Cookie policy

EU regulations require us to provide site visitors with a description of the purpose of cookies and how they are used on our website. The regulations also require site visitors to consent to cookies being stored on their computer, laptop, tablet, or mobile device.

We use cookies to monitor how our website is used and to ensure that we give visitors the best experience we can. These cookies are anonymous and do not collect or hold personal information.

If you continue to use our website without changing your browser-based cookie settings, we will assume that you are happy for us to store our cookies on your device – by using our website, you are giving your consent for the deployment of our cookies.

Should you choose to, you can change your cookie settings at any time – please read the ‘how can I control cookies’ section of this policy for advice on how to do this.

If you choose to block our cookies, some of the functionality of the website will not be available and this may adversely affect the performance and experience of the site.

If at any time we change the cookies, we will make sure you are aware by updating this policy. We recommend you re-visit this policy from time to time to ensure you remain up to date.

Please read the rest of this policy for information on the types and uses of cookies, and for a detailed description of the cookies we use.

What is a cookie?

A cookie is a small text file that is created and stored on your web browsing device by a website (or certain functional elements of a website).

Only the website (or function) that created the cookie can retrieve or read the contents within it. When you re-visit a website that uses cookies, it will check for its cookies on your device and read the information within them. Depending on the purpose of the cookie, the website will usually use that information to ‘tailor’ itself to suit you.

Each cookie contains anonymous information (typically a unique identifier, the website name, and some digits and numbers), and is specific to your web browser.

Cookies can be used for a wide variety of tasks, such as storing your website preferences, enhancing navigation between pages and improving your user experience. Cookies help make the interaction between you and the website simpler, smoother and more intuitive.

Without cookies or similar technologies, websites would not easily be able to ‘remember’ who has previously visited them – logging into a website or adding items to a shopping basket would be much more complicated.

Types of cookies

Cookies can be created by the main website you are visiting (‘first party cookies’), or by other websites that are contributing (or ‘feeding’) content to the page you are viewing (‘third party cookies’).

Regardless of their source, cookies are given a lifespan when they are created – they will either exist for the duration of your visit on the website (‘session cookies’), or they will exist for a defined period after your visit (‘persistent cookies’) so that they are available if you return to the site.

A third ‘level’ of categorisation exists which groups cookies as:

‘strictly necessary’: enabling websites to provide certain core features or functions that are expected/requested.                                                                                                                                   ‘performance’ orientated: improving the performance of the website, and the experience of the user.                                                                                                                                                            ‘functionality’ orientated: enhancing or adding non-essential functionality to website (for example, storing your preferences for return visits).                                                                                                ‘targeting’ orientated: enabling websites to ‘target’ advertising, marketing or other content based on the location and/or browsing habits (among others) of the user. 

First party cookies and third party cookies                                                                                                       

First party cookies are created, governed and accessed only by the main website you are visiting.

Third party cookies are created, governed and accessed by ‘external’ websites that are contributing content or functionality to the main website. The third party organisation responsible for these cookies may use them to track your journey or store your preferences across multiple websites.

Examples of typical third party content or functionality that may deploy their own cookies:  user access tracking from external analytics companies, such as Google Analytics; embedded videos from sites such as YouTube or Vimeo; social sharing options from sites such as Facebook and Twitter; content ‘feeds’ from sites such as Flickr and Twitter.

Some websites also use third party advertising services to deliver targeted advertising – and some of these advertising services use cookies to track your browsing across multiple sites to assess which advertisements should be displayed to you. We do not use any such services and there are no advertising cookies on this site. In fact, we do not use any cookies which track your behaviour outside of this website.

Third party cookies are not, by default, governed or controlled by the first party website – setting cookie preferences on the website itself will only affect the deployment of first party cookies and not third party cookies.

To manage third party cookies, you should check the relevant third party website for advice. (Alternatively, use your browser settings to control the deployment of third party cookies.)

A note about Flash cookies:

Adobe Flash Player is commonly used to deliver media rich content, such as video and interactive entertainment. (Visit the Adobe Flash Player website for more information.)

Adobe deploy their own third party cookies for use by the Flash Player and these are not manageable through the normal browser settings. (Flash cookies work in a different way to ‘standard’ web browser cookies, and are not stored within the browser.) Some web browser developers are preparing solutions to allow the control of Flash cookies through their browsers, but until these options are available we suggest visiting the Flash Player website to find out how to restrict or block Flash cookies.   

 Session cookies 

 Session cookies are temporary and only exist during your browsing session – once the browser is closed, they are deleted from the browsing device.

Session cookies are used for features like:

‘remembering’ the contents of a shopping basket; ensuring uninterrupted but secure access to user accounts (for example, internet banking and email).

Persistent cookies   

Persistent cookies are semi-permanent – they are saved to the browsing device for a fixed period (which could be a month, a year, or longer) and are retained when the browser is closed.

Persistent cookies are used for features like ‘remembering’ a user and their preferences across multiple browsing sessions.

Strictly necessary cookies Cookies that provide features or functionality that are specifically requested/required (for example, enabling visitors to navigate through the site) are classed as ‘strictly necessary’.

Without these cookies, the website would not be able to provide site visitors with the service that they expect or need.

Features such as automatic sign in (which is typically requested using a ‘remember me’ option) would use a ‘strictly necessary’ cookie.

If browser settings are used to deactivate strictly necessary cookies, the website may become unusable. At the very least, it will no longer be possible to guarantee security or predict how the website will perform.

Performance cookies

Cookies that help to improve the performance and/or user experience on a website are classed as ‘performance’ cookies.

Performance cookies can include those that collect information about how a visitor interacts with the website. These cookies do not collect any information that could be used to identify the visitor, or that could be used for marketing/advertising purposes.

The collected information is anonymous and used only to improve the relevant organisations’ understanding of how the website works, how effective it is at presenting its content and to help improve the understanding of what its visitors require.

Functionality cookies

Cookies that enhance the features, functionality and user experience are classed as ‘functionality’ cookies.

Functionality cookies can include those that store details of your site preferences, allowing a website to ‘remember’ you and ensure that, when you have chosen a specific option on the site, your choices are retained for each visit.

If you have requested that content is tailored to your requirements, it is possible that a functionality cookie has been used to record this preference (for example, specifying your location to receive information specific to your area).

Targeting cookies

Cookies that attempt to automatically tailor content based on the visitor’s journey and interactions on a website are classed as ‘targeting’ cookies.

Targeting cookies are typically used for marketing and advertising purposes, delivering content which is relevant to the visitors’ interests and their browsing habits.

Targeting cookies are often governed by third party services.