Privacy Policy

Hello, thank you for taking a look at my Privacy Policy, this stuff is important, and boring, so I will keep it as short as possible but there’s some information I have to put in because of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

So first up this website is owned and operated by me, Leesa Harwood, trading as By The Waves and whenever you see the words ‘I’, ‘me’ or ‘my’ that’s who it refers to. Unless otherwise stated I own the copyright so don’t be mean and copy stuff without asking first. If you want to contact me you can do so by emailing leesaharwood@bythewaves.co.uk or telephoning +44 (0)7463 768656 

Obviously I take the privacy of your information very seriously, everyone says that but I really mean it (my husband is a data protection officer so I don’t have a choice). This policy tells you what I will and won’t do with your information and what your rights are. I’m based, and work mainly in the UK so I will be complying with UK law, if you’re visiting the site from somewhere else in the world the laws may be different.

In a nutshell I will only use your information to provide you with the service you have asked for and to improve what I do, I won’t sell your data or spam you and I will keep it secure. Sometimes I might put links to other sites on my website but I am not responsible for any information you give if you click on them, you’ll need to check the other website’s privacy policy.

What information do I collect?

Any or all of the following

· Name

· Email address

· Postal Address

· Telephone Number

· Gender

· Job title

· Any other information you give which may be classed as personal data (i.e. relates to you as an identified or identifiable natural person – as opposed to an unidentifiable, unnatural one)

How do I collect it?

I collect the information when you fill in a form on this website or contact me in another way (e.g. by email or telephone when I may store the email or make notes of the conversation). 

I also collect some information automatically when you visit the website by using cookies – this is only used to see how my website is performing and which are the most, and least popular pages though, I don’t knowingly have any third party cookies on my website. You can read more about cookie data in my Cookie Policy below.

What do I use it for?

I will use the data you give me to provide you with information or the service you have requested or we have agreed I will provide. I will also use it to administer and improve my business.

What is the legal basis for my use of your information?

I will use your information either because you have agreed I can (consent), because we have, or we are negotiating, an agreement for my consultancy services (contract), because I am legally required to keep the information (e.g. for the tax man) (Legal Obligation), or because I have a legitimate interest in doing so (e.g. I might keep a record of our conversations for future reference)(Legitimate Interests).

How long will I keep it for?

I’ll keep your data only for as long as I need it – I have a small house and nowhere to store loads of paper. So if you have signed up to my mailing list I will only keep it for as long as you stay signed up. If I do some work for you I will keep the data for three years after the contract ends. If we discuss the possibility of me doing some work but nothing is agreed I will keep it for twelve months or until you tell me you are no longer interested in my services.

What are your rights?

The GDPR gives you some rights in relation to your personal data, they are:

· Right of access – you can ask me if I am processing your data – why, what and for how long and get a copy of the personal data I hold

· Right or Rectification – if I’ve got something wrong, tell me and I will correct it

· Right of Erasure – You can ask me to erase all your personal data, some of it I might have to keep though for legal reasons

· Right to Restrict use – under certain circumstances you can ask me to stop using your data but continue to store it

· Right to Data Portability – you can ask me to pass your data to another service provider

· Right to Object to me using your data – you can tell me to stop using your data for certain purposes like direct marketing.

· Right not to be subject to automated decision making – I don’t do this, but if I did you could ask me to have a human make the decision

If you want to exercise any of these rights, or withdraw any consent you have previously given you can contact me using the details above. 

If you’re not happy about the way I use your data let me know and I’ll see if I can fix it. If I can’t and you remain unhappy you have the right to complain to the relevant regulator who is The Information Commissioner – the contact details of the Information Commissioner’s Office can be found on their website www.ico.org.uk

To help me keep your information up to date and accurate please let me know as soon as possible if any of your details change.

COOKIE POLICY

Cookies are little text files that are stored on your computer when you visit a website and like pretty much every website on the world wide web mine has some of them. Some are necessary and my website won’t work without them and there some that are there to tell me how many people visit my website and where in the world they are from, but that’s all. I cannot identify anyone from the information I get from the cookies and I don’t do any funky stuff with them like track you around the internet and see what ads you’re looking at or what else you’re searching for.

For more information about cookies take a look at the ‘all about cookies’ website https://www.allaboutcookies.org/cookies/

If you are not happy with me using cookies just to count my visitors then you can adjust your browser settings or use the cookie management tool here (coming soon).