What Cookies are and how we use them

A cookie is a small file which asks permission to be placed on your computer’s hard drive. Once you agree, the file is added and the cookie helps analyse web traffic or lets you know when you visit a particular site. Cookies allow web applications to respond to you as an individual. The web application can tailor its operations to your needs, likes and dislikes by gathering and remembering information about your preferences.

We use traffic log cookies to identify which pages are being used. This helps us analyse data about web page traffic and improve our website  to tailor it to customer needs. We only use this information for statistical analysis and then the data is removed from the system.

Overall, cookies help us provide you with a better website, by enabling us to monitor which pages you find useful and which you do not. A cookie in no way gives us access to your computer or any information about you, other than the data you choose to share with us.

There are two main kinds of cookies: session cookies and persistent cookies. Session cookies are deleted from your computer when you close your browser. Persistent cookies remain stored on your computer until deleted, or until they reach their expiry date.

You can choose to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. This may prevent you from taking full advantage of the website.

Blocking our Cookies

We do not use cookies to collect personally identifiable information about you but if you wish to restrict or block the cookies on our site, or indeed any other website, you can do this through your browser settings.

You may wish to visit www.aboutcookies.org which contains information on how to do this on a wide variety of browsers. You will also find details on how to delete cookies from your machine as well as more general information about cookies.

Please be aware that restricting cookies may impact or reduce the functionality of some websites. For information on how to do this on the browser of your mobile phone, please refer to your handset manual.

Cookies set by Third Parties

Third-party cookies are cookies that are set by a website other than the one you are currently on. For example, we might have a Facebook like button on our site. That like button will set a cookie that can be read by Facebook. That would be considered a third-party cookie. We do not have control over the cookies set by these services. You should check the third party websites for more information about their own cookies.

Google Cookies

We use Google Analytics to analyse the use of this website. Google Analytics generates statistical and other information about website use by means of cookies, which are stored on users’ computers. The information generated relating to our website is used to create reports about the use of the website. Google will store and use this information. Google’s privacy policy is available at: www.google.com/privacypolicy.html.