Cookie Usage

What is 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. They help us to be able to personalise your experience on our sites, tell us which parts of our websites people have visited, help us measure the effectiveness of ads and web searches, and give us insights into user behaviour so we can improve our communications and products.

Because cookies are used throughout our websites, disabling them may prevent you from using certain parts of the sites.

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.

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 products and/or services in response to what you might need or want.

The cookies used on our websites have been categorised based on the guidelines found in the ICC UK Cookie guide. We use the following categories on our websites and other online services:

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.

Third-party Cookies:
Usually stores an anonymous session ID allowing you to browse a website without having to login 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:

Category 1 — 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.

Category 2 — Performance Cookies

These cookies enable us to monitor and improve the performance of our website. — for instance, which pages you go to most. This data may be used to help optimize our websites and make them easier for you to navigate. These cookies are also used to let affiliates know if you came to one of our websites from an affiliate and if your visit resulted in the use or purchase of a product or service from us, including details of the product or service purchased. These cookies do not collect information that identifies you. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous.

Category 3 — 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 news or updates relevant to the services you use. 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.