How we use cookies
We want to be open in the way we use cookies, and to help you make informed choices about the information you provide to us and third parties when you visit our websites.
“A cookie is a small text file that is downloaded onto a device (e.g. a computer or smartphone) when the user accesses a website. It allows the website to recognise that user’s device and store some information about the user’s preferences or past actions.”
- From the Information Commissioner’s Office guidance on use of cookies
We use several types of cookies for a number of reasons across the college’s websites. Some are essential, while others you can opt out of or block. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. This may, however, prevent you from taking full advantage of the website’s functionality.
There are broad categories why a cookie will be stored on your device when visiting the college’s websites.
- Cookies that make the website work properly for you and enable you to make use of any secure online services that we provide.
- Cookies that collect data about your use of the website which is used to help us improve our online services.
- Cookies that remember your preferences and make the site easier for you to use.
- Cookies that are placed by third party services we make use of to enhance the information we present online. We have no control over these third party cookies, but specifically list their use and indicate the privacy statements of the organisations involved.
Some cookies are retained in your browser for only as long as you visit the website, while others persist for a longer specified or unspecified period.
This website uses the WordPress content management system, which uses cookies that are essential to its ability to function.
On initial access, this website informs visitors that cookies are used. This is facilitated by the dFactory Cookie Notice plugin mechanism which itself sets a cookie (cookie_notice_accepted) to store a visitor’s acknowledgement.
We also log website traffic using Google Analytics. This is a web analytics service to help us see how our website is used. In doing so, information about your use of our website, including your partial IP address, may be transmitted to Google. The data collected by Google Analytics is used to analyse how frequently the same people revisit the website, how the website is found (from advertising or referring websites), and which pages are most frequently viewed. This information is combined with data from thousands of other users to create an overall picture of usage, and is never identified individually or personally and is not linked to any other information we store about you.
The cookies used are:
_ga, _gid – Used to distinguish visitors, expires after 2 years, 24 hours respectively.
_gat_gtag… – Used to throttle request rate, expires after 1 minute.
Cookies set by third parties
The following third party functionality is embedded into certain pages of the website and as such, in connection with this, the third party will set their own cookie(s). We have no control over these cookies.
Eventbrite
An embedded event registration form is displayed on our by-invitation taster day and parents' induction evening pages. Their privacy statement can be found at: www.eventbrite.co.uk/privacypolicy
Issuu
Certain publications are presented using an interactive user interface provided by Issuu. Their privacy statement can be found at: issuu.com/legal/privacy
An embedded Twitter feed is displayed in the footer of each webpage. Their privacy statement can be found at: twitter.com/privacy