Privacy & Cookies Policy

1. Introduction

This Privacy & Cookies Policy explains how Oliver Gathercole (“I”, “me”, or “my”), a Digital Marketing Specialist based in Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom, collects, uses, stores, and protects personal data when you visit and use this website at olivergathercole.com (“the Website”).

I am committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal data in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR).

By using this Website, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this policy. If you do not agree with this policy, please stop using the Website.

2. Who Is the Data Controller?

The data controller for personal data collected through this Website is:

Oliver Gathercole
Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom
Email:

3. What Personal Data I Collect

I collect personal data in the following ways:

Contact Form. When you use the contact form on the Contact Me page, I collect your name, email address, and the content of your message. This is used solely to respond to your enquiry.

Newsletter Sign-Up. When you subscribe to my newsletter via the sign-up form on the homepage, I collect your email address. This is used to send you updates about my work, travels, and blog content.

Automatically Collected Data. When you visit the Website, certain technical data is collected automatically by analytics and tracking tools (see Section 5 – Cookies and Tracking). This may include your IP address, browser type, operating system, pages visited, time spent on pages, referring URL, and geographic location at a regional level.

4. Legal Basis for Processing

Under UK GDPR, I rely on the following legal bases to process your personal data:

• Consent — for analytical, functional, and advertisement cookies, and for sending newsletter emails. You can withdraw consent at any time via the cookie preference tool on the Website or by unsubscribing from emails.
• Legitimate Interests — for necessary cookies that are required for the Website to function, and for spam prevention via Akismet.
• Contract Performance — where processing is necessary to respond to your enquiries or requests.

5. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

This Website uses cookies and similar tracking technologies in accordance with PECR. A cookie is a small text file placed on your device when you visit a website. Some cookies are essential for the Website to operate, while others help improve your experience or enable analytics.

You can manage your cookie preferences at any time using the cookie consent tool displayed when you first visit the Website, or by clicking the “Cookie Preferences” button available on the site. You may also delete or block cookies through your browser settings, though this may affect the functionality of the Website.

5.1 Necessary Cookies

These cookies are essential for the Website to function correctly and cannot be disabled. They do not store any personally identifiable information.

5.2 Functional Cookies

These cookies enable enhanced functionality on the Website, such as displaying content from social media platforms. They are set only with your consent.

5.3 Analytical Cookies

These cookies help me understand how visitors use the Website, allowing me to improve its content and performance. They are set only with your consent.

Google may transfer data outside the UK. Google states it applies appropriate safeguards in accordance with applicable data protection law. You can review Google’s privacy policy at policies.google.com/privacy.

5.4 Advertisement Cookies

These cookies may be used to deliver advertising relevant to your interests or to measure the effectiveness of advertising campaigns. They are set only with your consent. This Website does not currently run paid advertising campaigns directly, but advertisement-capable tracking is present through Google Tag Manager and may be activated in future.

5.5 Third-Party Resources

The following third-party services are loaded on this Website and may set their own cookies or process data independently of my consent management:

6. How I Use Your Data

I use the personal data collected for the following purposes:

• To respond to enquiries submitted through the contact form
• To send newsletter updates to subscribers who have opted in
• To analyse Website traffic and improve the user experience via Google Analytics
• To protect the Website from spam and malicious form submissions via Akismet
• To manage and display Website content correctly

I do not sell, rent, or trade your personal data to any third party for marketing purposes.

7. Data Retention

I retain personal data only for as long as is necessary for the purposes for which it was collected:

• Contact form submissions — retained for up to 12 months, or until the enquiry is resolved, whichever is sooner
• Newsletter email addresses — retained until you unsubscribe
• Analytics data — retained in accordance with Google Analytics retention settings (typically 14 months by default)
• Cookie consent records — retained for up to 12 months from the date consent was given

8. Your Rights Under UK GDPR

You have the following rights in relation to your personal data:

• Right of access — you can request a copy of the personal data I hold about you
• Right to rectification — you can ask me to correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Right to erasure — you can ask me to delete your personal data in certain circumstances
• Right to restrict processing — you can ask me to limit how I use your data in certain circumstances
• Right to data portability — you can request your data in a structured, machine-readable format
• Right to object — you can object to processing based on legitimate interests
• Right to withdraw consent — where processing is based on consent, you can withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing

To exercise any of these rights, please contact me at . I will respond within one calendar month.

If you are unsatisfied with how I handle your request or your data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO):

Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF
Tel: 0303 123 1113
Website: ico.org.uk

9. Data Security

I take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised access, loss, or misuse. This Website uses HTTPS encryption. However, no method of transmission over the internet is completely secure, and I cannot guarantee absolute security.

10. International Data Transfers

Some of the third-party services used on this Website (notably Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Google Fonts, and Akismet) may process data outside the United Kingdom. Where this occurs, I rely on those providers’ own compliance with UK GDPR data transfer requirements, including their use of Standard Contractual Clauses or equivalent safeguards as approved by the ICO.

11. Changes to This Policy

I may update this Privacy & Cookies Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the law, my data practices, or the services used on this Website. The “Last updated” date at the top of this page will be revised accordingly. Where changes are material, I will take reasonable steps to inform you.

12. Contact

If you have any questions about this policy or how I handle your personal data, please contact me at: