This privacy notice has been written to inform you about how we process your personal data when you visit our website, and in particular our use of cookies and web analytics.
Who are we?
Dudley Academies Trust is a data controller as defined by the UK GDPR. This means that we determine the purposes for which your personal data is processed and how it is processed. We will only collect and use your personal data in ways that are compliant with data protection legislation.
For certain processing involving the use of cookies and insight data collected through the use of ‘like’ buttons and widgets inserted on our website, a third-party i.e. Facebook and Twitter, will be a Data Controller in its own right. You can visit their individual websites for their privacy information.
We have appointed Veritau Ltd as our Data Protection Officer (DPO). The role of the DPO is to monitor our compliance with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 and advise on data protection issues. If you would like to discuss this privacy notice or our use of your data, please contact Veritau or compliance.helpdesk@dudleyacademiestrust.org.uk.
- Veritau’s contact details are:
- Schools DPO Service
- Veritau
- West Offices
- Station Rise
- York
- North Yorkshire
- YO1 6GA
- schoolsdpo@veritau.co.uk // 01904 554025
Web analytics
Web analytics is the collection and analysis of the data generated when people visit and use a website. This helps the website owner know such things as the number of visitors to various parts of the website, the time they spend on the website and if they return to the website. Various tools are used to produce web analytics, such as Google Analytics, which uses a set of cookies to collect data.
This website uses the following web analytics:
What are cookies?
A cookie is a small file of text that may be saved on the memory or storage of your electronic device (computer, phone, or tablet, etc.) when you visit a website. Cookies are used to improve the way the website works and can be used to remember the information you’ve provided so that you don’t have to re-enter it on subsequent pages.
Two types of cookies are typically used:
Session cookies – these are temporary and are removed when you close your browser or leave a website. These are used to remember visitors as they move from page to page on a website and are typically used to store your basket when using online shopping.
Persistent cookies – these remain on your device for much longer, even after you close the browser or restart the device. They remain until you remove them or they expire, which can be up to 12 months. They are typically used to store information such as your name, language preferences, or login information.
We use third-party widgets (standalone applications that are inserted into the website, i.e. a newsfeed or banner) on the site, such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. These widgets may set their own cookies, and they also may use cookies that we have no control over.
What do we use cookies for?
We use cookies so that:
- We can distinguish you from other users of our website and provide a good experience.
- We can remember the information you’ve provided us with while on our website, so you don’t have to keep re-entering the information whenever you visit a new page.
- We can look at how you use our website so that we can improve it for other users.
We do not use cookies to:
- Monitor your usage of other websites (privacy intrusive cookies).
- Collect any personal information about you (without your express permission).
- Collect any sensitive information.
- Pass data to any advertising networks.
- Pass personal data to third parties.
What cookies are in use on this website?
| Name | Description | Expiry |
|---|---|---|
| Necessary | ||
| cookieadmin_consent | Used to store CookieAdmin WordPress Plugin's consent information | Session |
| Unknown | ||
| ep_session_id | Not Available | Session |
| Analytics | ||
| CLID | The cookie is set by embedded Microsoft Clarity scripts. The purpose of this cookie is for heatmap and session recording. | 365 days |
| _clck | This cookie is installed by Microsoft Clarity to store information of how visitors use a website and help in creating an analytics report of how the website is doing. The data collected including the number visitors, the source where they have come from, and the pages visited in an anonymous form. | 365 days |
| _clsk | This cookie is installed by Microsoft Clarity to store information of how visitors use a website and help in creating an analytics report of how the website is doing. The data collected including the number visitors, the source where they have come from, and the pages visited in an anonymous form. | 1 days |
| SM | This is a Microsoft cookie which we use to measure the use of the website for internal analytics | Session |
| Functional | ||
| __cf_bm | Cloudflare's bot products identify and mitigate automated traffic to protect your site from bad bots. Cloudflare places the __cf_bm cookie on End User devices that access Customer sites that are protected by Bot Management or Bot Fight Mode. The __cf_bm cookie is necessary for the proper functioning of these bot solutions. | -0 days |
| SRM_B | Collected user data is specifically adapted to the user or device. The usercan also be followed outside of the loaded website, creating a picture of the visitor's behavior. | 390 days |
| Marketing | ||
| MUID | Identifies unique web browsers visiting Microsoft sites. These cookies are used for advertising, site analytics, and other operational purposes. | 390 days |
| MR | Used to collect information for analytics purposes. | 7 days |
| ANONCHK | Used to store session ID for a users session to ensure that clicks from adverts on the Bing search engine are verified for reporting purposes and for personalisation | -0 days |
Consent for cookies
When you first visit our website using a new browser, we will provide you with a cookies permission banner, seeking your consent for the use of certain cookies.
Not all cookies require consent. Those which are needed for the operation of the website, known as ‘strictly necessary’ cookies, do not require consent. Without these cookies, the website cannot work as designed.
We use analytics cookies, including Microsoft Clarity, to help us understand how visitors use our website. These cookies are only placed on your device once you have provided consent through our cookie banner.
Other types of cookies do require consent. These include:
- Advertising or marketing cookies, which are used to target advertising on a website.
You can change your cookie preferences at any time through our cookie banner, but please be aware that opting out of cookies may affect your user experience on our website.
What is our lawful basis for processing your information?
Under the UK GDPR, it is essential to have a lawful basis when processing personal information. We normally rely on the following lawful bases:
- Article 6(1)(a) – consent
- Article 6(1)(f) – legitimate interest
We only rely on legitimate interests when we are using your data in ways you would reasonably expect.
Copyright
All information on this website, including but not limited to graphics, design, text, and images, is subject to our copyright or a third party that has given permission for us to use the material. We grant permission to electronically copy, print to hard copy, or transfer such material, so long as it is for our business only.
Disclaimer and external links
We make every effort to ensure the content on this website is correct and factual. We accept no liability for any inconvenience or loss caused by reliance on any information contained on this website.
We make every effort to ensure links to external websites are secure. We accept no liability for the privacy practices of those external websites.
Accessibility
Dudley Academies Trust is committed to ensuring that its website is accessible to all users, including people with disabilities. We aim to make our website accessible and usable for the widest possible audience and are continually working to improve the accessibility of our online services.
We strive to comply with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 and the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 Level AA standard.
Our full Accessibility Statement, including details of any known accessibility issues, accessibility features, and how to request information in an alternative format, can be found here.
If you experience any difficulty accessing information on this website or require content in an alternative format, please contact us at:
Email: marketing.helpdesk@dudleyacademiestrust.org.uk.
We will consider all requests and respond as promptly as possible.
What rights do you have over your data?
Under the UK GDPR, you have the following rights in relation to the processing of your data:
- to be informed about how we process your personal data. This notice fulfils this obligation.
- to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
- to request that your personal data be amended if it is inaccurate or incomplete.
- to request that your personal data be erased where there is no compelling reason for its continued processing.
- to request that the processing of your personal data be restricted.
- to object to your personal data being processed.
If we cannot resolve your concerns, then you may also complain to the Information Commission, which is the UK’s data protection regulator. Its contact details are below:
The telephone helpline (0303 123 1113) is open Monday to Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. (excluding bank holidays). Alternative methods to report, enquire, register, and raise complaints are available on the ICO’s website here.
Changes to this notice
We reserve the right to change this privacy notice at any time. We will typically notify you of changes that affect you. However, please check regularly to ensure you have the latest version.
This privacy notice was last reviewed 18/08/2026