Cookies

Cookies are usually small text files, given ID tags that are stored on your computer's hard drive.

Cookies are created when you use your browser to visit a website that uses cookies to keep track of your movements within the site, help you resume where you left off, remember your registered login, theme selection, preferences, and other customization functions.

In todays internet world the majority of websites will use the cookie information to try and enhance the the user experience, improve performance and to collect statistics on the people visiting a website.

We use cookies and similar tools across our website to improve performance and enhance your user experience. This policy explains how we do that.

We use 2 different types of Cookies :-

Performance Cookies

These cookies allow us to analyse how our visitors use our websites and to monitor website performance. This allows us to provide a high quality experience by customising our offering and quickly identifying and fixing any issues that might arise. For example, we use performance cookies to keep track of how are pages are being accessed, from which browsers, which pages are most popular, which method of linking between pages is most effective, and to determine why some pages are receiving error messages.

Behaviourally Targeted Advertising Cookies

We also link with third parties to provide targetted advertsiing. For example our advertisers will want to show adverts which are (a) pertainant to our website content and (b) also of relevance to the person browsing the website. In this way a person can take advantage of adverts that the advertisers know they are already shown a possible interest in rather than showing adverts we are completely irrelevant.

The cookies themselves can be of 2 categories :-

Session cookies

- these are temporary and are erased when you close your browser at the end of your surfing session. The next time you visit that particular site it will not recognise you and will treat you as a completely new visitor as there is nothing in your browser to let the site know that you have visited before.

Persistent cookies

- these remain on your hard drive until you erase them or they expire. How long a cookie remains on your browser depends on how long the visited website has programmed the cookie to last.

You can manage these small files and learn more about them from the article, Internet Browser cookies – what they are and how to manage them.

If you'd like to learn how to remove cookies set on your device, visit: 'Our use of cookies'.

More detail on how businesses use cookies is available at www.allaboutcookies.org. Details on cookies used for behavioural marketing can be found here http://www.youronlinechoices.com/uk/