What’s a cookie?
•A “cookie” is a piece of information that is stored on your computer’s hard drive and which records how you move your way around a website so that, when you revisit that website, it can present tailored options based on the information stored about your last visit. Cookies can also be used to analyse traffic and for advertising and marketing purposes.
•Cookies are used by nearly all websites and do not harm your system. If you want to check or change what types of cookies you accept, this can usually be altered within your browser settings. You can block cookies at any time by activating the setting on your browser that allows you to refuse the setting of all or some cookies. However, if you use your browser settings to block all cookies (including essential cookies) you may not be able to access all or parts of our site and some parts of our site may not work correctly if you disable functional cookies.
How do we use cookies?
•We use cookies to track your use of our website. This enables us to understand how you use the site and track any patterns with regards how you are using our website. This helps us to develop and improve our website as well as our services in response to what you might need or want.
•Cookies are either:
– Session cookies: these are only stored on your computer during your web session and are automatically deleted when you close your browser – they usually store an anonymous session ID allowing you to browse a website without having to log in to each page but they do not collect any personal data from your computer;
or
– Persistent cookies: a persistent cookie is stored as a file on your computer and it remains there when you close your web browser. The cookie can be read by the website that created it when you visit that website again. We use persistent cookies for Google Analytics.
•Cookies can also be categorised as follows:
– Strictly necessary cookies: These cookies are essential to enable you to use the website effectively, such as when buying a product and / or service, and therefore cannot be turned off. Without these cookies, the services available to you on our website cannot be provided. These cookies do not gather information about you that could be used for marketing or remembering where you have been on the internet.
– Performance cookies: These cookies enable us to monitor and improve the performance of our website. For example, they allow us to count visits, identify traffic sources and see which parts of the site are most popular.
– Functionality cookies: These cookies allow our website to remember choices you make and provide enhanced features. For instance, we may be able to provide you with membership news or updates relevant to the services you use or events you book. They may also be used to provide services you have requested such as viewing a video or commenting on a blog. The information these cookies collect is usually anonymised. Please note that third parties who advertise or appear on our website (including, for example, social networks and providers of external services like web traffic analysis services) may also use cookies, over which we have no control. These cookies are likely to be analytical/performance cookies or targeting cookies. We embed a Twitter feed in our site. We also use YouTube, Facebook and animoto video feeds. When you view social media content via other 3rd party platforms integrated into our website those platforms may receive information including the web page you visited, your IP address, browser type, operating system, and cookie information. You should check their privacy policies for more detail.
What to do if you don’t want cookies set
While cookies are generally harmless, you may find it preferable not to allow, for example, targeting cookies to monitor your browsing habits and display advertising that has been targeted to your interests. In these cases, it is possible to block some or all cookies and to delete cookies that have already been set. If you choose to block cookies, we cannot guarantee or predict how our website will be affected and you may not be able to access all functionality.
How can I control cookies?
If you want to control which cookies are sent to your device, you can configure your browser to display a notification (and/or a request for permission) when a website attempts to deploy a cookie. You can also configure your browser to refuse cookies altogether, and you can delete any cookies that have already been set. Please use your browser’s help option to find out how to perform these actions within your browser.
Further information
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is responsible for monitoring and enforcing the EU cookie
regulations. The ICO website features a guide to the regulations and various aspects of cookies, including what
cookies are and how they are used. Please visit the ICO website for further information