Privacy Policy

Southport Funeral Care Ltd
Effective date: 25/03/2026
Last updated: 25/03/2026

1. Who we are

Southport Funeral Care Ltd (“we”, “us”, “our”) is a funeral care business based in the United Kingdom. We are responsible for deciding how your personal data is used.

Contact details
Southport Funeral Care Ltd
25/27 Shakespere Street, Southport, PR8 5AB
Email: info@southportfuneralcare.co.uk
Telephone: 01704 547274

For any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we use your personal data, please contact us using the details above.

2. What this policy covers

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store and protect personal data relating to:

  • clients and prospective clients;
  • family members, relatives, executors and representatives;
  • people attending funerals or making enquiries;
  • suppliers and professional contacts;
  • visitors to our website.

This policy applies to personal data about living individuals. Information about deceased persons is generally not personal data under UK data protection law, although information about living relatives and contacts still is.

3. The personal data we collect

We may collect and use the following categories of personal data:

Client and family information

  • names, addresses, email addresses and telephone numbers;
  • relationship to the deceased;
  • billing and payment information;
  • identification information where needed;
  • details relating to funeral arrangements and service preferences;
  • correspondence and records of communications with you.

Sensitive information

Where relevant to funeral arrangements, we may collect limited sensitive information such as:

  • religious or philosophical beliefs;
  • health-related information;
  • accessibility requirements;
  • other information you choose to provide that is relevant to the services requested.

Website and enquiry information

  • your name, contact details and enquiry content if you contact us through our website, email or telephone;
  • technical information such as IP address, browser type and website usage data;
  • cookie-related information where applicable.

4. How we collect your information

We collect personal data:

  • directly from you;
  • from family members, executors or authorised representatives;
  • from third parties involved in funeral arrangements, such as hospitals, hospices, care homes, clergy, celebrants, cemeteries, crematoria, florists and officiants;
  • through our website, email, telephone calls and in-person meetings.

5. Why we use your personal data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

  • to respond to enquiries;
  • to arrange and provide funeral care services;
  • to manage bookings, paperwork and administration;
  • to liaise with crematoria, cemeteries, officiants and other service providers;
  • to process payments and maintain accounts;
  • to meet legal and regulatory obligations;
  • to manage complaints or legal claims;
  • to improve our website and services;
  • to maintain business records and security.

6. Our lawful bases for processing

Under UK data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for using your personal data. Depending on the situation, we rely on one or more of the following:

  • Contract: where processing is necessary to provide services you have requested or to take steps before entering into a contract.
  • Legal obligation: where we need to comply with legal, regulatory, tax, accounting or other obligations.
  • Legitimate interests: where it is necessary for the running of our business, service administration, record-keeping, fraud prevention, security or responding to enquiries, provided your rights do not override those interests.
  • Consent: where we ask for your permission for a specific use of your information.

Where we process special category data, we will also identify an appropriate additional condition under Article 9 of the UK GDPR.

7. Special category data

In some cases, funeral arrangements may involve sensitive personal data, such as information revealing religion, beliefs, health information, or accessibility needs of living individuals.

Where this happens, we only process that information where necessary and lawful, and we apply additional safeguards. We will usually process it because:

  • it is necessary for the provision of requested services;
  • you have made the information manifestly public or explicitly provided it for the arrangements;
  • it is necessary for reasons of substantial public interest, legal claims, or another lawful condition where applicable.

We limit this information to what is necessary for the purpose.

8. Who we share personal data with

We may share personal data, where necessary, with:

  • crematoria and cemeteries;
  • ministers, celebrants and officiants;
  • florists, caterers, printers and other suppliers involved in funeral arrangements;
  • funeral-related third-party service providers;
  • accountants, insurers, legal advisers and professional advisers;
  • banks and payment providers;
  • regulators, law enforcement agencies or courts where required by law.

We only share the minimum information needed for the relevant purpose.

9. International transfers

We normally store and use personal data within the UK. If any of our service providers transfer personal data outside the UK, we will ensure appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with UK data protection law.

10. How long we keep personal data

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including legal, tax, accounting, insurance and complaint-handling requirements.

Retention periods may vary depending on the type of information, but in general we retain:

  • client and transaction records for up to 6 years after the end of the relationship, or longer where required by law or necessary for legal claims;
  • financial records in line with tax and accounting requirements;
  • enquiry records for a shorter period unless they become part of a client file;
  • website data in accordance with our cookie and analytics settings.

Where data is no longer required, it will be securely deleted or anonymised.

11. Website use and cookies

Our website may use cookies or similar technologies. Some cookies are necessary for the site to function. Others, such as analytics or marketing cookies, will only be used where required and where appropriate consent has been obtained.

For more information, please see our Cookie Policy.

12. Data security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, loss, misuse, disclosure or destruction. These measures may include secure systems, password protection, restricted access, secure storage and staff confidentiality procedures.

13. Your data protection rights

Under UK data protection law, you may have the right to:

  • request access to your personal data;
  • request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data;
  • request erasure of your personal data in certain circumstances;
  • request restriction of processing in certain circumstances;
  • object to processing based on legitimate interests;
  • request transfer of your data where applicable;
  • withdraw consent at any time where we rely on consent.

These rights are not absolute and may be subject to legal exemptions.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the contact details above.

14. Complaints

If you have concerns about how we use your personal data, please contact us first and we will try to resolve the issue.

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK data protection regulator.

15. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on our website and the latest version will always be available on request.