How we use your data

Your privacy is important to me - so we keep things really simple and transparent.

1. We never share your data with anyone.
2. We never publish the individual responses, only aggregated and anonymised data.
3. We don’t ask for any identifying information, such as name, age, email or address.
4. We delete all the individual responses after 18 months (to allow us to compare previous years).
5. We use a platform called “SurveySparrow” to collect your responses, and we store that data using Google Workspace for analysis. Google and Dropbox are secured using MFA.
6. If you choose to subscribe to our substack newsletter, your subscription and survey response are not at all linked.

The full privacy policy is below, but if you’ve any questions, please get in touch: [email protected]

Privacy Statement

We run this survey to understand how self-employment really feels — so we can publish useful insights, create practical resources, and push for better protections. We only collect what we need, we don’t ask for names or emails, and we publish findings in aggregate so individuals can’t be identified.

Last updated: 28 September 2025

Who we are (Controller)

Foxlark Strategy Limited

20 Brook Road, Twickenham TW1 1JE

Contact: [email protected]

ICO registration: ZA921693

What we collect

• Country; gender; years in work; years self-employed; estimated income band; experiences of self-employment; optional free-text.
• Special category (optional): mental health, physical health, neurodivergence — each includes “Prefer not to disclose.”
• We do not collect names or email addresses.

Why we use your data (purposes & lawful bases)

• Purpose: research on the wellbeing of the self-employed; publishing aggregated, anonymised findings; creating resources; UK advocacy.

  Lawful basis: Legitimate interests (UK GDPR Art. 6(1)(f)).

• Special-category answers: processed under explicit consent (Art. 9(2)(a)). These items are optional and you can select “Prefer not to disclose.”

How we use and share results

• We analyse responses and publish aggregates only. Short quotes may be included where they cannot identify you.
• Partners/sponsors see aggregated results only (no row-level data; no public microdata).

Our processors (acting on our instructions)

• SurveySparrow – survey collection
• Google Workspace (Sheets/Drive) – storage & analysis

• Dropbox – encrypted backups

  Some of our providers may process data outside the UK/EEA. Where this happens, we rely on the provider’s contractual commitments and transfer mechanisms to protect your data (for example, standard contractual clauses or equivalent safeguards).

Retention

• Raw response data (incl. platform metadata): kept for 18 months after survey close, then deleted.
• Aggregated/anonymised statistics (non-personal): kept indefinitely.

Your rights

You can request access, rectification, erasure, restriction, or object to legitimate-interests processing. However, all responses are anonymised immediately upon submission by removing any potentially identifying information and aggregating data. This process is irreversible and makes individual response identification impossible, so these rights cannot be exercised after submission.

For health-related items processed under consent, responses are immediately and irreversibly anonymised upon submission, making it technically impossible to identify and remove individual responses. By providing consent for these questions, you acknowledge this limitation. If you’re not comfortable with this, please select “Prefer not to disclose.”

You can complain to the ICO (ico.org.uk); please contact us first so we can help.

Security

MFA-protected accounts; least-privilege access; encryption in transit/at rest where supported; no local unencrypted copies; periodic access reviews.

Eligibility

18+ only. If you’re under 18, please don’t complete the survey.

Automated decision-making

None with legal or similarly significant effects.

Changes

We’ll update this notice if our processing changes and will refresh the date above.

Processors

Last updated: 28 September 2025

Contact: [email protected]

We use the providers below to run the Leapers Survey. They act on our instructions under data-processing agreements. Some of our providers may process data outside the UK/EEA. Where this happens, we rely on the provider’s contractual commitments and transfer mechanisms to protect your data (for example, standard contractual clauses or equivalent safeguards). We are reviewing each provider’s documentation to confirm these arrangements.

1) SurveySparrow

• Role: Survey hosting and response capture
• Data handled: Survey answers and platform metadata (timestamps; IP/device info only if the platform captures it — we disable where possible)
• Region: EU or US
• Safeguards: As provided under SurveySparrow’s Data Processing Addendum and sub-processor terms - https://surveysparrow.com/legal/dpa/

2) Google Workspace (Sheets/Drive)

• Role: Storage and analysis of exported responses
• Data handled: Exported response data (we don’t collect names/emails)
• Region: EU
• Safeguards: As set out in Dropbox’s Data Processing Addendum and transfer framework commitments - https://workspace.google.com/terms/09242021/dpa_terms/

3) Dropbox

• Role: Encrypted backups of working/analysis files
• Data handled: Anonymised/cleaned datasets and working files
• Region: US
• Safeguards: As set out in Dropbox’s Data Processing Addendum and transfer framework commitments - https://assets.dropbox.com/documents/en/legal/dfb-data-processing-agreement.pdf

Legitimate Interests Summary

Last updated: 28 September 2025

Contact: [email protected]

We process survey responses to understand and report on the wellbeing of self-employed people, and to create resources and advocate for better protections in the UK. This is our legitimate interest (UK GDPR Art. 6(1)(f)).

Why this processing is necessary

• The data we collect (country, gender, years in work, years self-employed, income band, experiences of self-employment) is the minimum needed to produce meaningful insights.
• We do not collect names, email addresses, or other direct identifiers.
• Findings are published only in aggregated and anonymised form.

Balancing with your rights

• Participation is voluntary and the survey is limited to adults (18+).
• Sensitive questions (mental health, physical health, neurodivergence) are optional and processed only with your explicit consent (Art. 9(2)(a)). Each includes “Prefer not to disclose.”
• We limit access (Matthew Knight only), apply MFA, and delete or anonymise raw responses after 18 months.
• Quotes are checked to ensure they cannot identify individuals.
• Partners and sponsors see aggregated results only; no row-level data is shared.

International transfers

Some providers may process data outside the UK/EEA. Where this happens, we rely on the provider’s contractual commitments and transfer mechanisms (such as standard contractual clauses or equivalent) to protect your data. We review provider documentation to confirm these arrangements.

Your rights

You can object to our legitimate-interests processing at any time, and you have standard UK GDPR rights (access, rectification, erasure, restriction, portability, objection). See our full Privacy Notice for details.