What Are Cookies?

When you visit our website, it may store or retrieve information in your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Cookies are small text files that are transferred to your computer’s hard disk by a website. This information might be about you, your preferences or your device and is typically used to make the site work as you expect it. The information does not usually directly identify you, but it can give you a more personalized web experience.

What Types of Cookies Do We Use?

There are two broad categories of cookies: First party cookies, served directly by us to your device and third-party cookies, which are served by a third party e.g. Google, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn. Cookies can remain on your computer or mobile device for different periods of time. Some cookies are “session cookies”, meaning that they exist only while your browser is open. These are deleted automatically once you close your browser. Other cookies are “permanent cookies”, meaning that they survive after your browser is closed. They can be used by the website to recognize your computer when you open your browser and browse the Internet again.

This website uses the cookies that perform three functions, namely:

1. Strictly Necessary Cookies – These cookies are essential in order to enable you to navigate around the website and use its features, such as accessing secure areas of the website. These cookies don’t gather information about you that could be used for marketing or remembering where you have been on the internet. This category of cookies cannot be disabled.

We use the following strictly necessary cookies:

2. Functionality cookies – These cookies allow our site to remember the choices you make (such as your username, language, preferences, or region) to provide a more personalized online experience. These cookies collect information that may be anonymous but may also include personal information that you have disclosed. If you do not accept these cookies, the site’s performance and functionality may be affected, and access to content on the site may be restricted.

We use the following functionality cookies:

3.Performance Cookies – These cookies collect information about how visitors use a website, for instance which pages visitors go to most often, length of time spent on the site, and if they get error messages from web pages. These cookies don’t collect information that identifies you. All the information that these cookies collect is anonymous and is only used to improve how a website works.

We use the following performance cookies:

4. Advertising/Targeting cookies – These are used to deliver advertisements more relevant to you but can also limit the number of times you see an advertisement and be used to chart the effectiveness of an ad campaign by tracking users’ clicks. They are usually placed by third-party advertising networks with a website operator’s permission but can be also placed by the operator. These cookies can remember that you have visited a website, and this information can be shared with other organizations, including other advertisers. Without these cookies, online advertisements you encounter will be less relevant to you and your interests.

We use the following advertising cookies:

 

Google Analytics

This website uses Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc. (“Google”). Google Analytics uses “cookies”, which are text files placed on your computer, to help the website analyse how users use the site. The information generated by the cookie about your use of the website (including your IP address) will be transmitted to and stored by Google on servers in the United States. Google will use this information for the purpose of evaluating your use of the website, compiling reports on website activity for website operators and providing other services relating to website activity and internet usage. Google may also transfer this information to third parties where required to do so by law, or where such third parties process the information on Google’s behalf. Google will not associate your IP address with any other data held by Google. You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser. However, please note that if you do this you may not be able to use the full functionality of this website. By using this website, you consent to the processing of data about you by Google in the manner and for the purposes set out above.

For more details on how Google processes your data please visit Google’s Privacy Policy available at https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en. To opt out of being tracked by Google Analytics across all websites visit tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout. Compatible with Chrome, Internet Explorer 8–11, Firefox and Opera.

How Do We Use Information We Collect from Cookies?

We use software tools such as Web server logs to gather information about our website users’ browsing activities, in order to constantly improve our website and better serve our customers. This information assists us in designing and arranging our Web pages in the most user-friendly manner and to continually improve our website to better meet the needs of our customers and prospective customers.

Web server logs allow us to count how many people visit our website and evaluate our website’s visitor capacity. We do not use these technologies to capture your individual email address or any personally identifying information about you although they do permit us to send focused online banner advertisements or other such responses to you.

How to control or delete cookies

Because we respect your right to privacy, you can choose not to allow some types of cookies. You have the ability to accept or decline cookies by modifying the cookies settings in your browser. You can also delete cookies that have already been set. However, note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience with the site and the services we are able to offer. If you have accepted our use of some or all cookies, the above information relates to cookies used on this website only. Please note that any consent to accept or to decline cookies is limited to this website only and not to other third-party owned websites or any other webpages, which may be hyperlinked to this website. For more information on cookies used by those websites, please refer to the specific privacy notice or cookie policy on those websites.

If you wish to restrict or block web browser cookies which are set on your device, then you can do this through your browser settings; the Help function within your browser should tell you how or you can click on one of the links below to go directly to the user manual for your browser:

• Internet Explorer
• Mozilla Firefox
• Google Chrome
• Opera

Alternatively, you may wish to visit www.allaboutcookies.org or https://cookiepedia.co.uk/ which contain general information about cookies and comprehensive information on how to modify the cookie settings on a wide variety of browsers and how to delete cookies from your computer. For information on how to do this on the browser of your mobile phone or tablet you will need to refer to your device manual.