Privacy Policy

Last updated: 18.10.2026

Thank you for your interest in “Start 5 and 5”. Protecting your personal data is important to us. In accordance with Section 15 of the Catholic Church’s data protection law (Gesetz über den Kirchlichen Datenschutz, KDG), we inform you below which data is processed when you visit this website, for what purpose, and what rights you have. This website does not use any analytics or advertising services and does not create user profiles.

This is a translation for your convenience; in case of doubt, the German version prevails.

The controller responsible for data processing on this website within the meaning of the KDG is:

Stadtpastoral Lingen
Holger Berentzen & Felix Hammer
Burgstraße 21c
49808 Lingen (Ems), Germany
Phone: +49 591 964972-21
Email: h.berentzen@bistum-os.de

If you have questions or suggestions regarding data protection, please contact our data protection officer:

Mr Philipp Wachhorst
pco GmbH & Co. KG
Hafenstraße 11
49090 Osnabrück, Germany
Email: datenschutz@bistum-osnabrueck.de
Phone: +49 541 605 1501

This website is hosted by hostNET Medien GmbH, Osterdeich 107, 28205 Bremen, Germany. The hosting provider processes data generated during your visit solely on our behalf and in accordance with our instructions, based on a data processing agreement (Section 29 KDG).

When you access our pages, your browser automatically transmits technical information that the web server stores in log files:

• IP address of the requesting device
• date and time of access
• requested page or file and the previously visited page (referrer)
• access status (e.g. file transferred, file not found) and amount of data transferred
• type and version of your browser and operating system

This data is required to deliver the website, to ensure its stability and security, and to detect and prevent attacks. It is not combined with other data or used for advertising or analytics. Log data is deleted or anonymised after seven days at the latest. The legal basis is Section 6 (1) (g) KDG (legitimate interest in the secure operation of the website).

We do not use any cookies for analytics, advertising or tracking. Most pages do not store any cookies at all.

Contact form: On pages with a contact form, a technically necessary session cookie (“s5sid”) is set. It protects the form against misuse and automated spam and allows us to show you a confirmation after submitting. The cookie only contains a random identifier and is deleted when you close your browser. The legal basis is Section 6 (1) (g) KDG; storing it is strictly necessary (Section 25 (2) no. 2 TDDDG).

Your consent to the map: If you agree to display the map (see below), we store this decision in your browser’s local storage so that you are not asked again on every page. No data is sent to us. You can withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the stored website data in your browser.

You can configure your browser to notify you about cookies or to block them. Without the session cookie, however, the contact form cannot be submitted.

If you write to us via the contact form, we process the data you enter (name, email address, optionally phone number, your message) as well as the date and time of your request in order to answer your message. Your request is stored in our website’s database at our hosting provider and forwarded by email to our welcome team. You will also receive an automatic confirmation at the email address you provided.

To protect against spam and misuse, we additionally store the IP address and browser identifier of the sending device and automatically check the request for typical spam characteristics. No external services are used for this.

The legal basis is your consent (Section 6 (1) (b) KDG), which you give by submitting the form, and our legitimate interest in preventing misuse (Section 6 (1) (g) KDG). Your message is read only by members of our welcome team and is not passed on to third parties. Requests are deleted once they have been dealt with, and no later than six months after receipt.

If you contact us by email or phone, we process your details solely to handle your request (Section 6 (1) (b) or (g) KDG) and delete them as soon as they are no longer needed.

We also offer the option of writing to us via WhatsApp, a service of WhatsApp Ireland Limited, Merrion Road, Dublin 4, Ireland, a company of the Meta group. If you choose this channel, WhatsApp processes your data (e.g. phone number, communication metadata) under its own terms, possibly also in the USA. Using WhatsApp is voluntary; if you prefer not to, please use the contact form, email or phone. For more information see whatsapp.com/legal/privacy-policy-eea.

On our homepage we show a map of the places where starter packs are available. The map is only loaded after you explicitly click “Accept”; before that, no connection to the map service is made.

After your consent, map tiles are loaded from servers of the OpenStreetMap Foundation, St John’s Innovation Centre, Cowley Road, Cambridge, CB4 0WS, United Kingdom. In the process, your IP address and technical information about your browser are transmitted to these servers. The European Commission has issued an adequacy decision for the United Kingdom. The legal basis is your consent (Section 6 (1) (b) KDG), which you can withdraw at any time with effect for the future by deleting the stored website data in your browser. More information: osmfoundation.org/wiki/Privacy_Policy.

The “Route” links in the map lead to Google Maps. Google’s privacy terms apply only once you click such a link.

All fonts used on this website are stored directly on our server and loaded from there. No connection to third-party servers (e.g. Google Fonts or Adobe Fonts) is made and no data is transferred to third parties.

“Start 5 and 5” has a presence on Instagram (Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, Merrion Road, Dublin 4, Ireland). We do not embed any Instagram plugins or content on our website; we only link to our profile and individual posts. Data is transmitted to Instagram only when you click such a link; Meta’s privacy policy then applies.

The same applies to links to other services such as Bible apps, video platforms or online shops. The respective providers are responsible for their content and data processing.

We take technical and organisational measures to protect your data against loss, manipulation and unauthorised access. The connection to our website is encrypted with TLS, as indicated by the padlock symbol and the address beginning with “https://”. The administration area is additionally protected by two-factor authentication.

Under the KDG you have in particular the following rights:

• access to the data stored about you (Section 17 KDG),
• rectification of inaccurate data (Section 18 KDG),
• erasure of your data (Section 19 KDG),
• restriction of processing (Section 20 KDG),
• data portability (Section 22 KDG),
• objection to processing based on Section 6 (1) (g) KDG on grounds relating to your particular situation (Section 23 KDG),
• withdrawal of consent with effect for the future (Section 8 (6) KDG).

To exercise these rights, simply contact the controller named above or our data protection officer.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the church data protection supervisory authority if you believe that the processing of your data violates data protection law (Section 48 KDG). The competent authority is:

Der Diözesandatenschutzbeauftragte der (Erz-)Bistümer Hamburg, Hildesheim, Osnabrück und des Bischöflich Münsterschen Offizialats in Vechta i.O.
Unser Lieben Frauen Kirchhof 20
28195 Bremen, Germany

No automated decision-making or profiling takes place. The automatic spam check of the contact form serves solely to prevent misuse.

We update this privacy policy when our website or the legal requirements change. The version published here applies.