PRIVACY POLICY
Effective Date: 14 June 2025
1. Who We Are
This website, understandme.uk (the “Site”), is operated by Anne Marie Tracey of Understand Me CIC. Anne Marie Tracey is the data controller for this website. We are committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. This policy outlines how we collect, use, and protect the personal data you provide to us. For any privacy questions, please email info@understandme.uk.
2. What Data We Collect
We may collect the following information when you use our contact form:
- Your first and last name
- Your email address
- Your phone number
- The content of your message
Technical logs. When you visit the Site, our web server automatically records your IP address, the browser and device you use, and the date and time of your visit. We keep these logs to maintain security, diagnose faults and create anonymous usage statistics.
Social media plugins. The Facebook, X (Twitter) and Instagram buttons on our pages load code from each network’s own servers. When these buttons load, the networks receive your IP address, details of your browser, the page you are viewing and may set their own cookies. If you are logged in to the network, the visit can be linked to your social-media account.
Children. This Site is not directed at anyone aged 13 or under, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from children.
We also collect data about your use of our website through cookies, as detailed in the “Cookies and Analytics” section below.
3. How We Use Your Data and Our Lawful Basis
We use the information you provide through the contact form solely to respond to your enquiry and to follow up on our communications with you.
Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation, our lawful basis for processing contact-form data is Article 6 (1)(b) – steps you ask us to take before entering into a contract.
Analytics data are transferred to the United States under the UK–US Data Bridge
4. Data Storage and Security
The information you submit via our contact form is stored in our password-protected email inbox. We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to ensure your personal data is kept secure and protected against unauthorised access, loss, or destruction.
- SSL/TLS on every page
- Daily encrypted backups
- Strong password policy for WordPress and email
Access to this information is restricted to the website owner and the administration team.
5. Data Retention
We will retain the personal data submitted through our contact form for a period of up to 6 months after your enquiry has been resolved. This allows us to maintain continuity if you contact us again. After this period, your personal data is securely deleted.
6. Cookies and Analytics
This website uses cookies. A cookie is a small file placed on your computer’s hard drive that helps us analyse web traffic.
We use the standard version of Google Analytics to understand how visitors engage with our Site. Google Analytics collects information anonymously, such as the pages you visit and the time you spend on the Site. This helps us improve our website and your experience. This information is processed in a way that does not directly identify anyone.
We show a cookie banner with Accept and Reject buttons. You can revisit your choice at any time via the “Cookie Preferences” link in the footer.
7. Sharing Your Data
We share personal data only with 123-reg.co.uk, our hosting, email and backup provider, which acts as our data processor under a written contract.
8. Your Data Protection Rights
Under UK data protection law, you have rights over your personal data. These include:
- Your right of access– You have the right to ask us for copies of your personal information. This is commonly known as a “Subject Access Request.”
- Your right to rectification– You have the right to ask us to correct information you think is inaccurate or complete information you think is incomplete.
- Your right to erasure– You have the right to ask us to erase your personal information in certain circumstances.
- Your right to restriction of processing– You have the right to ask us to restrict the processing of your information in certain circumstances.
- Your right to object to processing– You have the right to object to processing if we3 are doing so based on our legitimate interests.
- Your right to data portability.
- Your right to withdraw consent at any time.
- Your right not to be subject to solely automated decisions that have legal or similar significant effects.
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the email address provided on our contact form.
9. How to Contact Us
If you have any questions about this privacy policy or the information we hold about you, please contact us via the details on our contact page.
If you believe we have not handled your data properly, email info@understandme.uk. We will acknowledge your complaint within 72 hours and aim to give a full response within five working days of that acknowledgement.
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which is the UK’s supervisory authority for data protection issues (www.ico.org.uk).
10. Changes to This Privacy Policy
We will update this Privacy Policy on our website and indicate the effective date of the new version. If the changes are significant, we will consider additional notifications (like a prominent notice on the homepage).