Information we collect

The BNLA study collected important information over a 10-year period. We followed the same participants over time to see how they settled into life in Australia. Policymakers and researchers use this information to develop policy and programs to help all current and future humanitarian migrants in Australia.

We collected data about participants’:

• demographic information
• housing
• education
• employment and income
• health
• language proficiency
• life satisfaction
• community support
• pre-migration experiences
• perceptions of life in Australia.

How your data is collected and stored

To ensure information is kept secure, we use strong encryption technology.

All providers involved in collecting the survey information adhere to the: 

• Australian Market and Social Research Society (AMSRS) Code of Professional Behaviour
• ISO 20252 standards. 

To protect your stored data, multilevel password protection is used on all electronic storage systems. To ensure security and confidentiality, all survey information is stored, analysed and reported on with your identifying details removed.

Access to data is managed by the Department of Social Services (DSS) through the Australian Data Archive (ADA). Other researchers may apply to use the study data – it will be provided in a format in which individual participants will not be personally identifiable.

Your contact information will be securely stored for 7 years at the Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS) following the completion of the study. After this period, records will be destroyed in a manner appropriate to the security classification of the record content. If the organisation responsible for future data collection phases of the study changes, AIFS will be required to disclose your information to that organisation.

How your data is used

The information you provide is de-identified and combined with data from other study participants. Approved data users such as researchers and policymakers from academia and government can use the data to improve services and programs that benefit humanitarian migrants.

All data is de-identified when released, and only combined results (aggregate) are published. We have stringent data sharing and review procedures in place to ensure data is only accessible via the Australian Data Archive (ADA) at the Australian National University (ANU). The ADA is a secure data-storage facility. 

We require all researchers that request to use the data to sign a deed of confidentially. This prohibits them from trying to identify the participants or sharing any identifiable information.