Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy explains how Britannia History Academy collects, uses and protects personal data for learners, enquirers and visitors in the United Kingdom. The Academy is the data controller for personal information processed for course administration, communications and website services. We aim to be transparent and to comply with applicable UK data protection law, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. Please read this policy carefully. If you have questions or wish to exercise your rights, contact our data team at [email protected] or by post at the address shown below. The policy covers information collected directly from you, information collected automatically through our website and information provided by third parties to support enrolment or learning delivery.
Information we collect
We collect personal information necessary for course administration, communication and user experience. When you register for a course or make an enquiry we typically collect your name, email address, postal address, telephone number, billing details where applicable and details you provide about learning needs or accessibility. For applicants we may also record educational background and relevant qualifications required to advise on pathway suitability. When you use our website we collect technical data such as IP address, device information and pages viewed to help improve the site. If you make payments through our secure systems we receive transaction data and limited card details only as required by the payment processor; full card numbers are not retained by the Academy. Where you provide sensitive personal data such as disability adjustments or health-related information to support accessibility we treat that as special category data and process it only where necessary to provide reasonable adjustments and with your explicit consent or other permitted lawful basis. We retain only the information needed for the purposes described below and handle all data in accordance with this policy.
How we use your information and lawful basis
We use personal data to perform our contract with learners, to handle enquiries, to administer course delivery and to provide customer support. Typical processing activities include sending course information, hosting seminars, providing study materials, marking and returning assessed work, and processing payments. Where we process special category data (for example to provide accessibility adjustments) we do so on the basis of explicit consent, where necessary to meet our obligations to provide reasonable adjustments, or for reasons of substantial public interest where permitted by law. We also process data for legitimate interests such as ensuring the security of our services, improving the learning experience, and maintaining accurate records; in such cases we balance our interests against your privacy rights and minimise the data we use. We will not use your data for unrelated purposes without telling you and, where required by law, obtaining your consent. You may withdraw consent where processing depends on it, and refusing or withdrawing consent may limit the services we can provide in certain circumstances (for example, where accessibility information is essential to make adjustments).
Cookies and similar technologies
Our website uses cookies and similar technologies to provide essential site functions and to improve usability. Essential cookies enable navigation, session management and secure access to forms and account areas. Performance cookies collect anonymous usage statistics to help us understand how visitors use the site and where improvements are needed. We also use functional cookies for features such as storing language preferences and remembering form inputs for the duration of a session. For analytics and non-essential cookies we obtain consent through the cookie banner shown on the site; you can accept or reject non-essential cookies and change preferences at any time via your browser settings or by contacting us. We do not use cookies to profile individuals for advertising purposes. Further details about cookie categories and retention periods are available on request. If you choose to reject non-essential cookies some features may not work as intended but core site functionality and access to course information will be maintained.
Disclosure, third parties and transfers
We share personal data with trusted third parties where necessary to deliver services, for example with payment processors for transaction handling, cloud hosting providers for our learning platform and email service providers to send course communications. Where we engage third-party processors they act only on our instructions and we put appropriate contractual safeguards in place to protect your information. We may also disclose data where required by law or to protect the Academy’s legal rights. Where transfers of personal data occur outside the UK or European Economic Area we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as standard contractual clauses or reliance on an adequacy decision, and we minimise international transfers where possible. We never sell personal data to third parties for marketing or advertising purposes. For specific categories of processing (for example joint course delivery with an institutional partner) we will provide additional details about the partners involved and the legal basis for sharing before or at the point of data collection.
Retention, security and your rights
We retain personal data only as long as necessary for the purposes set out in this policy, for example to administer completed courses, to comply with legal obligations (such as financial record keeping) and to respond to queries. Typical retention periods vary by category of data: enquiry records are retained for a limited period after resolution, course records and assessment outcomes are kept for the duration required to support academic references and regulatory compliance, and financial records are retained to satisfy statutory reporting requirements. We implement technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure or destruction, including encrypted data storage, access controls and staff data-protection training. Under UK data protection law you have rights including the right to access personal data we hold about you, to request rectification, to request erasure in certain circumstances, to restrict processing, to object to processing based on legitimate interests and to request data portability where applicable. To exercise those rights or to raise a complaint contact us at [email protected] or by post to the data team at the address below. If you remain dissatisfied you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office in the UK.
Contact and data controller
Britannia History Academy is the data controller. Contact details: Britannia History Academy, 14 Bloomsbury Court, Bloomsbury Square, London WC1B 4JD. Telephone: +44 20 7946 0123. Email: [email protected]. For enquiries about data protection, to exercise your rights or to request copies of records we hold about you, please write or email the data team. If you require assistance in an alternative format we will make reasonable adjustments to communicate with you. This policy may be updated from time to time; the current version is published on this page with the effective date noted below. We will notify you of significant changes where required by law or where changes materially affect the way we process personal data for course administration or learner support.