Photo & Media Policy

1. Introduction

At Just Karate, we love celebrating our students' progress and sharing the success stories of our community. This policy outlines how we capture, store, and use photography, video, and audio recordings ("Media") in a way that respects your privacy and adheres to UK Safeguarding standards.

2. Our "Consent by Design" Approach

We believe you should always be in control of your data. In compliance with the UK GDPR, we follow these principles:

• Positive Opt-In: We do not use pre-ticked boxes. Consent must be proactively granted by a parent, guardian, or adult student via our secure student portal.
• Granular Options: You can choose exactly where Media is used. You may allow images for our website while declining use on social media or third-party platforms.
• Audit Trail: Every preference update is recorded with a digital timestamp and Account ID, ensuring a clear legal record of what has been authorised.
• Right to Withdraw: You can update or withdraw your consent at any time through the student portal.

3. How and Why We Use Media

Under the UK GDPR, our primary legal basis for processing Media is Consent. Depending on your chosen preferences, we use this content to:

• Digital Presence: Showcase our community on our official website (justkarate.co.uk) and across professional digital platforms, including Google Business Profile, Apple Maps, Bing Places, and other relevant local business directories.
• Social Media & Video: "description": "Sharing highlights across our official ecosystem, including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and X (Twitter), including 'Live' broadcasts of special events for remote viewing. This includes using Media to demonstrate techniques, kata, or training drills for the benefit of both our community and the wider martial arts public.
• Print Marketing & Physical Media: Production of high-quality physical promotional and educational materials to grow our community. This includes printed books, training manuals, brochures, flyers, banners, event signage, community posters, and images on branded apparel.
• Local Press & External Media: Sharing achievements with regional news outlets, digital news hubs, community magazines, and regional radio or television.
• Historical Archives: Maintaining a record of our community’s lineage and milestones, allowing us to celebrate the long-term journey of our students over many years.

4. Name Identification

To further protect our students, we offer granular control over how names are displayed alongside Media:

• Full Name: e.g. "Well done to John Smith on his Black Belt!"
• First Name Only: e.g. "Well done to John on his Black Belt!"
• Initials Only: e.g. "Well done to J.S. on his Black Belt!"
• No Name: Display the photo/video with no identifying text.

5. Professional Standards & Data Handling

Media is captured by authorised personnel representing Just Karate. We maintain strict data handling standards to ensure privacy:

• Media is captured solely for the purposes outlined in this policy.
• While personal devices may be used for capture, files are transferred to our secure storage as soon as reasonably practicable.
• Once successfully transferred, Media is removed from the local storage/camera roll of the capturing device.
• All individuals representing Just Karate are briefed on these privacy requirements as part of our community standards.

6. Third-Party Photography at Events

While we control official Media, Just Karate often operates in shared public venues. We ask all parents and spectators to be mindful of others and only capture Media of their own children. Please be aware that Just Karate cannot be held responsible for Media captured and shared by third parties, other parents, or venue visitors in public or shared spaces.

7. Storage and Security

All digital Media is stored securely. We do not sell your Media to third parties. While we take every precaution to protect Media on our own platforms, please note that once content is shared on social media, it is subject to the privacy policies and terms of those specific platforms.

8. Reviewing Your Preferences & Right to Erasure

We recommend that all members review their media preferences regularly. You have the opportunity to update these settings during membership renewal, lesson bookings, or via the student portal at any time.

Withdrawal of Consent: If you withdraw consent, the change applies to all future Media production and new official publications. We will ensure that the individual is not included in any new photography or video content moving forward.

Practical Limitations & Historical Use: Withdrawal of consent does not mean the retrospective removal of Media from historical records, past social media posts, or physical materials already in circulation (such as printed brochures, banners, or published instructional books). However, we will ensure that such Media is not used in any new campaigns, future print runs, or new editions of publications.

For digital platforms we directly control (like our website), we will remove Media from active promotional use upon request, provided it does not compromise the educational or historical integrity of our archives.

9. Data Retention

We retain Media to ensure we can continue to celebrate our community’s history and provide high-quality instructional resources:

• Instructional, Historical & Marketing Archive: Media is retained indefinitely. This allows us to preserve the educational heritage of our community, maintain historical records of student progress, and utilize our asset library for future marketing, books, and manuals as required.
• Audit Records: Records of your consent preferences and digital timestamps are retained alongside our insurance records to ensure a permanent legal audit trail of authorised usage.

10. Contact & Complaints

If you have any concerns about our use of Media, please contact us directly.

Safeguarding Note: If there are legal or safeguarding reasons why a student's image must never be captured (e.g. court orders or witness protection), please notify our Safeguarding Lead immediately. This allows us to place a high-priority restriction on their profile to prevent incidental capture.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at www.ico.org.uk.