With the exception of the use of advertising to subsidise my costs, this website is a purely personal enterprise and as such, please treat your information as if dealing with any private member of the public.

I am committed to respecting your privacy. This notice is to explain how information relating to your interaction with this website is used, how the law on data protection is complied with and what your rights are. For the purposes of data protection I will be the controller of any of your personal information.

1. Personal information

   I may collect the following types of personal information about you:

   • Contact details: information that allows me to identify and contact you directly such as your name, and address email address.
   • Personal and family information: As provided by yourself in the above “Contact Me” web form or other forms of communication.
2. Special categories of personal information

   I may collect special categories of personal information such as race, religion, sexual orientation, legal, medical history and genetical information. In relation to the special category personal data that I do process I do so on the basis that you wish to share this information with me to:

   • progress family investigations
   • correct or remove inaccurate information
   • for the purpose of any other request you explicitly make in the Contact Me form.
3. Sources I collect your personal information from

   I will collect personal information from a number of sources. These may include the following:

   • Directly from you: when you complete and send the Contact Me form on this website.
   • Directly from you: in writing, telephone or in person
   • My website: provides me with information about how you use it and the devices that you use to connect to my website.
4. What I use your personal information for

   The table below describes the main purposes for which I process your personal information, the categories of your information involved and my lawful basis for being able to do this. Which will apply will depend upon the nature of your relationship and interactions with me.

   PurposePersonal information usedLawful basis Progress my family history research.Contact details and all other personal informationI have a legitimate interest in personal details for the purposes of conducting family history research. Respond to your queries or comments.Contact details and all other personal informationI have a legitimate interest in being able to contact you in respect of information provided. Publish family history information.Information relating family members who are deceased, or known to be over 100 years old.I have a legitimate interest in publishing historical information. Maintain ongoing contact with you for the purpose of family history research.Contact details.I have a legitimate interest in developing my family history research network. Maintain and improve my website.All the personal information I collect.I have a legitimate interest in providing accurate and accessible information. Data analytics and statistical analysis to help me improve my website.How you use my website.I have a legitimate interest to improve my website and user experience

   Where you have given me your consent to use your personal information in a particular manner, you have the right to withdraw this consent at any time, which you may do by contacting me as described in the “Contact Me” section above.

   Please note however that the withdrawal of your consent will not affect any use of the data made before you withdrew your consent and I may still be entitled to hold and process the relevant personal information to the extent that I am entitled to do so on bases other than your consent.

   I may anonymise and aggregate any of the personal information I hold (so that it does not directly identify you). I may use anonymised and aggregated information for purposes that include testing my IT systems, research, data analysis, improving my site and developing new products and services.

5. Who I share your personal information with

   I may share your personal information with the following parties:

   • Any party approved by you.
   • My essential service providers and advisors: such as companies that support my IT, provide me with legal advice and generally help my deliver the website.

   No personal information is published on this website for any individual who was born less than 100 years ago and who does not have a recorded date of death or burial.

   These living, or presumed living, individuals' may appear anonymously in published family trees as "A Private Individual". No personal information relating to these individuals is uploaded or published on this website.

   I will not disclose your personal information to anyone else except as set out above unless I have your consent or I am legally obliged to do so. I will not sell your data.

6. Direct Marketing

   I will not send any Direct Marketing emails.

7. Transferring your personal information internationally

   The personal information I collect may be transferred to and stored in countries outside of the UK and the European Union. Some of these jurisdictions require different levels of protection in respect of personal information and, in certain instances, the laws in those countries may be less protective than the jurisdiction you are typically resident in. I will take all reasonable steps to ensure that your personal information is only used in accordance with this privacy notice and applicable data protection laws and is respected and kept secure and where a third part processes your data on my behalf I will put in place appropriate safeguards as required under data protection laws. For further details please contact me by using the details set out in the “Contacting us” section below.

   In limited circumstances the people to whom I may disclose personal information as mentioned in section 5 above may be located outside of the UK and European Union. In these cases I will impose any legally required protections to the personal information as required by law before it is disclosed.

   If you require more details on the arrangements for any of the above then please contact me using the details in the “Contacting us” section below.

8. How long do I keep personal information for?

   Information forming the basis of my family history research may be retained indefinitely and cited as evidence for recorded historical facts.

   For individuals seeking information, making complaints or otherwise corresponding with me it will generally be 6 years.

   For website usage data it will generally be a period of 6 years after you used my website.

   It is important to ensure that the personal information I hold about you is accurate and up-to-date, and you should let me know if anything changes. You can contact me by using the details set out in the “Contacting us” section below.

9. Security

   I have numerous security measures in place to protect the loss, misuse and alteration of information under my control, such as passwords and firewalls. I cannot, however, guarantee that these measures are, or will remain, adequate. I do, however, take data security very seriously and will use all reasonable endeavours to protect the integrity and security of the personal information I collect about you.

10. Your rights in relation to your personal information

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

    • the right to be informed about how your personal information is being used;
    • the right to access the personal information I hold about you;
    • the right to request the correction of inaccurate personal information I hold about you;
    • the right to request the erasure of your personal information in certain limited circumstances;
    • the right to restrict processing of your personal information where certain requirements are met;
    • the right to object to the processing of your personal information;
    • the right to request that I transfer elements of your data either to you or another service provider; and
    • the right to object to certain automated decision making processes using your personal information.
    • You should note that some of these rights, for example the right to require me to transfer your data to another service provider or the right to object to automated decision making, may not apply as they have specific requirements and exemptions which apply to them and they may not apply to personal information recorded and stored by me. For example I do not use automated decision making in relation to your personal data. However some have no conditions attached, so your right to withdraw consent or object to processing for direct marketing are absolute rights.

    Whilst this privacy notice sets out a general summary of your legal rights in respect of personal information, this is a very complex area of law. More information about your legal rights can be found on the Information Commissioner's website at https://ico.org.uk/for-the-public/.

    To exercise any of the above rights, or if you have any questions relating to your rights, please contact me by using the details set out in the Contact Me form above.

    If you are unhappy with the way I am using your personal information you can also complain to the UK Information Commissioner's Office or your local data protection regulator. I am here to help and encourage you to contact me to resolve your complaint first.

11. Changes to this notice

    I may update this privacy notice from time to time. When I change this notice in a material way, I will update the version date at the bottom of this page. For significant changes to this notice I will try to give you reasonable notice unless I am prevented from doing so. Where required by law I will seek your consent to changes in the way I use your personal information.

12. Contacting me

    In the event of any query or complaint in connection with the information I hold about you, please use the contact form above.

Version dated 16 Sep 2022