PRIVACY POLICY

 

 

 

1. Introduction

 

Medco Recruitment Limited is committed to protecting the privacy, confidentiality and personal information of everyone who interacts with our company.

This Privacy Policy explains how Medco Recruitment Limited collects, uses, stores, shares and protects personal information when you visit our website, apply for a job, register with our recruitment agency, communicate with our recruitment consultants or use our recruitment services.

As a recruitment agency operating within the UK healthcare and social care sectors, we understand that candidates may need to provide personal, professional and, where relevant, sensitive information during the recruitment and onboarding process.

We take our responsibilities under applicable data protection legislation seriously, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

By using our website or submitting your information to Medco Recruitment Limited, you acknowledge that you have had the opportunity to read this Privacy Policy.

 

2. About Medco Recruitment Limited

 

Medco Recruitment Limited provides recruitment services connecting healthcare and social care professionals with employment opportunities across the United Kingdom.

Our recruitment services may include opportunities for:

• Doctors and medical practitioners.
• Nurses across all relevant bands and specialisms.
• Healthcare Assistants (HCAs).
• Support Workers and Senior Support Workers.
• Care Assistants.
• Mental Health Professionals.
• Teaching Assistants.
• Chefs and Kitchen Staff.
• Catering Assistants.
• Domestic and Cleaning Staff.
• Other healthcare, social care and support professionals.

For the purposes of applicable data protection legislation, Medco Recruitment Limited generally acts as a data controller when deciding how and why personal information is processed.

3. Personal Information We Collect

 

When you interact with Medco Recruitment Limited, we may collect different categories of personal information depending on the services you use and your relationship with us.

 

A. Personal Identification Information

 

This may include:

• Full name.
• Date of birth.
• Gender, where relevant and lawfully collected.
• Nationality.
• Contact telephone number.
• Email address.
• Residential address.
• Passport or other identity document details.
• Passport-sized photographs, where required.

 

B. Employment and Professional Information

 

When you register for employment opportunities, we may collect:

• Your updated CV or résumé.
• Employment history.
• Previous job roles and responsibilities.
• Professional experience.
• Academic qualifications.
• Professional certificates.
• Training certificates.
• Professional registration details.
• References from previous employers.
• Skills and areas of expertise.
• Preferred job roles and working locations.
• Employment availability.
• Salary or pay expectations, where relevant.

 

C. Right-to-Work and Immigration Information

 

Where required to establish your eligibility to work in the UK, we may collect:

• Passport information.
• Residence permit details.
• Visa information.
• Right to Work Share Codes.
• Relevant immigration documents.
• Certificate of Sponsorship information, where applicable.

We use this information to support the recruitment process and relevant legal compliance checks.

 

D. Health and Social Care Compliance Information

 

Because Medco Recruitment Limited operates in healthcare and social care recruitment, some positions may require additional checks and information.

Depending on the role, this may include:

• Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) information, where legally permitted and applicable.
• Disclosure Scotland or Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) information, where applicable.
• Relevant professional registrations.
• Health and social care training certificates.
• Care Certificate evidence.
• Occupational health information, where required.
• Vaccination information, where relevant to the role or placement.
• Other information necessary for safeguarding and employment compliance.

Some of this information may be classified as special category or criminal offence data under data protection legislation. We only process it where an appropriate legal condition applies.

 

E. Communication Information

 

We may collect information from communications between you and Medco Recruitment Limited, including:

• Emails.
• Telephone calls.
• WhatsApp messages.
• Website contact forms.
• Live chat enquiries.
• Recruitment application messages.
• Onboarding communications.
• Feedback and complaints.

This helps us respond to enquiries, manage applications and provide recruitment support.

 

F. Website and Technical Information

 

When you visit our website, certain technical information may be collected automatically, including:

• IP address.
• Browser type.
• Device information.
• Operating system.
• Website pages visited.
• Date and time of visits.
• Website usage information.
• Cookie and analytics information, where permitted.

This information helps us maintain website security, improve website performance and understand how visitors interact with our website.

 

4. How We Collect Your Personal Information

 

Medco Recruitment Limited may collect personal information through several channels, including:

• When you complete a registration or application form.
• When you submit your CV.
• When you send onboarding documents.
• When you contact us by email or telephone.
• When you communicate with us through WhatsApp.
• When you use our website live chat.
• When you interact with our social media pages.
• When recruitment consultants communicate with you.
• When references or authorised organisations provide information about you.
• When information is obtained through relevant recruitment or professional platforms.
• When you visit our website.

Where we receive information about you from another source, we will provide the required privacy information in accordance with applicable data protection requirements.

 

5. How We Use Your Personal Information

 

We use personal information for legitimate recruitment, business, administrative and legal purposes.

These purposes may include:

Recruitment and Job Applications

• Registering candidates with Medco Recruitment Limited.
• Reviewing CVs and applications.
• Assessing qualifications, skills and experience.
• Identifying suitable job opportunities.
• Matching candidates with available vacancies.
• Communicating about recruitment opportunities.
• Arranging interviews and assessments.

Candidate Registration and Onboarding

• Collecting and reviewing onboarding documents.
• Verifying candidate identity.
• Checking employment eligibility.
• Processing professional references.
• Coordinating required background checks.
• Monitoring onboarding progress.
• Communicating application updates.
• Maintaining candidate records.

Compliance and Safeguarding

• Meeting applicable employment and recruitment requirements.
• Supporting relevant safeguarding checks.
• Verifying professional qualifications and registrations.
• Checking right-to-work documentation.
• Meeting legal and regulatory obligations.
• Supporting safe recruitment practices.

Communication and Customer Support

• Responding to enquiries.
• Providing recruitment assistance.
• Sending application updates.
• Communicating with candidates and clients.
• Handling complaints and feedback.
• Providing information about our services.

Website Management and Improvement

• Maintaining website functionality.
• Monitoring website performance.
• Improving user experience.
• Protecting our website against fraudulent or malicious activity.
• Understanding website visitor behaviour through permitted analytics.

Business Administration

• Maintaining accurate business records.
• Managing client relationships.
• Managing recruitment operations.
• Resolving disputes.
• Protecting our legal rights.

 

6. Our Lawful Bases for Processing Personal Information

 

Under the UK GDPR, organisations must have a lawful basis for processing personal information.

Depending on the circumstances, Medco Recruitment Limited may rely on the following lawful bases:

Consent: Where you have freely agreed to a specific use of your personal information, such as receiving certain marketing communications or consenting to optional processing.

 

Contract: Where processing is necessary to take steps at your request before entering into a contract or to perform a contract with you.

 

Legal Obligation: Where we need to process information to comply with applicable laws and

regulatory requirements.

 

Legitimate Interests: Where processing is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided those interests do not override your rights and freedoms. Examples may include managing recruitment activities, maintaining candidate records and improving our services.

 

Vital Interests: In exceptional circumstances, where processing is necessary to protect someone’s life or other vital interests.

 

Where we process special category information, such as health information, or criminal offence information, we will also identify and rely on an appropriate additional legal condition under applicable data protection legislation.

 

7. How We Handle Sensitive Personal Information

 

Some information collected during healthcare and social care recruitment may be particularly sensitive.

This can include health information, disability information, vaccination records, DBS/PVG information and other safeguarding-related records.

Medco Recruitment Limited recognises the importance of protecting this information.

We will:

• Collect sensitive information only where relevant and necessary.
• Restrict access to authorised personnel.
• Use appropriate security measures to protect records.
• Process information only where an appropriate legal condition applies.
• Avoid using sensitive information for unrelated purposes.
• Retain information only for as long as necessary or legally required.

We will not request sensitive personal information without a relevant recruitment, employment, safeguarding or legal purpose.

 

8. Sharing Your Personal Information

 

Medco Recruitment Limited may share personal information with selected third parties where necessary for recruitment, employment, compliance, or business operations.

These may include:

 

Employers and Healthcare Organisations

We may share relevant candidate information with NHS organisations, private healthcare providers, care homes, social care organisations and other prospective employers when considering you for a suitable position.

Professional and Regulatory Organisations

Where appropriate, we may verify professional qualifications, registrations and employment information with relevant organisations.

Background Check Providers

We may share relevant information with authorised DBS/PVG or other screening providers to support required background checks.

Reference Providers

We may contact previous employers or nominated referees to verify your professional experience and suitability.

Technology and Service Providers

We may use third-party providers to support our business operations, including:

• Website hosting providers.
• Email service providers.
• Recruitment management systems.
• Customer communication platforms.
• Website live chat services.
• Document storage providers.
• IT security and technical support providers.

Government and Regulatory Authorities

We may disclose information to government departments, regulators, law enforcement agencies or other public authorities where legally required or permitted.

We only share personal information where there is an appropriate legal basis and a legitimate reason to do so.

 

9. How We Protect Your Personal Information

 

Medco Recruitment Limited takes appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against unauthorised access, accidental loss, misuse, alteration, disclosure or destruction.

Our security measures may include:

• Restricted access to candidate records.
• Password-protected systems.
• Secure document handling procedures.
• Staff confidentiality responsibilities.
• Appropriate access permissions.
• Secure communication practices.
• Regular review of information security procedures.
• Use of reputable third-party service providers.

Although we take reasonable steps to protect your information, no online communication or electronic storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

Candidates should avoid sending sensitive documents through unverified communication channels and should contact us if they have concerns about the security of their information.

 

10. How Long We Keep Your Personal Information

 

Medco Recruitment Limited retains personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including recruitment, employment administration, compliance and legal obligations.

The length of time we retain information depends on:

• The nature of the information.
• The purpose for which it was collected.
• Whether you remain registered with Medco Recruitment Limited.
• Whether you are actively being considered for employment.
• Applicable legal and regulatory requirements.
• Whether information is needed to resolve disputes or establish legal claims.

When personal information is no longer required, we will take appropriate steps to securely delete, destroy or anonymise it.

Our retention periods should be documented in a separate internal data retention schedule and applied consistently.

 

11. Your Data Protection Rights

 

Under applicable UK data protection legislation, you may have several rights concerning your personal information.

These include:

 

Right of Access

You can request a copy of the personal information Medco Recruitment Limited holds about you.

 

Right to Rectification

You can ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete personal information.

 

Right to Erasure

In certain circumstances, you can request that we delete your personal information.

 

Right to Restrict Processing

You may ask us to restrict how we use your personal information in certain situations.

 

Right to Data Portability

Where applicable, you may request your personal information in a commonly used electronic format and ask us to transfer it to another organisation.

 

Right to Object

You may object to certain types of processing, including processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.

 

Right to Withdraw Consent

Where we rely on your consent, you can withdraw it at any time. This does not affect processing carried out before consent was withdrawn.

 

These rights are subject to certain legal conditions and exemptions.

To exercise your rights, please contact us using the details provided in this policy.

 

12. Cookies and Website Tracking

 

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to improve functionality, enhance user experience and understand how visitors use our website.

Cookies are small text files stored on your device when you visit certain websites.

Depending on their purpose, cookies may be used for:

• Essential website functionality.
• Website security.
• Remembering user preferences.
• Website analytics.
• Performance monitoring.
• Marketing and advertising, where applicable.

Where required by law, we will ask for your consent before placing non-essential cookies on your device.

You can manage your cookie preferences through the website’s cookie settings or your browser settings.

For further information, please refer to our Cookie Policy.

 

13. International Transfers of Personal Information

 

Medco Recruitment Limited primarily provides recruitment services within the United Kingdom.

However, some candidates, service providers or technology platforms may be located outside the UK. Certain information may therefore be accessed or transferred internationally.

Where personal information is transferred outside the UK, we will ensure that an appropriate legal safeguard is in place, where required under applicable data protection legislation.

This may include:

• A UK adequacy regulation.
• The UK International Data Transfer Agreement (IDTA).
• The UK Addendum to the EU Standard Contractual Clauses.
• Another legally recognised transfer mechanism.

We take appropriate steps to ensure that personal information receives an adequate level of protection when transferred internationally.

 

14. Third-Party Websites and Services

 

Our website may contain links to third-party websites, platforms and services.

These may include job platforms, social media websites, professional organisations and external service providers.

Medco Recruitment Limited does not control the privacy practices of external websites.

When you follow a third-party link, we encourage you to read the privacy policy of that website before submitting personal information.

 

15. Direct Marketing and Recruitment Communications

 

We may contact candidates about recruitment opportunities, suitable vacancies, application updates and other information relevant to our recruitment services.

Where required, we will obtain consent or rely on another appropriate lawful basis for sending communications.

You can ask us to stop sending direct marketing communications at any time by contacting us or using the unsubscribe option where available.

Please note that opting out of marketing communications will not necessarily stop important messages relating to your registration, application, onboarding or existing employment arrangements.

 

16. Children’s Privacy

 

Medco Recruitment Limited’s recruitment services are generally intended for adults seeking employment opportunities.

We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children through our recruitment services unless there is a lawful and appropriate reason to do so.

Where information relating to a child is required for a legitimate recruitment or safeguarding purpose, we will handle it in accordance with applicable data protection requirements.

 

17. Data Breaches and Security

 

Incidents

Medco Recruitment Limited takes data security seriously.

If we become aware of a personal data breach, we will assess the incident and take appropriate steps to contain and investigate it.

Where required by law, we will notify the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and affected individuals within the applicable legal timeframes.

We will also take reasonable steps to reduce the risk of similar incidents occurring in the future.

 

18. Changes to This Privacy Policy

 

Medco Recruitment Limited may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our recruitment services, business operations, technology, legal obligations or data protection practices.

Any updates will be published on our website with a revised Last Updated date.

We encourage candidates, clients and website visitors to review this page periodically to remain informed about how we protect personal information.

 

19. Contact Medco Recruitment Limited

 

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, how we use your personal information or how to exercise your data protection rights, please contact us.