Last updated: 28 May 2026.

Safe Space Alliance (“SSA”, “we”, “us”, “our”) runs a directory and a set of projects that help people find and create welcoming spaces. A lot of the people who use our service are LGBTQI+, and some of them come to us precisely because other parts of their life aren’t safe. We hold that in mind in everything we do with your data.

This policy explains what we collect, why, who sees it, and what rights you have. We’ve tried to write it in plain language. If anything here is unclear, ask us. Contact details are at the end.

Two commitments up front, because they matter more than the detail that follows:

• We don’t sell your personal information, and we don’t share it with anyone for their marketing.
• We collect as little as we can, and we only keep it while we have a reason to.

The law that applies

We’re a New Zealand charity, so we follow the Privacy Act 2020 and its Information Privacy Principles. That Act gives you real rights over your information, including the right to see what we hold and to ask us to correct it. It also requires us to report serious privacy breaches to you and to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner. More on all of that below.

If you’re outside New Zealand, your own country’s privacy law may give you further rights. There’s a short section on that near the end.

What we collect

Information you give us

Depending on how you use the service, this can include:

• Your name and email address, if you create an account or contact us.
• A phone number and postal or physical address, if you give us one.
• Details of a space you submit to the directory, which may include the name, address and contact details of that space.
• Donation or membership information, if you support us financially. Payment card details go straight to our payment processor. We never see or store them (see “When we share” below).

Please don’t send us information you don’t need to. If you’re submitting a listing for a venue, we only need what’s necessary to publish and verify it.

Information we collect automatically

When you visit the website we collect some technical information, such as your IP address, browser type, the pages you look at, and the date and time. This helps us keep the site running and understand roughly how it’s used. We collect similar information if you use the service on a mobile device.

Some of this comes through cookies and similar technologies. There’s a short section on cookies further down.

Why we collect it

We use your information to:

• Set up and run your account.
• Publish, verify and maintain directory listings.
• Process donations and memberships.
• Reply to you when you get in touch.
• Send you service messages, like security or account notices.
• Send you updates or newsletters, but only if you’ve asked to receive them. You can opt out at any time.
• Keep the service secure and working, and understand how it’s used so we can improve it.

If we ever want to use your information for something not covered here, we’ll ask you first.

The directory and your listings

The directory is public. If you submit a space, the listing information you provide is intended to be seen by anyone using the service. Please keep that in mind, and don’t include personal details in a listing that you wouldn’t want public.

Account information is different. Your account details, and the fact that you hold an account, are not made public by us.

If you want a listing corrected or taken down, contact us and we’ll sort it out.

When we share, and when we don’t

We share personal information only in these situations:

Service providers. We use trusted third parties to run the service, for example web hosting, email delivery, analytics and payment processing. They can only use your information to do the job we’ve asked them to do, and they’re bound to protect it. The main ones are:

• Payment processing: WooCommerce with WooPayments for purchases and memberships, and Donorbox for donations. Card details go directly to these processors, not to us. They meet the PCI-DSS security standard.
• Email and newsletters: Mailchimp.
• Analytics: WordPress analytics (Jetpack Stats), provided by Automattic.

Legal reasons. We may disclose information if the law requires it, or if we genuinely believe it’s needed to protect someone’s safety, prevent harm, or defend our legal rights. We take this seriously and we don’t hand over data lightly, especially given who our users are.

A change to the organisation. If SSA ever merges with or transfers its work to another body, your information may move with it. We’ll tell you before that happens, and the new body will have to honour a policy at least as protective as this one.

That’s the full list. We don’t share your information with “business partners” for promotions, and we don’t share it across a group of related companies, because we don’t operate that way.

Sending data overseas

Some of our providers are based outside New Zealand, so your information may be stored or processed overseas. When that happens, we take reasonable steps to make sure your information stays protected to a standard comparable to New Zealand law, as required by the Privacy Act. If you’d like to know where a particular provider is based, ask us.

How long we keep it

We keep personal information only while we have a reason to, then we delete it or make it anonymous.

• Account information: for as long as your account is active, and for 12 months after you close it.
• Listing information: while the listing is live, and for a reasonable period after it’s removed.
• Donation and membership records: for 7 years. That’s the period we’re required to keep financial records under New Zealand law, including the Charities Act 2005 and the Tax Administration Act 1994.
• Technical and analytics data: usually a shorter period.

If you’d like your information deleted sooner, ask us, and we’ll do it unless we’re legally required to keep it.

Keeping it secure

We protect your information with sensible measures, including encryption of data in transit, restricted access so only people who need your data can see it, and regular review of who has access. No system is ever completely secure, but we take this responsibility seriously.

If a breach happens that could cause you serious harm, we’ll notify you and the Office of the Privacy Commissioner, as the Privacy Act requires.

Your rights

Under the Privacy Act 2020 you can:

• Ask to see the personal information we hold about you.
• Ask us to correct it if it’s wrong.
• Ask us to delete it, where we’re not required to keep it.
• Opt out of newsletters and marketing at any time, using the unsubscribe link or by contacting us.
• Withdraw a consent you’ve given us.

To do any of these, email us at contact@safespacealliance.com. We’ll respond as soon as we can, and within the timeframes the Act sets.

If you’re not happy with how we’ve handled your information or your request, you can complain to us first. If we can’t resolve it, you can complain to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner at privacy.org.nz.

Young people

We know young LGBTQI+ people are among the people who most need a safe space, and sometimes they’re looking because home isn’t safe. We’ve written this section with that in mind.

You don’t need an account, and you don’t need to give us anything, to use the directory. It’s public and free to browse. We’ve kept it that way on purpose, so anyone can find a safe space without leaving a trail or asking permission first.

Accounts and directory listings are meant for adults and organisations, and we don’t set out to collect personal information from children through them. New Zealand privacy law doesn’t set a fixed age of consent. What matters is whether a young person understands what they’re sharing and why. If we’re not confident they do, we’ll collect less, or nothing at all.

We won’t ask a young person to involve a parent or guardian in order to use the directory. For some young people that isn’t safe, and we’re not willing to put them in that position.

If you’re a young person and you’ve contacted us or shared something with us, we’ll handle it carefully and keep only what we need. If you want it deleted, just ask.

If you’re a parent or guardian with a concern, you’re welcome to contact us. We’ll always take the young person’s safety and wishes into account, and we won’t share their information in a way that could put them at risk.

Cookies and analytics

We use cookies and similar technologies to keep the site working, remember your preferences, and understand how the site is used. Some are essential, and the site won’t work properly without them. You can control cookies through your browser settings. Most browsers let you refuse or delete them, though some parts of the site may not work as well if you do.

We use WordPress’s built-in analytics (Jetpack Stats) to see how the site is used, in aggregate. It’s provided by Automattic, and their privacy policy covers how they handle that data. We don’t use analytics to identify you personally.

Other websites

The directory and our pages link to other websites we don’t control. If you follow a link, that site’s own privacy policy applies, not ours. We’d encourage you to check it.

Changes to this policy

We’ll update this policy from time to time. When we make a meaningful change, we’ll post the new version here, update the date at the top, and let account holders know by email or a notice on the site before it takes effect.

Contact us

Safe Space Alliance, PO Box 850, Shortland Street, Auckland Central, Auckland, 1140, New Zealand.Charity registration number: CC58450

Email: contact@safespacealliance.com

If you’d like a specific privacy contact, set one up and put it here. It signals that you take this seriously, and it gives people a clear place to write.