Cookie notice

This notice lists the cookies and similar technologies used on this website, and how to control them. It is written to meet the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 and the UK GDPR.

What a cookie is

A cookie is a small text file a website asks your browser to keep and hand back on later requests. It lets a site recognise that two page loads came from the same browser. We also use closely related browser storage, which works the same way from your point of view and is covered by the same rules.

Strictly necessary cookies

These are required for the website to work and, under the Regulations, do not need your consent. They cannot be switched off from within the site.

• Visit identification. A short random identifier assigned on arrival so repeat page loads in the same visit are not counted as separate visitors. Expires after 90 days.
• Arrival snapshot. Records the page that referred you and the query string you arrived with, so an outbound referral can be attributed correctly. Set as httpOnly and readable only by our server.
• Duplicate-visit flag. Prevents the same visit being recorded twice when you navigate between pages.
• Interface preferences. Local browser storage remembering that you dismissed the cookie banner, so it is not shown again.

Analytics cookies

These are optional and set only with your consent. They tell us which pages are read and where people lose interest, which is how we decide what to rewrite.

• Usage measurement. Our internal analytics system records page views and interactions in aggregate. Retained for up to 24 months.
• Session recording. A sampled subset of visits captures on-page interaction so we can see where a layout confuses people. Input fields are masked before the recording leaves your browser. Retained for up to 30 days.

We do not use advertising or cross-site tracking cookies, and we do not sell data collected through any of the above.

Referral attribution

When you follow an outbound link from this website, a click-tracking service records that the referral came from us so the publisher can credit it. This is how the site is funded. It records the referral, not your activity on the destination site — once you are there, that publisher's own privacy and cookie policies apply, and we have no visibility into what you do.

How to control cookies

You can withdraw consent for the optional cookies at any time by clearing this site's data in your browser, which removes the cookies and the stored record of your earlier choice.

Every major browser also lets you block or delete cookies for a specific site or in general. The controls sit under Privacy or Site settings in Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Edge; the built-in help for your browser has current step-by-step instructions.

Blocking the strictly necessary cookies will not stop you reading these pages, but it may mean your visit is counted more than once and that a referral is not attributed correctly.

Related information

For the wider picture — the lawful bases we rely on, retention periods and your rights — see the privacy notice. Questions about anything on this page can go to [email protected].