McConachie Stedman Pty Ltd ACN 600 130 845, McConachie Stedman Brisbane Pty Ltd ACN 624 938 709, McConachie Stedman Audit and Assurance Pty Ltd ACN 600 384 512, McConachie Stedman Financial Planning Pty Ltd as trustee for Duggan Street Management Trust ABN: 27 334 897 940, MCS Financial Planning Pty Ltd ACN 677 710 600 and any other subsidiaries, affiliates and related entities in Australia (together referred as “McConachie Stedman” “we” “our” or “us”) are committed to protecting and managing personal information in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) established under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act) and in accordance with other applicable privacy laws.
The APPs provide a privacy protection framework that supports the rights and obligations of collecting, holding, using, accessing and correcting personal information. The APPs consist of 13 principle-based laws and apply equally to paper-based and digital environments.
This document is referred to as our Privacy Policy. It sets out our policies for managing your personal information, including how we collect, use, hold, store and disclose the information.
In this Privacy Policy, “you”, “your”, or “client” refers to any individual about whom we collect personal information.
Broadly speaking, when we are referring to personal information, we are referring to information or an opinion about you, or information that is reasonably recognisable as you. It includes information or an opinion that may or may not be accurate and is recorded in a hard copy or electronic form.
When we refer to sensitive information, we are referring to certain personal information that is more sensitive and may include health information or details of memberships of professional associations. Under the APPs, sensitive information is afforded a higher level of privacy protection and requires us to obtain your consent before collecting this type of information.
This Privacy Policy applies to your personal information regardless of how we collect it from you. When you submit information to us, access or use our website, or social media platforms, you are providing your consent to us collecting and managing your personal information according to this Privacy Policy.
McConachie Stedman is an Australian based business and offers a range of services in the accounting and financial planning industry. McConachie Stedman offers quality information and advice within a range of services, including:
McConachie Stedman offers its services through face-to-face consultations, virtual meetings, its website (Website), a newsletter subscription service (Newsletter) and related social media channels. McConachie Stedman may also conduct research and development initiatives and provide access to other service providers and applications.
The information provided or displayed on our Website, Newsletter or related social media channels does not consider your unique situation and needs, and as such should not be relied upon as financial, accounting or legal advice. Please refer to our disclaimer for further information, which is accessible at McConachie Stedman | Toowoomba Accountants and Financial Planners - Terms of Use.
This policy is effective as of 6 August 2025. From time to time, we may need to change this Privacy Policy and will post the updated version on our website. Any such amendments will take effect immediately after such posting. Please check this Privacy Policy regularly for any updates.
When we refer to sensitive information, we are referring to certain personal information that is more sensitive and may include information or opinions about an individual that is also personal information, including:
It might also include:
Under the APPs, sensitive information is afforded a higher level of privacy protection and requires us to obtain your consent before collecting this type of information.
In some circumstances, McConachie Stedman may collect information that is considered sensitive information. For example, government-related identifiers, current financial and accounting information, legal information, information about family and entity structures, Centrelink eligibility and commitments.
If we need to collect sensitive information about you, for example, to provide you with our services and we will ask for your consent prior to collecting this type of information and we will only use sensitive information for the purpose for which it was collected.
Some forms of sensitive information have additional requirements under separate legislation in relation to their collection, use and disclosure, such as Tax File Numbers and Individual healthcare identifiers.
If we need to collect these other forms of sensitive information from you, we will ask for your consent prior to collecting this information, and we will only use the sensitive information for the permitted purpose and in accordance with the legislation governing the use of that sensitive information.
When you enquire about our services or become a client of McConachie Stedman, a record is made that includes your personal information.
The types of information that we collect will vary depending on the circumstances of collection and the kind of services that you request from us, and may likely include:
McConachie Stedman may collect personal information about other individuals who are not clients of McConachie Stedman. This
includes customers and members of the public who participate in events we are involved with, individual service providers and
contractors to McConachie Stedman, and other individuals who interact with us on a commercial basis. The kinds of personal information we
collect will depend on the capacity in which you are dealing with McConachie Stedman. Generally, it would include your name, contact
details, and information regarding our interactions and transactions with you. If you are participating in an event we are managing or
delivering, we may take images or audio-visual recordings which identify you.
There are situations where we require your consent to collect or use, or disclose your personal information. If we are unsure whether you have the capacity to give consent at a particular time, we may consider obtaining consent from someone who can act on your behalf to provide that consent, such as:
You can always decline to give McConachie Stedman any personal information we request, but that may mean we cannot provide you with some or all of the services you have requested. If you have any concerns about the personal information we have requested, please let us know.
Individuals have the option to interact with us anonymously or using pseudonyms, where reasonably possible. For example, if you contact us with a general question, you will not be asked for your name unless it is required to adequately handle your enquiry. You can also view our website and listings without providing your name or contact details.
However, for most of your interactions with McConachie Stedman, your name, contact information, and enough information about the particular matter will be required to enable McConachie Stedman to deal with the matter fairly and efficiently.
McConachie Stedman generally collects personal information directly from you.
There are a number of ways in which McConachie Stedman collects information through its website, including via the following tools:
This information will not ordinarily be personal information, because you will not be identified, or reasonably identifiable from it.
You can read more about how Google uses your personal information at https://www.google.com/intl/en/policies/privacy/. You may also opt-out of Google Analytics here: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.
As a means to reduce spam attacks and to be able to distinguish users from bots, our website uses Google reCAPTCHA. This tool may collect data about how you interact with the website’s smart forms, including:
The information will be stored on Google’s servers outside of Australia. Content you enter into McConachie Stedman forms will not be collected through the use of this tool.
You can read more about Google’s privacy policy here: Privacy Policy – Privacy & Terms – Google.
We provide a client portal on our website to share files directly with clients and our website uses ShareFile. This tool is used to collect personal information and documents from clients through ShareFile’s encrypted software and this information is provided securely to McConachie Stedman.
ShareFile collects limited data when you use this service or create a client account, including:
You can read more about ShareFile’s privacy policy here: https://www.progress.com/legal/privacy-policy
We provide use of the Nimbus Client Portal through our website to assist clients with accessing their files. This tool is used as a processor to collect personal information and documents between McConachie Stedman and the client.
Nimbus Portal Solutions has strict requirements in relation to the information that it can collect, which include:
your contact information;
your demographic information, such as postcode;
your browsing session and geo-location data, and browsing behaviour; and
information about your access and use of their website.
You can read more about Nimbus Portal Solutions privacy policy here: Nimbus Portal Solutions | Cloud Document Management - Privacy Policy
We use Mailchimp to provide surveys and quizzes through our website to assist with understanding client needs. This tool is used to collect personal information between McConachie Stedman and the client.
Mailchimp only collects the information from you about your interaction with the service, including:
You can read the full terms of use here: https://mailchimp.com/legal/terms/ and the privacy policy details here: https://www.intuit.com/privacy/statement/
McConachie Stedman uses web forms provided by Oncord to enable you to complete an online enquiry. We collect personal information that you provide to us in the course of using the web forms.
Oncord collects information from you about your interaction with the service, including:
The Web forms are hosted by Oncord, and their privacy policy can be found here: https://www.oncord.com/legal/privacy/
We may collect your personal information over the phone, by email, by fax, over the internet or when you visit one of our social media sites (such as Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram), or when you visit our office in person.
McConachie Stedman uses Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and LinkedIn to communicate with the public about its website. When you communicate with McConachie Stedman through these services, McConachie Stedman collects the personal information you provide to it by engaging in that communication.
Each of these services has its own privacy policy, which can be found here:
Facebook and Instagram: Meta Privacy Policy – How Meta collects and uses user data | Privacy Centre | Manage your privacy on Facebook, Instagram and Messenger | Facebook Privacy
YouTube: Privacy Policy – Privacy & Terms – Google
LinkedIn: LinkedIn Privacy Policy
Cookies are pieces of data stored by a web browser on a computer’s hard disk. Cookies identify the computer only – they do not personally identify individuals.
We may use cookies to track the use of our website and to compile statistics on visits to the site. When the website is visited, a cookie may be placed on the computer.
When our website is visited, a record of the visit is automatically made, which collects the following non-personal information:
If clients or potential clients use the forms to send an email to someone at McConachie Stedman through the website, a record will also be made of their email address. We use the statistical information to make our website more useful and to enhance the online experience.
Cookies can be monitored and deleted from your browser. Since browsers create and store cookies, they are also the most direct way to access, manage, and delete cookies.
Please keep in mind that if you disable all cookies, certain portions of our website may not work properly since certain necessary cookies and functionality cookies will be disabled.
If you require more information about the use of cookies and how to block them, visit allaboutcookies.org.
We may also collect personal information about you from other sources, for example:
We may receive information about you that we have taken no active step to collect. If this does occur, we recommend contacting us and asking for the personal information to be de-identified or destroyed.
McConachie Stedman collects personal information reasonably necessary to carry out our business, assess and manage our clients’ needs, and provide our services.
McConachie Stedman usually collects and uses personal information for the purpose for which it is collected. This depends on the nature of your interaction with us, but may include:
You can always decline to give us your personal information, but that may mean that we cannot provide you with some or all of the services you have requested.
We may also use information collected to fulfil a secondary purpose which includes administrative functions associated with the services, for example, billing, entering into contracts with you or third parties and managing client relationships.
McConachie Stedman will allow access to a client’s own personal or sensitive information at any time by making contact with their accountant or by contacting our Privacy Officer. This is subject to some limited exceptions permitted or required by law. Our clients also have the right to request that we adhere to any corrections or updates to the information that is provided to us.
McConachie Stedman may charge the reasonable costs of providing our clients with access to their personal information if requested.
All personal and sensitive information we no longer require will be destroyed or permanently de-identified, however, information will be retained for as long as the law requires.
Pursuant to the Corporations Act and Accounting Standards (AASB) we are required to collect sufficient information to ensure the services we provide and the advice we give is accurate and valuable. If clients elect not to provide us with the personal information needed, we will not be able to provide them with the quality of service they deserve.
During the conduct of our business, your personal information may be disclosed for a primary purpose or a required or authorised secondary purpose to the following parties:
McConachie Stedman takes reasonable steps to ensure that the third parties we engage take reasonable steps to protect your personal information following the APPs and in a similar manner with this Privacy Policy. Our third-party service providers are required only to use the personal information disclosed to them by us for the purpose which it was provided to them.
Your personal information may be transferred to recipients located in countries that have data protection laws that protect
personal information in a way which is at least substantially similar to the APPs. Accordingly, there may be mechanisms available to you to
enforce the protection of your personal information under that overseas law. In these circumstances, we do not require overseas recipients
to comply with the APPs, and we will not be liable for a breach of the APPs if your personal information is mishandled. We also disclaim
responsibility to the extent permitted by law and note that you may not have a remedy under Australian law.
McConachie Stedman may use or disclose your personal information to inform you about our services, upcoming promotions and events, or other opportunities that may interest you. If you do not want to receive direct marketing communications, you can opt-out at any time by contacting us using the contact details below or by clicking the bottom of the correspondence where it includes the words “Unsubscribe”.
If you opt out of receiving marketing material from us, we may still contact you concerning any ongoing relationship with you.
McConachie Stedman adheres to the Spam Act 2003 (Cth) accordingly and will:
McConachie Stedman takes reasonable steps to protect your personal information from misuse, interference and loss and from unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. The security measures taken include:
Please be aware that there is no transmission method over the internet or through electronic storage that is fully secure and safe. We cannot guarantee the security of the personal information that we hold, but we do take reasonable steps to protect your information. If we are required by law to inform you of any misuse, interference, loss or unauthorised of your personal information, then we will notify you electronically, in writing or by telephone.
Our websites, applications or email systems may not use encryption or other technologies to ensure the secure transmission and receipt of information via the internet. Anyone using our website or receiving an email from us is encouraged to exercise care in sending personal information or depositing money via the internet. We recommend that you refrain from clicking any unsecured links or opening unknown attachments.
If you hold any concerns or become suspicious of any misuse, interference, loss or unauthorised access to our website, our email systems or to our business more generally, we ask that you contact us immediately to verify your concern or suspicion.
McConachie Stedman holds and stores your personal information in paper-based files, and other electronic record keeping methods in secure databases (including trusted third-party storage providers based in Australia and overseas), which may include cloud-based storage providers.
Personal information may be collected in paper-based documents and converted to electronic form for use or storage (with the original paper-based documents either archived or securely destroyed).
Your personal information is usually collected in electronic form.
Your personal information may be collected in electronic form for use or storage with a third-party storage provider that we engage.
Where possible, we ask our third-party software providers to store data in Australian data centres, however, storage in Australian data centres is not always possible and some third-party providers use international data centres as backup data centres.
We cannot ensure that your personal information is or will remain secure. This is due to us not having control over the third-party provider’s policies and procedures concerning the handling and storing of your personal information.
At any time, you can request us to:
Please understand that we may not be able to entertain your request if it is unlawful to do so or is otherwise impractical or unreasonable to do so in our discretion.
Until you request for it to be deleted or destroyed, your personal information is kept by us for as long as necessary to provide our services to you and for legitimate and essential business purposes, such as complying with our legal obligations or settling disputes. This means that your personal information can be held for some time.
McConachie Stedman may require you to provide specific details and information to enable us to provide our services to you. We try to allow you to stay anonymous or use a pseudonym in your dealings with us where it is lawful and practicable to do so. For example, when making a general and nonspecific enquiry. Typically, it is not possible for us to deal with you anonymously or pseudonymously on an ongoing basis. If we do not collect your personal information, you may not be able to utilise our services, deal with us or participate in our events, programs or activities we manage or deliver.
You are entitled to access or request a copy of your personal information held by us by sending us a request. You will not be charged for requests to access or copy your personal information, but you may be charged for the reasonable time and expense incurred in compiling the information.
You are responsible for ensuring that your personal information with us is accurate and up to date. We take steps to ensure that the personal information we collect, use or disclose is accurate and up to date. You can help us do this by letting us know if you notice errors, inaccuracies or discrepancies in the information we hold about you and letting us know if your details change.
We may decline your request to access or correct your personal information in accordance with the APPs. If we refuse your request, we will provide you with a reason for our decision and, in the case of a request for correction, we will include a statement with your personal information about the requested correction.
McConachie Stedman’s website may contain links to third-party websites. Please note that these websites are not subject to our privacy policies and procedures. McConachie Stedman does not endorse, approve or recommend the services and products provided on those third-party websites.
Given the current global economy and the ability for information to be shared across borders, McConachie Stedman is taking the following reasonable steps to try and ensure data security:
The European Union (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) contains new data protection requirements and is effective as of 25 May 2018. GDPR replaces national privacy and security laws that previously existed within the EU with a single, comprehensive EU-wide law that governs the use, sharing, transferring and processing of any personal data that originates from the EU. The GDPR applies to the data processing activities of businesses, regardless of size, that are data processors or controllers with an establishment in the EU. Consequently, Australian businesses of any shape and size may need to comply if they have an establishment in the EU, if they offer goods and services in the EU, or if they monitor the behaviour of individuals in the EU. There are also some notable differences, including certain rights of individuals (such as the ‘right to be forgotten’) which do not have an equivalent right under the APPs and the Privacy Act. As part of McConachie Stedman’s commitment to GDPR compliance, we have updated our Privacy Policy and will ensure our compliance with the GDPR where our clients are citizens of the EU. In accordance with the GDPR, we have:
You may contact us at any time if you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or about how your personal information has been handled. You may make a complaint to our privacy officer using the contact details set out below.
Our Privacy Officer will first consider your complaint to determine whether there are simple or immediate steps that can be taken to resolve the complaint. We will contact you within thirty (30) days of the date we receive the written details of your complaint to acknowledge that we have received it. We may ask you to provide further information about your complaint and the outcome you are seeking.
Our privacy officer will review the way we dealt with your personal information, conduct an internal investigation (if necessary) into the complaint and will likely respond to you within thirty (30) days of the date we acknowledged receipt of your complaint. We will then typically gather relevant facts, locate and review relevant documents and speak with individuals involved.
In most cases, we will investigate and respond to a complaint within sixty (60) days of receipt of the complaint. If the matter is more complex or our investigation takes longer than anticipated, we will let you know.
If you are not satisfied with our response to your complaint, or you consider that McConachie Stedman may have breached the APPs or the Privacy Act, a complaint may be made to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). The contact details for the OAIC are:
Telephone: 1300 363 992
Online enquiry: Enquiry Form
Post: GPO Box 5288, Sydney NSW 2001
Fax: +61 2 6123 5145
Website: www.oaic.gov.au.
We welcome any comments or questions about our Privacy Policy. All enquiries should be directed to McConachie Stedman’s Privacy Officer at the following contact details:
Attention: Privacy Officer
Telephone: 1300 363 866
Email: privacy.officer@mcs.au
This Privacy Policy was last updated on 6 August 2025.