COOKIES – What are they?

We use cookies on our websites to distinguish you from other users of our websites. This helps us to provide you with a good experience when you browse our websites and also allows us to improve our sites.

A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we store on your browser or the hard drive of your computer if you agree. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer’s hard drive. Each cookie is unique to your web browser. It will contain some anonymous information such as a unique identifier and the site name and some digits and numbers. It allows a website to remember things like your preferences or what’s in your shopping basket.

What cookies are used on our websites?
Our websites use the following types of cookies:

Strictly necessary cookies.
These cookies are required for the operation of our website. They are essential in order to enable you to move around our website and use its features, such as accessing secure areas of the site. Without these cookies some services you have asked for, cannot be provided.

Analytical/performance cookies.
These cookies collect information about how visitors use our website. They allow us to recognise and count the number of visitors and to see how visitors move around our site when they are using it. This helps us to improve the way our website works, for example, by ensuring that users are finding what they are looking for easily.  These cookies don’t collect information that identified individual visitors.  All information collected is aggregated and therefore anonymous and is only used to improve how our website works.

Functionality cookies.
These cookies are used to recognise you when you return to our website. They allow our website to remember choices you made (such as your user name) and provide enhanced, more personal features. These cookies may also be used to provide services you have asked for such as watching a video or commenting on a blog. These cookies do not track your browsing activity on other websites.

Please note that third parties (including, for example, providers of external services like web traffic analysis services) may also use cookies, over which we have no control. These cookies are likely to be analytical/performance cookies or targeting cookies.

Want to get rid of cookies or change your cookie settings?
You block cookies by activating the setting on your browser that allows you to refuse the setting of all or some cookies. However, if you use your browser settings to block all cookies (including essential cookies) you may not be able to access all or parts of our site. Refer to the help section of your particular browser to find out how to configure your own preferences. You may also wish to visit www.allaboutcookies.org which contains comprehensive information cookies and how to configure your cookie preferences.

The cookies we use on this site are as follows:

3rd party cookies:

1. Google Adsense – This will include a cookie on your machine to help display marketing adverts

2. Google Analytics – This will create a cookie for monitoring your visits to the website

3. Google Double Click – Cookie used for displaying a variety of marketing adverts.

4. Google Search – used for the search functionality used on this website

5. Monarch – cookie used for social media interaction used on the website, allowing you to share via Facebook, twitter etc.

6. Sign up to our newsletter uses the services of third party provider. I am not sure if they are writing a cookie, but I guess it’s likely.

7. WordPress / Invision power board – forum / blog engine used allowing you to sign up and sign in each time you visit.

If you continue to use this site then you are agreeing to our cookie policy and usage.