Cookie policy. A smaller footprint.

1. What cookies do

Cookies are small files or browser records used to remember a setting or support a service. Bralton keeps the system limited and explains the choices available to visitors in the United Kingdom. Technically, a cookie is a small piece of text stored by your browser when you visit a website, which the site can read back on a later visit to recognise a returning browser or remember a choice previously made. This website also uses closely related browser storage, such as local storage, for the same general purpose of remembering a setting without identifying a person by name. Some records are strictly necessary for the site to work as requested, while others are optional and only used with a visitor's consent, and this policy sets out which category each record falls into. Where UK guidance from the Information Commissioner's Office or updates to the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations change how a category of cookie should be treated, we will review and, if needed, update this page to reflect that guidance.

2. Essential operation

Session records may support navigation and security. They usually expire when the browser closes. These records are used because the website cannot reliably provide a requested function without them. For example, a session record may help the contact form remember that a submission is in progress, or help prevent an automated script from repeatedly submitting the same form within a short period. Because these records are classed as strictly necessary under the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations, they are set automatically without requesting consent through the cookie banner, in the same way that a shopping basket or login session on other websites is typically exempt from consent requirements. These records do not track browsing activity across other, unrelated websites and are not used for advertising purposes. If a session record is blocked entirely at the browser level, some interactive features, such as form submission, may not work correctly, though article pages themselves remain readable.

• a) Typical lifespan: until the browser tab or window is closed.
• b) Purpose: form handling and basic security, not advertising or cross-site tracking.
• c) Consent status: exempt as strictly necessary; not shown as an optional choice in the banner.

3. Consent record

The cookie banner stores cookieChoice as accept or reject in local browser storage for up to 12 months. It does not contain a name, email address or article history. Clearing browser storage removes the choice. This record exists purely so that a returning visitor is not shown the same banner on every page load, which we consider a reasonable and proportionate use of storage given that the record contains no personal identifier beyond the accept or reject value itself. If a visitor uses more than one browser or device, or clears their browsing data, the choice recorded on that specific browser is lost and the banner will appear again on the next visit so a new choice can be made. Selecting "Cookie Settings" reopens the choice at any time, allowing a visitor to change from accept to reject or vice versa without needing to clear storage manually. After 12 months, the stored value expires automatically and the banner will be shown again to confirm the visitor's current preference.

4. Analytics

If analytics is enabled in a future release, the service will use an analytics cookie lasting no longer than 13 months. The service and purpose will be named in this page before activation. At present the editorial site prioritises simple, first-party behaviour. Any future analytics cookie would typically be used to understand which articles are read most often and how visitors move between pages, in aggregate, rather than to build a profile of any named individual. Before such a cookie is activated, we would update this page to name the specific analytics provider, describe the exact cookie name and lifespan, and add the cookie as an optional category in the consent banner so a visitor could accept or reject it independently of essential cookies. We would also review whether the chosen analytics service processes information outside the United Kingdom and, if so, confirm the safeguard relied upon, consistent with the international transfers section of our privacy policy. Until that update is published, no analytics cookie is active on this website, and server log data described in our privacy policy is the only technical record retained.

5. Preferences

Preference records may remember a menu or display choice for 12 months. They are optional and can be rejected through the banner without blocking article reading. An example would be a record that remembers whether the mobile navigation menu was left open or closed on a previous visit, purely for convenience and with no bearing on which articles are shown. These records are classed as non-essential because the website functions normally without them; a visitor who rejects them will simply have menu or display settings reset to default on each new visit rather than remembered between sessions. Preference records are stored on the visitor's own device and are not shared with any third party or combined with information from the contact or newsletter forms. Where a new preference-based feature is introduced, it will be added to this section with its own name and lifespan before being activated.

6. Browser controls

Most browsers allow visitors to delete or block cookies in privacy settings. Blocking every record may change how forms or consent controls behave. The banner remains available to record a new choice. Common browsers such as Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Edge each provide a privacy or site settings menu where stored cookies and site data can be viewed, deleted individually or blocked entirely for a specific website; the exact menu wording varies by browser and version, so we recommend checking the browser's own help pages for current instructions. Blocking cookies at the browser level is a broader setting than the on-site cookie banner and may also affect other websites the visitor uses, not just bralton.info. Many browsers also offer a private or incognito mode that avoids storing cookies beyond the current browsing session, which can be a convenient way to browse without a persistent consent record being kept. Regardless of browser-level settings, a visitor can always return to this page or use the "Cookie Settings" control to review what Bralton itself stores.

7. Third parties

Embedded map content on the contact page may set records according to Google’s own policies when loaded. Readers can avoid that page or review Google’s information before interacting with the map. The map is loaded directly from Google Maps so that visitors can see our Birmingham office location without leaving the website, and loading that embedded content may cause Google to set its own cookies under its own privacy terms, separate from anything described elsewhere in this policy. Bralton does not control what Google records when the map loads, how long that information is kept, or how it may be used by Google for its own purposes. Readers who prefer not to load third-party map content can instead rely on the postal address, phone number and email address printed on the contact page, all of which are provided without any embedded third-party service. Further detail on how Google handles this information is available directly from Google's own privacy policy, which we do not control and cannot summarise on Bralton's behalf.

8. Retention

Cookie settings are retained for 12 months unless removed sooner. Server logs connected with technical access are normally kept for 90 days and then deleted or aggregated. After the 90-day period, raw server log entries are either deleted outright or aggregated into summary statistics, such as total page views per day, that can no longer be traced back to an individual browser or visitor. The 12-month period for the consent record is a maximum rather than a guarantee; clearing browser storage, using a new device, or switching to a different browser will remove the record sooner, and the banner will then reappear to capture a fresh choice. These retention periods apply specifically to cookies and related browser storage; retention of information submitted through the newsletter or contact forms is instead governed by the retention periods set out in our privacy policy, which may differ from the periods described on this page.

9. Questions

Write to [email protected] with a question about cookies or send post to 12 Colmore Row, Birmingham B3 2QT. Please describe the specific cookie or browser record you are asking about, and, where relevant, the browser and device you were using, so that our editorial team can look into the matter accurately. We aim to acknowledge a cookie-related question within five working days and to provide a full answer within twenty working days, in line with the response times described in our disclaimer and privacy policy. Where a question overlaps with a broader personal data request, such as asking what information we hold about a specific email address, we will treat it under the user rights process described in our privacy policy rather than handling it solely as a cookie query. Postal correspondence should allow additional time for delivery before a reply can be expected.

10. Change log

24 September 2026: banner wording, storage names and lifespans reviewed. We will date future revisions on this page. This log is kept so a returning visitor can see at a glance whether the cookies used on this website have changed since their last review, without needing to compare the entire page line by line. If a future release introduces an analytics or preference cookie not currently active, as discussed in sections 4 and 5, that addition will be recorded here with the date it took effect, alongside the name, purpose and lifespan of the new record. Purely editorial corrections, such as fixing a typo or updating a contact detail, may be made without a new change log entry, but any change to which cookies are set, what they store or how long they last will always be logged with a date. Earlier versions of this policy can be requested by writing to [email protected].