Cookies are text files placed on your computer to collect standard Internet log information and visitor behaviour information. When you visit our websites, we may collect information from you automatically through cookies or similar technology. For further information, visit allaboutcookies.org or see the bottom section of these pages.

How do we use cookies?

Our Company uses cookies in a range of ways to improve your experience on our website, including:

• Understanding how you use our website
• Add any uses your company has for cookies

What types of cookies do we use?

There are a number of different types of cookies, however, our website uses:

Functionality – Our Company uses these cookies so that we recognize you on our website and remember your previously selected preferences. These could include what language you prefer and the location you are in. A mix of first-party and third-party cookies are used.

Advertising – Our Company uses these cookies to collect information about your visit to our website, the content you viewed, the links you followed and information about your browser, device, and your IP address. Our Company sometimes shares some limited aspects of this data with third parties for advertising purposes. We may also share online data collected through cookies with our advertising partners. This means that when you visit another website, you may be shown advertising based on your browsing patterns on our website. [Add any other types of cookies your company uses] Our Company uses these cookies to collect information about your visit to our website, the content you viewed, the links you followed and information about your browser, device, and your IP address. Our Company sometimes shares some limited aspects of this data with third parties for advertising purposes. We may also share online data collected through cookies with our advertising partners. This means that when you visit another website, you may be shown advertising based on your browsing patterns on our website. [Add any other types of cookies your company uses]

How to manage cookies

You can set your browser not to accept cookies, and the above website tells you how to remove cookies from your browser. However, in a few cases, some of our website features may not function as a result.

About Cookies

1) What are ‘cookies’? Cookies are small pieces of information, normally consisting of just letters and numbers, which online services provide when users visit them. Software on the user’s device (for example a web browser) can store cookies and send them back to the website next time they visit.

2) How are cookies used? Cookies are a specific technology that store information between website visits. They are used in numerous ways, such as:

• remembering what’s in a shopping basket when shopping for goods online;
• supporting users to log in to a website;
• analysing traffic to a website; or
• tracking users’ browsing behaviour.

Cookies can be useful because they allow a website to recognise a user’s device. They are widely used in order to make websites work, or work more efficiently, as well as to provide information to the owners of the site. Without cookies or some other similar method, websites would have no way to ‘remember’ anything about visitors, such as how many items are in a shopping basket or whether they are logged in.

3) What are ‘session’ and ‘persistent’ cookies?

Cookies that expire at the end of a browser session (normally when a user exits their browser) are called ‘session cookies’. Cookies that can be stored for longer are called ‘persistent cookies’. PECR applies to both types. Session cookies allow websites to recognise and link the actions of a user during a browsing session. They may be used for a variety of purposes such as remembering what a user has put in their shopping basket as they browse around a site. Cookies can also be used for security purposes, such as when a user logs in to internet banking or their webmail. These session cookies expire after a session ends, so would not be stored beyond this. For this reason, session cookies may sometimes be considered less privacy-intrusive than persistent cookies. Persistent cookies are stored on a user’s device in-between sessions. They can allow the preferences or actions of the user across a site (or across different websites) to be remembered. Persistent cookies may be used for a variety of purposes including remembering users’ preferences and choices when using a site or to target advertising. The length of time between a cookie being set and expiry is set by the website operator. A user can also delete previously set persistent cookies manually or configure the browser settings to delete cookies at a set interval.

4) What are ‘first-party’ and ‘third-party’ cookies? Whether a cookie is ‘first’ or ‘third’ party refers to the website or domain placing the cookie. First-party cookies are set directly by the website the user is visiting, ie the URL displayed in the browser’s address bar. Third-party cookies are set by a domain other than the one the user is visiting. This typically occurs when the website incorporates elements from other sites, such as images, social media plugins or advertising. When the browser or other software fetches these elements from the other sites, they can set cookies as well.

5) What are ‘similar technologies’? Functions usually performed by a cookie can be achieved by other means. This could include, for example, using certain characteristics to identify devices so that visits to a website can be analysed. PECR applies to any technology that stores or accesses information on the user’s device. This could include, for example, HTML5 local storage, Local Shared Objects and fingerprinting techniques.