge your complaint within 7 days
Investigate the matter thoroughly
Respond with our findings within 30 days

If you are not satisfied with our response, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC):

Office of the Australian Information Commissioner
Website: www.oaic.gov.au
Phone: 1300 363 992
Email: enquiries@oaic.gov.au

14. CONSENT

By using our Website and providing your personal information to us, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to this Privacy Policy.

If you do not agree with this Privacy Policy, please do not use our Website or provide us with your personal information.

End of Privacy Policy